Supported Filmmakers at CPH:DOX 2024!

The 21st edition of CPH:DOX took place from Wednesday, March 13 to Sunday, March 24 in Copenhagen, Denmark. We are proud to see that 4 supported films and 13 supported filmmakers were part of the lineup and that many of our supported filmmakers also participated in the CPH:CONFERENCE and CPH: FORUM. Some of our team was also there to participate in person to support our filmmakers. See below for more details.

Stills from Wilfred Buck and Intercepted (Credit: Christopher Nunn)
  • 2023 Chicken & Egg Award Recipient Lisa Jackson’s Wilfred Buck | World Premiere | Dox:Award & BIPOC sections | dir. & prod. Lisa Jackson | prod. Alicia Smith, Lauren Grant
  • 2022 Chicken & Egg Award Recipient Brett Story’s Union | International Premiere | F:act Award & Nine to Five sections | dirs. Brett Story, Stephen Maing | prods. Samantha Curley, Mars Verrone
  • 2019 Chicken & Egg Award Recipient Lana Wilson’s  Look Into My Eyes | International Premiere | Special Premieres & Stranger Than Fiction sections | dir. Lana Wilson | prod. Kyle Martin
  • 2022 Critical Issues Fund Grantee Intercepted | Urgent Matters & Battlefields sections | dir. Oksana Karpovych | prods. Rocío B. Fuentes, Giacomo Nudi

From the AlumNest


CPH: FORUM

At CPH:FORUM, top producers and highly acknowledged directors from all over the world take the stage to pitch 30 carefully selected projects of documentary features and series in the intersection of nonfiction, fiction, visual art, journalism, and science. Seven films from our community of filmmakers were presented.

2023 Research & Development Grant recipient Cinderella Unbound, UK/RO
dir. & prod Ilinca Calugareanu | prod. Anamaria Antoci

Freedom (WT), DK
dir. Camilla Nielsson | prod. Signe Byrge Sørensen

In Praise of Invasive Species, CA
dir. Mila Aung-Thwin | prod. Bob Moore

Powwow People, US
dir. Sky Hopinka (2018 Art of Nonfiction fellow) | prod. John Cardellino

The Dirty Dream, IN
dirs. & prods. Rintu Thomas, Sushmit Ghosh

The Listeners, UK/US/FR
dir. & prod. Lindsey Dryden | prod. Samantha Steele

Victor, US
dir. Stephani Victor | prods. Diane Becker, Melanie Miller, Matt Radecki


CPH: CONFERENCE

A 4-day industry event offering a range of inspiring talks with visionary thinkers, investigating current themes in documentary filmmaking, and creating an interactive and hands-on platform for exchange with other professionals of our documentary community. The theme this year was Re:Building Narratives – Accessibility And Equity In Documentary. Our filmmakers were well represented across the different activities from Tuesday, March 19 to Friday, March 22.

SOCIETY: STORIES OF OUR LIFETIMES

Tuesday, March 19

With Lizzie Gillett and Sigrid Dyekjær, producers of supported film Merkel, as keynote speakers for the Viva Independent Feature Docs section. Clara Vuillermoz, producer of 2020 (Egg)celerator Lab Grantee Polaris was a speaker in the A Conflict of Interest or an Interest in Conflict? section. Lindsey Dryden, supported through the QUEER FUTURES program, also participated in the LGBTQIA panel. Curated by 2023 Development grant recipient Derren Lawford

FILM:MAKERS IN DIALOGUE

Wednesday, March 20

With 2022 Chicken & Egg Award Recipient Brett Story, Stephen Maing, producer of supported film Union, and Yance Ford, director of supported film Strong Island.

SCIENCE: WAYS OF KNOWING AND SEEING

Thursday, March 21

With 2023 Chicken & Egg Award recipient Lisa Jackson as a keynote speaker in the Stars: Indigenous Ways of Knowing section, and Mila Aung-Thwin, producer of 2020 (Egg)celerator Lab participant Midwives, as a speaker in the Action: Legacies of science, cinematic justice section.

2022 Chicken & Egg Award Recipient Margreth Olin is also considered an expert at the conference.


Meet our Team at CPH:DOX

Our Senior Program Manager Elaisha Stokes and Program Director Kiyoko McCrae attended and took 1:1 meetings with filmmakers.

We are proud to congratulate a longtime collaborator and advisor in our labs, Carla Gutierrez, for the international premiere of her new documentary, Frida.


Post written by Communications Assistant Tess Caldwell

31 Oscar-eligible films from our community!

Congratulations to the 14 Chicken & Egg-supported films and 17 from our Alumni community on the list of documentary features and shorts eligible for the 96th Academy Awards®! We encourage you to catch these films in theaters and on streaming platforms. The Oscars® Shortlist will be announced on Thursday, December 21, so stay tuned.

Against the Tide

dir. Sarvnik Kaur 

prod. Koval Bhatia, Quentin Laurent

Still of Against the Tide. Two men go through the content of their fishing net, there are a fish and plastic trash.
Still from Against the Tide

Against the Tide is a 2021 (Egg)celerator Lab grantee.

Find about upcoming screenings here.

graphic of a film reel

Bad Press

dirs. Rebecca Landsberry-Baker, Joe Peeler

prods. Conrad Beilharz, Garrett F. Baker, Tyler Graim

Indigenous journalist Angel Ellis sits in front of Mvskoke Media wearing a bandana , sunglasses and a "I Voted" sticker on her blue T-shirt. She's smoking a cigarette while scrolling through her cell phone on a warm summer evening.
Still from Bad Press

Bad Press is a participant of Project: Hatched 2023.

