Ascension Soars at Cinema Eye Honors!

Huge congratulations to the Ascension team for picking up three awards at the 15th Annual Cinema Eye Honors: Outstanding Achievement in Cinematography, Outstanding Achievement in Original Music Score, and Outstanding Achievement in a Debut Feature Film. 

Plus a special shoutout to AlumNest filmmakers Nanfu Wang, Jialing Zhang, and the In the Same Breath team for their win in the award for Outstanding Achievement in Nonfiction Film For Broadcast.

Ascension

dir. & prod. Jessica Kingdon

prods. Kira Simon-Kennedy, Nathan Truesdell

Still from Ascension

Outstanding Achievement in Cinematography
Jessica Kingdon and Nathan Truesdell

Outstanding Achievement in Original Music Score
Dan Deacon

Outstanding Achievement in a Debut Feature Film
Jessica Kingdon

Ascension examines the contemporary “Chinese Dream” through staggering observations of labor, consumerism and wealth. In cinematically exploring the aspiration that drives today’s People’s Republic of China, the film plunges into universal paradoxes of economic progress.


Headshot of a woman with a pony tail, a short sleeve shirt and smiling at the cameraOutstanding Achievement in Nonfiction Film For Broadcast
In the Same Breath
dir. Nanfu Wang
prods. Jialing Zhang, Carolyn Hepburn, Sara Rodriguez, Julie Goldman, and Christopher Clements 

Headshot of a woman with long hair and a fringe smiling at the camera


Take a look at the complete list of award winners by visiting this link.

Ascension and Writing With Fire Nominated for the 94th Academy Awards!

Two stills of Ascension and Writing With Fire facing each other

The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences revealed their 2022 Oscar® nominations list on Tuesday, February 8. We are egg-static and sending massive congratulations to the two (Egg)celerator Lab grantees nominated for Best Documentary Feature: Ascension and Writing With Fire.  

The in-person ceremony will take place on Sunday, March 27 at Hollywood’s Dolby Theatre, and will be televised on ABC. Please join us and celebrate these films and filmmakers!

Ascension

dir. & prod. Jessica Kingdon

prods. Kira Simon-Kennedy, Nathan Truesdell

Still from Ascension

Ascension examines the contemporary “Chinese Dream” through staggering observations of labor, consumerism and wealth. In cinematically exploring the aspiration that drives today’s People’s Republic of China, the film plunges into universal paradoxes of economic progress.

Ascension participated in the 2019 (Egg)celerator Lab.


Writing With Fire

dirs. & prods. Rintu Thomas & Sushmit Ghosh

Writing With Fire, directed by Rintu Thomas and Sushmit Ghosh 2018 Accelerator Lab

In a cluttered news landscape dominated by men, emerges India’s only newspaper run by Dalit women. Armed with smartphones, Chief Reporter Meera and her journalists break traditions, be it on the frontlines of India’s biggest issues or within the confines of their homes, redefining what it means to be powerful.

Writing With Fire participated in the 2018 (Egg)celerator Lab. 

Check out a video of the filmmakers receiving the news with this link.


Read the full nomination list visiting this link.

Ascension, Simple As Water & Writing With Fire on the 94th Oscars® shortlist

The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences announced on Tuesday, December 21 their shortlist for documentary features and documentary short subject. At Chicken & Egg Pictures we are sending massive congratulations to the 3 Nest-supported films on the list: Ascension, Simple As Water, and Writing With Fire, as well as to the 5 films from the AlumNest.

We are egg-cited to see these films on these lists and look forward to the Nominations list, which will be announced on Tuesday, February 8. Nominations voting begins on Thursday, January 27 and concludes on Tuesday, February 1.

The 94th Oscars® will be held on Sunday, March 27 and will be televised live on ABC and in more than 200 territories worldwide. Take a look at the shortlisted films below and checkout the full list with this link.

