Past
Grantees

JESSE SWEET received support for City of Joel, a feature-length documentary that chronicles a year in the life of the controversial Hasidic community, Kiryas Joel, New York. To outsiders, it’s a small-town theocracy; to insiders, it’s Judaism’s best hope. Fifty miles north of Manhattan, the Satmar - a sect of ultra-Orthodox Hasidim - are building their version of utopia. Kiryas Joel, New York is one of the fastest growing Jewish communities in the world, and also one of the most devout. It has the highest birthrate in New York and the state’s lowest median age. The bourgeoning village of 25,000 is a microcosm for some of the most urgent questions surrounding religious life in this country. What is the appeal of fundamentalist communities in the 21st Century? Why are they growing? What fulfillment do they offer their members? At what cost? By journeying into this fervently devout world that has never before been captured on film, City of Joel will create a groundbreaking look at some of the most important questions about the role that faith will play in America in the 21st century.

MUSA SYEED received support for a 90-minute narrative feature called A STRAY. In Minneapolis' "Little Mogadishu", home to one of the largest Somali refugee communities in the world, a troubled young Somali man takes refuge in a mosque, hoping to leave the street life behind him. Alienated from his family and friends, he has a lonely journey ahead of him, until he makes an unlikely—and ungodly—new friend: a stray dog. Nineteen-year-old ADAN knows he deserves better.  Since his mom kicked him out, he took up with the wrong crowd and got wrapped up in the streets of “Little Mogadishu”. But now, in a sincere attempt to reform, he finds solace in the mosque. Working and living as a janitor, Adan hopes to atone and stay out of trouble. When LIBAN, a zealous brother at the mosque, offers Adan a shift driving a taxi, Adan thinks God has answered his prayers: he can finally earn a pure income and stay on the straight and narrow. But his first day on the job, Adan accidentally swipes a stray dog. With shelters closed for the day and guilt weighing him down, he has no choice but to take the mutt in for a night. Adan has nowhere else to go, so he tries to hide the dog on the mosque’s grounds. But Liban discovers the dog, traditionally considered impure in Muslim communities, and he quickly throws Adan and the dog out. The one person that actually wants to hear from Adan is FBI agent Knudsen. Adan has been feeding her basic info on the community’s troubled youth, working as a freelancer for a quick buck. Now Knudsen wants him to become a full-fledged informant. Although he knows the job will mean setting up his friends for a terror sting, he gives in to her promises of a steady paycheck and housing. With the deal struck, Adan can look forward to a warm bed the next day--but for now, he still has to get through the night with this dumb dog. Adan takes the dog to a shelter. As he waits to be called up, he ventures a hand over the dog’s back, petting her for the first time. After last night, he feels they are more alike than different. Could they continue to look for a home—together? A contemporary, vital yet untold story, A STRAY explores what it means to be at home—and what it means to be a stray—in a constantly changing world.

ELIANA UJUETA received support for The Airport Run, a 38-minute narrative short.  Two young inmates – African American Elijah and Caucasian Jake -- became friends in prison. Jake is released early and has set up a job for Elijah, which involves driving for a car service. Elijah has learned his lesson and never wants to be incarcerated again. He plans to work temporarily as a driver so he can help his ailing grandmother and slowly finish college. Jake’s true intention, however, is to get Elijah involved in a criminal heist. Will Elijah become involved in a sinister burglary scheme, or will his instincts be his salvation?