Find out about upcoming screenings here.

graphic of a film reel

Eat Bitter

dirs. Ningyi Sun, Pascale Appora-Gnekindy

prod. Mathieu Faure

The upper half is characters Luan and Thomas' faces and Thomas prays to the left of their faces; and the lower half is the back of Thomas' head and him getting ready to dive in the yellowish river.
Stills from Eat Bitter

Eat Bitter is a 2022 (Egg)celerator Lab finalist.

Find out about upcoming screenings here.

graphic of a film reel

El eco / The Echo

dir. & prod. Tatiana Huezo

prod. Dalia Reyes

Still from El Eco. Two young kids sit on a large rock jutting out from the side of a grassy hill. They are facing away from the camera. In front of them is a grassy valley with sheep grazing in it.
Still from El Eco/The Echo

El eco / The Echo was supported through Tatiana Huezo’s 2021 Chicken & Egg Award.  

graphic of a film reel

Joonam

dir. Sierra Urich

prod. Keith Wilson

A mother and daughter stand under opposite ends of a grape arbor together, harvesting grape leaves. A grandmother is seen sitting in the background with a walker in front of her. Each woman appears to be separately lost in thought.
Still from Joonam

Joonam is a 2022 (Egg)celerator Lab grantee.

Find out about upcoming screenings here.

graphic of a film reel

MnM

dir. Twiggy Pucci Garçon

prods. Colleen Cassingham, Jess Devaney

Still from MnM. Close up to the face of a person while a hand is using a brush to paint their eyelids.
Still from MnM

MnM was supported in partnership with Multitude Films as a part of the QUEER FUTURES (2022) series and is eligible for an Academy Award for Best Documentary Short Film.

graphic of a film reel

PAY OR DIE

dirs. & prods. Rachael Dyer, Scott Alexander Ruderman

prod. Yael Melamede

PAY OR DIE
Still from PAY OR DIE

PAY OR DIE is a participant of Project: Hatched 2023.

Now streaming on Paramount +

graphic of a film reel

Plan C

dir. & prod. Tracy Droz Tragos

PLAN C strategy meeting 2021. A group of people gathers around a table with plates and drinks while a person writes on a whiteboard.
Still from Plan C

Plan C is a 2022 Critical Issues Fund grantee.

Find out about upcoming screenings here or watch on demand here.

graphic of a film reel

Razing Liberty Square

dir. Katja Esson

prods. Ann Bennett, Corinna Sager, Ronald Baez

A young person is reclined in a thin column. There is a construction behind them.
Still from Razing Liberty Square

Razing Liberty Square is a 2022 Critical Issues Fund grantee.

The film will open theatrically in Miami on January 26 and the Broadcast Premiere will be on Independent Lens on January 29.

graphic of a film reel

Reality Winner

dir. & prod. Sonia Kennebeck

prod. Ines Hofmann Kanna

Still from United States vs. Reality Winner. A young woman, Reality Winner, is standing in a field in front of a house. She has a serious expression. The light is low and the background is out of focus.
Still from Reality Winner

Reality Winner was supported through Sonia Kennebeck’s 2023 Chicken & Egg Award.

graphic of a film reel

Songs of Earth

dir. & prod. Margreth Olin

prod. Lena Faye-Lund Sandvik

Still from Songs of Earth

Songs of Earth was supported through Margreth Olin’s 2022 Chicken & Egg Award.

graphic of a film reel

The Eternal Memory

dir. & prod. Maite Alberdi

prod. Juan de Dios Larraín, Pablo Larraín, Rocío Jadue

Still from the Eternal Memory
Still from The Eternal Memory

The Eternal Memory was supported through Maite Alberdi’s 2020 Chicken & Egg Award.

Now streaming on Paramount +.

graphic of a film reel

Total Trust

dir. Jialing Zhang

prod. Knut Jäger

Main characters in The Total Trust standing in front of the ocean.
Still from Total Trust

Total Trust was supported through Jialing Zhang’s 2021 Chicken & Egg Award.

Check out their list of upcoming New York screenings here

graphic of a film reel

Twice Colonized

dir. Lin Alluna

prods.  Emile Hertling Péronard, Alethea Arnaquq-Baril, Stacey Aglok, Bob Moore

The main character of Twice Colonized, Aaju Peter, in a close-up shot holding her hands in front of her face so her traditional tattoos on her hands and her chin are visible.
Still from Twice Colonized

Twice Colonized is a participant of Project: Hatched 2023.

Find out about upcoming screenings here.


Alumni filmmakers eligible for Best Documentary Feature

  • Anonymous Sister
    dir. & prod. Jamie Boyle
    prods. Marilyn Ness, Elizabeth Westrate
  • The Lady Bird Diaries 
    dir. & prod. Dawn Porter
    prod. Kim Reynolds
  • Victim/Suspect
    dir. & prod. Nancy Schwartzman
    prods. Julie Goldman, Christopher Clements, Alice Henty, Rachel de Leon, Amanda Pike
  • Who I Am Not
    dir. Tunde Skovran
    prods. Andrei Zinca, Danielle Turkov, Paul Cadieux, Patrick Hamm, Amy Shepherd, Edith Weil, Daniel Szandtner, Janos Kovacs 
  • You Were My First Boyfriend
    dirs. Cecilia Aldarondo, Sarah Enid Hagey
    prod. Ines Hofmann Kanna (prod. of Reality Winner)