Ascension

Directed by Jessica Kingdon

Produced by Jessica Kingdon, Kira Simon-Kennedy, and Nathan Truesdell

Still from Ascension

Simple As Water

Directed by Megan Mylan

Produced by Robin Hessman & Megan Mylan

Simple As Water still

Writing With Fire

Directed and produced by Rintu Thomas & Sushmit Ghosh

Writing With Fire, directed by Rintu Thomas and Sushmit Ghosh 2018 Accelerator Lab

From the AlumNest

Documentary Feature

President 
dir. Camilla Nielsson 
prods. Joslyn Barnes, Signe Byrge Sørensen 

In the Same Breath 
dir. Nanfu Wang 
prods. Jialing Zhang, Carolyn Hepburn, Sara Rodriguez, Julie Goldman, and Christopher Clements  

Documentary Short Subject

Águilas
dir. & prod. Kristy Guevara-Flanagan
co-dir. & prod. Maite Zubiaurre 

Terror Contagion
dir. & prod. Laura Poitras 
prods. Anonymous, Yoni Golijov  

International Feature Film 

Prayers for the Stolen
dir. Tatiana Huezo 
prods. Nicolás Celis, Jim Stark

Ascension, Simple As Water & Writing With Fire nominated for 2022 PGA Awards

Congratulations to the Nest producers who were selected as 2022 Documentary Motion Picture nominees; their films—Ascension, Simple As Water, and Writing With Fire—will advance to the final round of voting for the 33rd Annual Producers Guild Awards. The Awards ceremony is on Saturday, February 26, so stay tuned and root for the following Chicken & Egg Pictures-supported projects.

Ascension

Produced by Jessica Kingdon, Kira Simon-Kennedy, and Nathan Truesdell

Directed by Jessica Kingdon

Still from Ascension

Simple As Water

Produced by Robin Hessman & Megan Mylan

Directed by Megan Mylan

Simple As Water still

Writing With Fire

Produced and directed by Rintu Thomas & Sushmit Ghosh

Writing With Fire, directed by Rintu Thomas and Sushmit Ghosh 2018 Accelerator Lab

A special congratulations to 2021 Chicken & Egg Award recipient Jialing Zhang for her nomination as producer of 2018 Chicken & Egg Award recipient Nanfu Wang’s film In The Same Breath. In The Same Breath is also produced by Christopher Clements, Carolyn Hepburn, Sara Rodriguez, and Nanfu Wang.

The Nest at CIFF

Camden International Film Festival will take place in person in Maine this Thursday, September 16 through Sunday, September 19, and online from September 19 to Sunday, September 26. Here at Chicken & Egg Pictures, we are egg-cited to participate and to see (Egg)celerator Lab film Ascension and AlumNest film Listening to Kenny G.

Special congratulations to the CIFF team who have been diligently working to bring us an immersive in-person festival experience “to share cinema as it was intended, on the big screen and surrounded by community.”

Ascension

Still from film Ascension
Still from Ascension

dir. Jessica Kingdon  
prods. Jessica Kingdon, Kira Simon-Kennedy & Nathan Truesdell
Available for in-person screening on Friday, September 17 at 3:00 pm ET | Tickets here 


From the AlumNest

Penny Lane 2017 Breakthrough Filmmaker Award

Listening to Kenny G, directed by 2017 Chicken & Egg Award recipient Penny Lane, and produced by Gabriel Sedgwick, will be available for in-person (including Drive-in🙌) and virtual screenings | Tickets here


Meet Our Team at CIFF

Representing Chicken & Egg Pictures, our External Engagement Manager will be taking in-person filmmaker meetings with projects from CIFF programming including Points North Fellowship, North Star Fellowship, 4th World Media Lab, and American Stories Doc Fund (sponsored by CNN Films). 



Our Co-Founder Wendy Ettinger will also be at CIFF, taking virtual meetings. Take a look at Camden International Film Festival full programming here




Post by 2021 Summer Communications Intern Mariana Sanson

Congratulations to Jessica Kingdon on her two Tribeca Film Festival Awards!

The 2021 Tribeca Film Festival awards were announced last Thursday, June 17, and Chicken & Egg Pictures is proud to celebrate 2019 (Egg)celerator Lab grantee Jessica Kingdon’s two Awards! Her film Ascension received the Award for Best Documentary Feature, and Jessica received the 2021 Albert Maysles Award for Best New Documentary Director. Congratulations Jessica! 


Ascension

Ascension, dir. Jessica Kingdon

Dir. Jessica Kingdon
Prod. Kira Simon-Kennedy, Jessica Kingdon, Nathan Truesdell

Ascension examines the contemporary “Chinese Dream” through staggering observations of labor, consumerism and wealth. In cinematically exploring the aspiration that drives today’s People’s Republic of China, the film plunges into universal paradoxes of economic progress.

Post by 2021 Summer Communications Intern Mariana Sanson.