Alumni filmmakers eligible for Best Documentary Short Film

  • Bone Black: Midwives vs the South 
    dir. Rebecca Richman Cohen
    prod. Yoruba Richen
  • Rest Stop
    dir. Crystal Kayiza
    prods. Brit Fryer, Jalena Keane-Lee
  • The Recall
    dir. Imani Dennison (POV Shorts Co-Production Fund Grantee)
    prod. Flor Tejada
  • The Feeling of Being Close to You
    dir. & prod. Ash Goh Hua

Post written by Communications Intern Tess Caldwell

18 Nominations for the IDA Documentary Awards!

The IDA Documentary Awards recently announced the nominees for the 39th IDA Documentary Awards. We are proud to have 18 nominations and 3 shortlisted films within the Chicken & Egg Pictures community! The awards will be presented virtually on December 12. Congratulations and good luck to all of the nominees.

  • 2021 (Egg)celerator Lab grantee Against the Tide | dir. & prod. Sarvnik Kaur | prods. Koval Bhatia, Quentin Laurent | Nominated for Best Feature Documentary and Best Director
  • QUEER FUTURES project How to Carry Water | dir. Sasha Wortzel | prods. Colleen Cassingham, Jess Devaney, Anya Rous | Nominated for Best Short Documentary
  • 2021 (Egg)celerator Lab grantee Milisuthando | dir. Milisuthando Bongela | prod. Marion Isaacs | Nominated for Best Feature Documentary, Best Director, and Best Writing
  • 2021 (Egg)celerator Lab grantee Q | dir. & prod. Jude Chehab | Nominated for Best Feature Documentary and Best Editing
  • 2022 Chicken & Egg Award Recipient Margreth Olin’s Songs of Earth | dir. & prod. Margreth Olin | Nominated for Best Cinematography and Best Original Music Score
  • Project: Hatched 2023 participant Suddenly TV | dir. & prod. Roopa Gogineni | prods. Reem Haddad, Trevor Snapp, Fiona Lawson-Baker | Nominated for Best Short Documentary
  • 2020 Chicken & Egg Award Recipient Maite Alberdi’s The Eternal Memory | dir. & prod. Maite Alberdi | prods. Juan de Dios Larraín, Pablo Larraín, Rocío Jadue | Nominated for Best Editing
  • QUEER FUTURES | dirs. Brit Fryer, Lindsey Dryden, Noah Schamus, Sasha Wortzel, Twiggy Pucci Garçon | prods. Jess Devaney, Anya Rous, J Wortham, Colleen Cassingham | Nominated for Best Short-Form Series

From the AlumNest

  • Deadlocked: How America Shaped the Supreme Court | Nominated for Best Multi-Part Documentary
    dir. & prod. Dawn Porter
    prods. Vinnie Malhotra, Aaron Saidman, Eli Holzman
  • Going to Mars: The Nikki Giovanni Project | Nominated for Best Feature Documentary and Best Original Music Score
    dirs. & prods. Michèle Stephenson, Joe Brewster
  • King Coal  | Nominated for Best Cinematography
    dir. & prod. Elaine McMillion Sheldon
    prods. Shane Boris, Diane Becker, Peggy Drexler
  • The U.S. and the Holocaust  | Nominated for Best TV Feature or Mini-Series
    dir. Lynn Novick, Ken Burns, Sarah Botstein

Shortlist Shoutouts

  • QUEER FUTURES project The Script | dirs. Brit Fryer, Noah Schamus | prods. Jessica Devaney, Colleen Cassingham  | Shortlisted for Best Short Documentary
  • Project: Hatched 2023 participant Twice Colonized | dir. Lin Alluna | prods. Emile Hertling Péronard, Alethea Arnaquq-Baril, Stacey Aglok, Bob Moore | Shortlisted for Best Feature Documentary
  • AlumNest project How We Get Free | dirs. Geeta Gandbhir, Samantha Knowles | prods. Kathleen Lingo, Sweta Vohra, Jess Devaney | Shortlisted for Best Short Documentary

Post written by Communications Intern Tess Caldwell

Six Supported Films at Verzió Film Festival!

We are thrilled to announce that six Chicken & Egg-supported films and one AlumNest film were included in this year’s lineup for the Verzió International Human Rights Documentary Film Festival! The festival took place between Wednesday, November 22 to Wednesday, November 29, 2023 in Budapest, Hungary.

Against the Tide

dir. & prod. Sarvnik Kaur

prods. Koval Bhatia, Quentin Laurent

Still of Against the Tide. Two men go through the content of their fishing net, there are a fish and plastic trash.
Still from Against the Tide

Against the Tide is a 2021 (Egg)celerator Lab grantee that had its Hungarian Premiere in the Anthropocene section.

graphic of a film reel

Cine Guerrillas: Scenes From the Labudović Reels

dir. & prod. Mila Turajlić

prod. Carine Chichkowsky

Stevan Labudović in the archives of the Yugoslav Newsreels surrounded by reels of films he shot during the Algerian Liberation War.
Still from Cine Guerrillas: Scenes From the Labudović Reels

Cine-Guerrillas: Scenes From the Labudović Reels was supported through Mila Turajlić’s 2020 Chicken & Egg Award and had its Hungarian Premiere in the Viewfinder section.

graphic of a film reel

Is There Anybody Out There?

dir. Ella Glendining

prod. Janine Marmot

Still from Is There Anybody Out There? Ella Glendining is on a a medical bend with her belly uncovered
Still from Is There Anybody Out There?

2021 (Egg)celerator Lab grantee Is There Anybody Out There? had its Hungarian Premiere in the Student Verzió section.

graphic of a film reel

The Mind Game

dirs. & impact prods. Eefje Blankevoort, Els van Driel, Sajid “SK” Khan Nasiri

prod. Laura Verduijn

We see a young man (Sajid Khan) on his bed, in the sunlight, eating a meal by himself.
Still from The Mind Game

Project: Hatched 2023 participant The Mind Game had its Hungarian Premiere in the Student Verzió section.

graphic of a film reel

The Golden Thread

dir. Nishtha Jain

prod. Irena Taskovski

A workers hand on jute threads as they pass through the spinning machine
Still from The Golden Thread

The Golden Thread was supported through Nishtha Jain’s 2020 Chicken & Egg Award that had its Hungarian Premiere in the Work/Dream/Work section.

graphic of a film reel

Songs of Earth

dir. & prod. Margreth Olin

prod. Lena Faye-Lund Sandvik

Still from Songs of Earth

Songs of Earth was supported through Margreth Olin’s 2022 Chicken & Egg Award and had its Hungarian Premiere in the Anthropocene section.


From the AlumNest

  • We Will Not Fade Away
    dir. Alisa Kovalenko
    prods. Valery Kalmykov, Oleksiy Kobelev

Post written by Communications Intern Tess Caldwell

28 Nominations for the Cinema Eye Honors Awards!

Cinema Eye recently announced the nominees for the 17th edition of the Cinema Eye Honors Awards. We are proud to see 28 nominations within the Chicken & Egg Pictures community! The awards ceremony will take place on Friday, January 12 at the New York Academy of Medicine in East Harlem. Congratulations and good luck to all of the nominees.

  • Project: Hatched 2023 participant Bad Press | dirs. Rebecca Landsberry-Baker, Joe Peeler | prods. Conrad Beilharz, Garrett F. Baker, Tyler Graim | Nominated in the Spotlight section
  • 2021 (Egg)celerator Lab grantee Against the Tide | dir. & prod. Sarvnik Kaur | prods. Koval Bhatia, Quentin Laurent | Nominated in the Spotlight section
  • 2022 Chicken & Egg Award Recipient Margreth Olin’s Songs of Earth | dir. & prod. Margreth Olin | Nominated for Outstanding Original Score, Outstanding Cinematography, and Outstanding Production
  • 2021 Chicken & Egg Award Recipient Tatiana Huezo’s The Echo | dir. & prod. Tatiana Huezo | prod. Dalia Reyes | Nominated in the Heterodox section
  • 2020 Chicken & Egg Award Recipient Maite Alberdi’s The Eternal Memory | dir. & prod. Maite Alberdi | prods. Juan de Dios Larraín, Pablo Larraín, Rocío Jadue | Nominated for Outstanding Editing, Outstanding Direction, Outstanding Nonfiction Feature, The Unforgettables Honorees, and Audience Choice Prize – Sharp
  • 2021 (Egg)celerator Lab grantee The Tuba Thieves | dir. & prod. Alison O’Daniel | Nominated for Outstanding Debut and Outstanding Sound Design
  • Project: Hatched 2023 participant Twice Colonized | dir. Lin Alluna | prods. Emile Hertling Péronard, Alethea Arnaquq-Baril, Stacey Aglok, Bob Moore | Nominated for The Unforgettables Honorees
  • 2021 (Egg)celerator Lab grantee Q | dir. & prod. Jude Chehab | Nominated in the Spotlight section
graphic of a film reel

From the AlumNest

  • Black Girls Play: The Story Of Hand Games | Nominated for Outstanding Nonfiction Short and Shorts List Semifinalists
    dirs. & prods. Michéle Stephenson, Joe Brewster
  • Confessions of a Good Samaritan | Nominated for The Unforgettables Honorees and Audience Choice Prize
    dir. Penny Lane
    prod. Gabriel Sedgwick
  • Going to Mars: The Nikki Giovanni Project | Nominated for Outstanding Visual Design, Outstanding Original Score, Outstanding Nonfiction Feature, and The Unforgettables Honorees
    dirs. & prods. Michéle Stephenson, Joe Brewster
  • King Coal | Nominated for Outstanding Cinematography
    dir. & prod. Elaine McMillion Sheldon
    prods. Shane Boris, Diane Becker, Peggy Drexler
  • Lowndes County and the Road to Black Power  | Nominated in the Broadcast Film Nominees section
    dir. Geeta Gandbhir
    prod. Jess Devaney
  • Pretty Baby: Brooke Shields | Nominated in the Broadcast Film Nominees and Broadcast Editing Nominees sections
    dir. Lana Wilson
    prods. Jack Turner, Christine O’Malley

Post written by Communications Intern Tess Caldwell

15 Chicken & Egg Supported films at IDFA!

We are extremely proud to see 15 Chicken & Egg Supported films and 17 films from our community of alumni featured in the lineup and Forum sections of this year’s International Documentary Film Festival Amsterdam (IDFA). The festival will take place between Wednesday, November 8 to Sunday, November 19 in Amsterdam. If you are attending the festival, feel free to say hi to our team who will participate in person to support our filmmakers. See below for more details. 

  • 2021 (Egg)celerator Lab Participant Against The Tide | Dutch Premiere | Best of Fests | dir. & prod. Sarvnik Kaur | prod. Koval Bhatia
  • 2022 (Egg)celerator Lab Finalist Alis | Online Program | dirs. & prods. Clare Weiskopf, Nicolas van Hemelryck
  • Project: Hatched 2023 Participant Bad Press | Dutch Premiere | Best of Fests | dir. & prod. Rebecca Landsberry-Baker, Joe Peeler | prods. Conrad Beilharz, Garrett Baker, Tyler Graim
  • Nest-supported film Blue ID | School Program | dirs. & prods. Burcu Melekoglu, Vuslat Karan
  • 2020 (Egg)celerator Lab Grantee Machtat | Dutch Premiere | Best of Fests | dir. Sonia Ben Slama | prods. Tania el Khoury, Elise Hug, Cécile Lestrade
  • 2022 Chicken & Egg Award Recipient Margreth Olin’s Songs of Earth | Dutch Premiere | Signed | dir. & prod. Margreth Olin | prod. Lena Faye-Lund Sandvik 
  • 2021 Chicken & Egg Award Recipient Tatiana Huezo’s The Echo | Dutch Premiere | Signed | dir. & prod. Tatiana Huezo Sánchez | prods. Dalia Rocío Reyes Campos, Viviana Zuñiga
  • 2020 Chicken & Egg Award Recipient Maite Alberdi’s The Eternal Memory | Dutch Premiere | Signed | dir. & prod. Maite Alberdi | prods. Juan de Dios Larraín, Pablo Larraín, Rocío Jadue
  • 2021 (Egg)celerator Lab grantee The Tuba Thieves | Dutch Premiere | Best of Fests |  dir. & prod. Alison O’Daniel | prods. Su Kim, Maya E. Rudolph

IDFA Forum

At the IDFA Forum, innovators, including filmmakers, creators, producers, and industry professionals, unite to present their pioneering creative feature documentaries and new media projects. Over its 30-year history, this event has evolved into a global hub for discussing co-production, co-financing, and distribution strategies. The IDFA Forum offers backing to film and XR production teams at various production stages across four presentation categories. We take pride in having Chicken & Egg Pictures Supported films featured in three out of these four categories.

  • 2022 Critical Issue Fund Grantee Displaced (working title) | Rough Cut Project | In Production | dir. Olha Zhurba | prods. Darya Bassel, Anne Köhncke, Kerstin Übelacker
  • 2022 Critical Issue Fund Grantee Red Zone | Producers Connection Project | Development | dir. Darya Bassel | prod. Iryna Tsilyk
  • 2022 (Egg)celerator Lab Finalist There Was, There Was Not | Rough Cut Project | In Post-Production | dir. & prod. Emily Mkrtichian | prod. Brock Williams

From the AlumNest

In the program: 

In the forum:


Meet our Team at IDFA

Our Program Director Kiyoko McCrae and Senior Program Manager Elaisha Stokes will be in attendance at the festival. They will be speaking at the IDFA academy (a training program for 110 selected emerging filmmakers coming to IDFA), taking 1:1 meetings and giving presentations on our programs and funding opportunities at the Industry Hub. They will also be hosting an IDFA industry lunch as an opportunity for us to celebrate our 2023 Chicken & Egg Award recipients

9 Chicken & Egg Supported Films at DOC NYC 2023!

We are thrilled to see nine Chicken & Egg supported films and 17 AlumNest films on the lineup for this years’ DOC NYC Festival! We also have six supported filmmakers and our very own Program Director Kiyoko McCrae participating in the DOC NYC PRO programming. The festival will take place between Wednesday, November 8, to Thursday, November 16. We hope to see you there!

Bad Press

dirs. Rebecca Landsberry-Baker, Joe Peeler

prods. Conrad Beilharz, Garrett F. Baker, Tyler Graim

Indigenous journalist Angel Ellis sits in front of Mvskoke Media wearing a bandana , sunglasses and a "I Voted" sticker on her blue T-shirt. She's smoking a cigarette while scrolling through her cell phone on a warm summer evening.
Still from Bad Press

Bad Press is a participant of Project: Hatched 2023 having its NYC Premiere in the Winners Circle Section.

Get your tickets here.

graphic of a film reel

Eat Bitter

dirs. Ningyi Sun, Pascale Appora-Gnekindy

prod. Mathieu Faure

The upper half is characters Luan and Thomas' faces and Thomas prays to the left of their faces; and the lower half is the back of Thomas' head and him getting ready to dive in the yellowish river.
Stills from Eat Bitter

Eat Bitter is a 2022 (Egg)celerator Lab finalist having its New York Premiere in the Investigations section.

Get your tickets here.

graphic of a film reel

How To Have An American Baby

dir. & prod. Leslie Tai

prods. Jillian Schultz, Chocho Tang, Elivia Shaw, Yan Cong, Xinyi “Leila” Lin

How to Have an American Baby Leslie Tai 2017 Diversity Fellows Initiative
Still from How to Have an American Baby

How to Have an American Baby participated in the former 2017 Diversity Fellows Initiative and is having its New York Premiere in the Investigations section.

Get your tickets here.

graphic of a film reel

Is There Anybody Out There?

dir. Ella Glendining

prod. Janine Marmot

Still from Is There Anybody Out There? Ella Glendining is on a a medical bend with her belly uncovered
Still from Is There Anybody Out There?

Is There Anybody Out There? is a 2021 (Egg)celerator Lab grantee and is having its NYC Premiere in the Fight The Power section. 

Get your tickets here.

graphic of a film reel

MnM

dir. Twiggy Pucci Garçon

prod. Colleen Cassingham, Jess Devaney

Still from MnM. Close up to the face of a person while a hand is using a brush to paint their eyelids.
Still from MnM

MnM was supported in partnership with Multitude Films as a part of the QUEER FUTURES (2022) series and is having its NYC Premiere in the “Shorts: Family Matters” program. 

Get your tickets here.

graphic of a film reel

Songs of Earth

dir. & prod. Margreth Olin

prod. Lena Faye-Lund Sandvik

Still from Songs of Earth

Songs of Earth was supported through Margreth Olin’s 2022 Chicken & Egg Award and is participating in the Winners Circle section. 

Get your tickets here.

graphic of a film reel

Suddenly TV

dir. & prod. Roopa Gogineni

prods. Reem Haddad, Trevor Snapp, Fiona Lawson-Baker

A young Sudanese protester points a cardboard camera towards an interview unfolding on a bridge in the middle of a large sit-in demonstration.
Still from Suddenly TV

Suddenly TV is a participant of Project: Hatched 2023, and is participating in the “Shorts: The People vs” program.

Get your tickets here.

graphic of a film reel

The Eternal Memory

dir. & prod. Maite Alberdi

prod. Juan de Dios Larraín, Pablo Larraín, Rocío Jadue

Still from the Eternal Memory
Still from The Eternal Memory

The Eternal Memory was supported through Maite Alberdi’s 2020 Chicken & Egg Award and is participating in the Short List: Features section. 

Get your tickets here.

graphic of a film reel

Total Trust

dir. Jialing Zhang

prod. Knut Jäger

Main characters in The Total Trust standing in front of the ocean.
Still from Total Trust

Total Trust is supported through Jialing Zhang’s 2021 Chicken & Egg Award and is having its US Premiere in the International Competition section. 

Get your tickets here.


DOC NYC PRO

DOC NYC PRO FALL 2023 will take place from Thursday, November 9 through Thursday, November 16. The activities are comprised of several panels and pitches designed to empower filmmakers at different stages of their careers.

CINEMATOGRAPHY DAY

Saturday, November 11

 

DOCUMENTARY ETHICS AND THE LAW
Featuring Jess Devaney, director of Chicken & Egg-supported film Love the Sinner and producer of The Script, MnM, How to Carry Water, and It’s Only Life After All

 

EDITING DAY

Sunday, November 12

 

CASE STUDY: GOING TO MARS: THE NIKKI GIOVANNI PROJECT
Featuring 2016 Chicken & Egg Award recipient Michèle Stephenson

 

JOURNALISM AND DOCUMENTARY DAY

Monday, November 13

 

WHEN JOURNALISTS BECOME DOCUMENTARY VISIONARIES
Featuring Becca Landsberry-Baker, director and producer of Project: Hatched 2023 participant Bad Press.

 

CREATIVE DISTRIBUTION DAY

Thursday, November 16

 

HOPE
Featuring 2017 Chicken & Egg Award recipient Dawn Porter.

 

THE POWER OF EDUCATIONAL DISTRIBUTION
Featuring Chithra Jeyaram, director and producer of 2022 (Egg)celerator Lab participant Our Daughters (working title)

 

WHERE WILL YOUR FILM BE IN 20 YEARS?
Featuring our Board member Susan Margolin.

 


From the AlumNest

  • Time Bomb Y2K | NYC Premiere
    dirs. Brian Becker, Marley McDonald
    prods. Penny Lane, Brian Becker, Peter Nauffts, Shelby Fintak
  • Unseen | NYC Premiere 
    dir. & prod. Set Hernandez
    prods. Félix Endara, Day Al-Mohamed, Diane Quon, Dorian Gomez Pestaña, Josaen Ronquillo, Cheryl Green, Thomas Reid, Qudsiya Naqui, Conchita Hernandez
  • Who I Am Not | New York Premiere 
    dir. Tunde Skovran
    prods. Andrei Zinca, Danielle Turkov, Paul Cadieux, Patrick Hamm, Amy Shepherd, Edith Weil, Daniel Szandtner, Janos Kovacs

A Special Congratulations


Meet Our Team at DOC NYC

Since the festival is on our home turf, we are excited for many of our team members to have opportunities to attend screenings and events for our filmmakers. We are also incredibly excited to announce that our very own Program Director, Kiyoko McCrae, was honored by the Documentary New Leaders program. Learn more about this honor here. Come say hi! 


We are delighted to provide you with a discount code on tickets (capacity permitting) for our supported films.

Just enter the code at checkout: DOCNYC_PTNR_23
This code will unlock the following discounts:
Opening Night / Centerpiece / Closing Screenings: $25 (Regular price: $30)
Regular Screenings: $17 (Regular price: $20)
DOC NYC U, Short List, Weekday Matinees (M-F before 12pm): $11 (Regular Price: $13)
Online screenings: $13 (Regular Price: $10)


Post written by Communications Intern Tess Caldwell

A Dozen Films Screening at CPH:DOX!

The 20th anniversary of CPH:DOX will take place from Wednesday, March 15 to Sunday, March 26 in Copenhagen, Denmark. We are proud to announce that 12 Nest-supported films are part of the lineup and that our AlumNest is also participating in the CPH:CONFERENCE and CPH:FORUM. If you are attending the festival, please say hi to our team who will participate in person to support our filmmakers. See below for more details. 

  • 2022 (Egg)celerator Lab Finalist Eat Bitter | World Premiere | Dox:Award section | dirs. Ningyi Sun, Pascale Appora-Gnekindy | prod. Mathieu Faure 
  • 2020 Chicken & Egg Award Recipient Tonje Hessen Schei’s Praying for Armageddon | F:act Award section | dir. Tonje Hessen Schei | co-dir. Michael Rowley
  • 2022 Chicken & Egg Award Recipient Margreth Olin’s Songs of Earth | World Premiere | Dox:Award section | dir. & prod. Margreth Olin
  • 2020 Chicken & Egg Award Recipient Maite Alberdi’s The Eternal Memory | Highlights section | dir. & prod. Maite Alberdi | prods. Juan de Dios Larraín, Pablo Larraín, Rocío Jadue
  • 2021 Chicken & Egg Award Recipient Elwira Niewira’s The Hamlet Syndrome | Highlights section | dirs. Elwira Niewiera, Piotr Rosolowski | prod. Magdalena Kaminska
  • 2021 (Egg)celerator Lab grantee The Tuba Thieves | Next:Wave section | dir. & prod. Alison O’Daniel
  • 2021 Chicken & Egg Award Recipient Jialing Zhang’s Total Trust | World Premiere | Dox: Award and Rewriting the Future sections | dir. & prod. Jialing Zhang | prods. Knut Jager, Michael Grotenhoff, Saskia Kress

QUEER FUTURES

In partnership with Multitude Films, three short documentaries of the QUEER FUTURES series, directed by Brit Fryer & Noah Schamus, Twiggy Pucci Garçon, and Sasha Wortzel that radically imagine future visions of queer life, will have their world premiere. These films expand the boundaries of nonfiction to explore gender affirming care, fat beauty and liberation, and nonbinary ballroom culture. Transcending the rigidity and oppressions of the current moment, these directors locate, build, and inhabit worlds that offer us new ways of being–in the present and the future. 

  • How to Carry Water
    dir. Sasha Wortzel
    prods. Jess Devaney, Anya Rous, Colleen Cassingham
  • The Script
    dirs. Brit Fryer, Noah Schamus 
    prods. Jessica Devaney, Colleen Cassingham 
  • MnM
    dir. Twiggy Pucci Garçon
    prods. Colleen Cassingham, Jessica Devaney

From the AlumNest

  • Merkel
    dir. & prod. Eva Weber
    prods. Lizzie Gillett, Sigrid Jonsson Dyekjær, Sonja Henrici

CPH: FORUM

At CPH:FORUM, top producers and highly acknowledged directors from all over the world take the stage to pitch 30 carefully selected projects of documentary features and series in the intersection of nonfiction, fiction, visual art, journalism, and science. Eight Nest-supported filmmakers will present their new projects: Brett Story, Iryna Tsilyk, Jessica Kingdon, Meena Nanji and Zippy Kimundu, Mila Turajlić, Oksana Karpovych, and Vaishali Sinha


CPH: CONFERENCE

A 5-day industry event offering a range of inspiring talks with visionary thinkers, investigating current themes in documentary filmmaking, and creating an interactive and hands-on platform for exchange with other professionals of our documentary community. Our Nest is well represented across the different activities from Monday, March 20 to Friday, March 24. 

A DIALOGUE ON CRAFT WITH MAITE ALBERDI AND ANNA HINTS
Monday, March 20
With 2020 Chicken & Egg Award recipient Maite Alberdi

THE TRUST POLICY 
Tuesday, March 21
With Chicken & Egg Pictures CEO Jenni Wolfson, Shanida Scotland (Doc Society), Jess Kwan (Concordia Fellowship), and Sean Flynn (Points North Institute).

A DIALOGUE ON CRAFT WITH ALISON O’DANIEL, AXEL DANIELSON & MAXIMILIEN VAN AERTRYCK
Tuesday, March 21
With 2021 (Egg)celerator Lab recipient Alison O’Daniel

A DIALOGUE ON CRAFT WITH JIALING ZHANG, PUK DAMSGÅRD AND SØREN KLOVBORG
Wednesday, March 22
With 2021 Chicken & Egg Award recipient Jialing Zhang

A DISCUSSION WITH JESSICA KINGDON
Thursday, March 23
With 2019 (Egg)celerator Lab grantee Jessica Kingdon

CITIZEN FILMMAKERS 
Friday, March 24
With 2021 Chicken & Egg Award recipient Elwira Niewira, 2018 Chicken & Egg Award recipient Nanfu Wang, 2022 (Egg)celerator Lab grantee Volia Chajkouskaya, and 2023 Critical Issues Fund recipient Alisa Kovalenko

SONGS OF EARTH – LISTENING TO CARE
Friday, March 24
With 2022 Chicken & Egg Award recipient Margreth Olin, Diego Galafassi, Cara Mertes, Bo Øksnebjerg, and Danielle Turkov Wilson

RISE OF INSTITUTIONS
Friday, March 24
With our Senior Creative Consultant Yvonne Welbon, 2022 (Egg)celerator Lab grantee Volia Chajkouskaya, and Anne Marie Borsboom.


Meet our Team at CPH:DOX

Three black and white headshots. Left to right: Jenni Wolfson, Tereza Simikova, Sabine Fayoux Cantillo

Our CEO Jenni Wolfson is participating in the CPH: CONFERENCE, and our Associate Director of Program Sabine Fayoux Cantillo will be taking 1:1 meetings with filmmakers.

We are sending huge congratulations to our International Program Consultant Tereza Simikova, CPH:DOX Head of Industry & Training, and to her team, for putting together this fantastic edition. 

Announcing our 2022 Chicken & Egg Award Recipients!

a series of headshots of six women looking at the camera

Announced via Women & Hollywood today, Chicken & Egg Pictures is proud to introduce the seventh cohort of our Chicken & Egg Award, which supports six advanced-career women and gender nonconforming filmmakers with unrestricted funding. The directors will receive a $50,000 grant, and for the first time ever two directors will receive a $15,000 finalist grant.

“The Chicken & Egg Award makes bold investments in the personal and professional wellbeing of visionary women and gender nonconforming documentary makers. Over the past seven years, we have given unrestricted cash grants totaling $1.9 million US dollars to 38 change-making directors,” said Program Director Lucila Moctezuma. “Because filmmakers—especially those affected by roadblocks tied to their gender, race, class, and location—deserve financial freedom while they create new projects.”

Please click on the Recipients’ names for more information on each filmmaker and give these visionary directors a warm welcome to the Nest!

2022 CHICKEN & EGG AWARD RECIPIENTS

Director Petra Costa’s headshot in black and whitePetra Costa is a Brazilian documentary filmmaker whose work lives on the borderlines of the personal and political. She directed The Edge of Democracy (2019), which was nominated for the Academy Award® for Documentary Feature in 2020; Undertow Eyes (2009); Elena (2012); and Olmo and the Seagull (2015). Petra is associate producer of Barbara Paz’s Babenco (2019), producer of Moara Passoni’s Ecstasy (2020), and EP of Rebeca Huntt’s BEBA (2021).   

Black & White medium image of Dr Bev in an Afro hairstyle, wearing a black tux and black tie, looking directly at camera.

Dr. Bev Palesa Ditsie (Hon) is a radical gender nonconforming lesbian activist and award winning filmmaker, disruptor and change agent who was instrumental in bringing LGBTIQA+ rights into focus in the late 80’s and 90’s in South Africa and the world. She is also a reality TV director whose credits include Big Brother Africa, Survivor South Africa, and Project Runway South Africa. Among her film credits are Simon & I, A Family Affair, and The Commission. Lesbians Free Everyone (2020), their latest work filmed during lockdown, takes the viewer along their journey as the first African Lesbian to address the UN at the Fourth World Conference on Women in Beijing 1995.

A woman with dark skin, long, wavy black hair and black eyes sits on a bright red/orange sofa, her hands resting on the sofa's arm rest. She's smiling while looking into straight into the camera. She is wearing a long sleeve black dress with a V-neck,has on a turquoise necklace and matching earrings.Anayansi Prado is an award-winning documentary filmmaker whose work has focused on issues of undocumented immigration, indigenous rights, and race identity. Her feature films have aired nationally on PBS including The Unafraid (2018), Paraiso for Sale (2010), and Maid in America (2005). Anayansi is a Rockefeller Media Fellow and a Creative Capital Artist; her work has been supported by the MacArthur Foundation, Ford Foundation, Chicken & Egg Pictures, amongst others.

This is a headshot of Brett Story, a white woman with freckles and long brown hair and bangs. She is sitting at a table against a white wall, wearing a black turtleneck and jeans.Brett Story is an award-winning filmmaker and writer based out of Toronto. She is the director of the critically acclaimed feature documentaries The Prison in Twelve Landscapes (2016) and The Hottest August (2019), both of which have screened around the world. Brett has held fellowships from the John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation and Sundance Institute, and she was named one of Variety’s 10 Documentary Filmmakers to Watch 2019.

Director Margreth Olin in a coat, background winter landscape in OsloMargreth Olin is a director and producer with a large cinema audience in Norway. She has made 13 films, which have received critical acclaim, participated at numerous festivals abroad, and won several Norwegian and international awards. Margreth has managed to catalyze important dialogues with the topics her films shed light on. She has personally received 26 honorary awards for her commitment and focus on human rights. Her credits include My Body (Tribeca 2002), EFA-nominated Raw Youth (2004), The Angel (TIFF 2010), Nowhere Home (IDFA 2012), Cathedrals of Culture (Berlinale 2013), Self Portrait (DOC NYC 2020).

Tracy Heather Strain, a two-time Peabody Award-winning and Emmy-nominated filmmaker, explores stories about the ways diverse peoples have experienced life in the US. She won an NAACP Image Award for Motion Picture Directing for Lorraine Hansberry: Sighted Eyes/Feeling Heart, which premiered at TIFF and made its television debut on American Masters. She is presently developing Survival Floating, a hybrid documentary investigating African-descended peoples’ relationships with swimming.


2022 CHICKEN & EGG AWARD FINALIST DEVELOPMENT GRANT RECIPIENTS

Ditsi Carolino studied filmmaking at the National Film & Television School in the UK on a Chevening Scholarship. Her past projects include Life on the Tracks, about a couple who live by the railway slums (IDFA World Premiere, BBC Storyville Broadcast); and Bunso: The Youngest, about three imprisoned boys from 11–13, which was used by child rights advocates to pass the juvenile justice law. Ditsi is a member of Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.   

Sonia Kennebeck is an award-winning director and producer and has released three critically-acclaimed independent feature films: National Bird (Berlinale Special 2016), Enemies of the State (TIFF 2020), and United States vs. Reality Winner (SXSW 2021). She received the Adrienne Shelly Excellence in Filmmaking Award and Ridenhour Documentary Film Prize. She is a first-generation college graduate who was born in Malaysia, raised in Germany, and lives in the US.  

Read the Women & Hollywood article about the 2022 Chicken & Egg Award.