CHRISTOPHER MAKOTO YOGI received support for a 120-minute narrative called I Was a Simple Man. Part ghost story, part historical memory, I Was Simple Man looks at the life of one man and fractures it into four stories. The film employs a non-traditional film structure to create a unique cinematic experience of a locale many think they know, but actually know very little about: Hawai‘i. Through its four sections, the film covers a wide swath of Hawaiian history: from the verdant sugarcane fields of Pre-WWII O‘ahu to the modern gastropubs of Honolulu, to the coastline countryside, dying and haunted by the supernatural. Masao Matsuyoshi, the central character of the film, has an 85-year-old face that is dark and weathered like damp leather. The creases on his face are deep—valleys detailing decades in the hot Hawai‘i sun. Masao has lived a long life in Hawai‘i Nei, and he is now facing the end of it. He is ready to die. As the regrets of his life weigh down upon him, he must face both the family he’s failed and the ghosts of his past. One by one, Masao’s family members make a pilgrimage to the countryside to care for him in his old plantation home. Through their eyes, we get a full portrait of Masao himself.

SAMEH ZOABI received support for CATCH THE MOON, a feature-length dramatic comedy that tells the story of Halim (25), a young entrepreneur in Gaza who is eager to marry the woman of his dreams, Jasmine (23). Jasmine is by no means an ordinary woman, she is educated and ready to begin a career as a teacher. She is a force in her own right who loves Halim deeply. But the choice to marry Halim is not entirely hers. Her parents have already lost two sons to the conflict with Israel, and are very protective of their only remaining child. They want the best for her, a strong and self-reliant husband, who can also make a good offer. When the time comes to set Jasmine’s dowry, Halim’s father, Issam (55) impulsively promises a new car for his son’s new bride – a Mercedes no less, to be delivered in a couple of weeks. Left to raise his son alone after the death of his wife, Issam’s relationship with Halim lies at the center of the story, and father and son find this relationship tested by the lunacy of trying to find anything, let alone a car, in Gaza during the current Israeli blockade. Halim’s task is a near impossibility. Gaza is sealed from all borders and basic supplies must be smuggled in to meet daily needs. In the end, Halim navigates the many moral and political hazards of life in Gaza and his labor of love leads him into its surreal underbelly—the smugglers’ tunnels connecting Egypt and the Strip. In the terrifying underworld of the tunnels, Halim realizes he is proving himself to his father, his fiancé’s family, and most importantly, to himself.

PRISCILLA ANANY, for Children of the Mountain, a feature-length narrative set in Ghana. Essuman (33), a yam seller and a single parent, gives birth to a child with cleft palate and her first instinct is to run away as she’s accused of causing her child’s “imperfection.” She makes the attempt, but her conscience brings her back and she accepts her fate. Three years later, her son is diagnosed with cerebral palsy which makes him unable to talk, sit or walk like his peers. Determined to find cure for her son, Essuman goes from hospital to hospital until she accepts that the condition is incurable. She gives up on Western medicine and seeks the help of a herbalist, a protestant pastor and a spiritualist. They all either dupe her, take advantage of her or mislead her. The stress of taking care of a disabled child and the criticisms she encounters drives Essuman to drastic measures.

CHRIS BOLAN received support for the feature-length A Secret Love that tells the story of a woman and her partner, Pat Henschel. It is a personal love story of a farm girl from the prairies of Canada, who in her early adult years moved to the heartland of America to play professional baseball. Now in her late 80s, Terry has decided with her partner, Pat, to break a sixty-five year secret by coming out as lesbians to friends and family. Terry was a catcher for the Peoria Redwings in the All American Girls Professional Baseball League. Scouted by Phillip K. Wrigley in 1945, she was drafted for the Redwings in 1946, where she played until the end of that decade. Terry and Pat’s life story is about relationships, commitment and family; today it is also a story about aging, healthcare and acceptance of gays and lesbians in the social fabric of our communities. At a time when same sex marriage legislation is being passed or considered across the country, love stories like this humanize stereotypes, and help viewers understand the risks that people take to live their convictions. As filmmaker Chris Bolan puts it, “These women are the heart of America.”

MICHELLE BROST, Minneapolis, received support for Animal, an animated five-minute work that will be an experiment in form in which Brost will create animal characters with distinctly human-like qualities. The work will be based on the concept that animals are not soulless wards of the human race. Brost will reflect upon many ideas, which will be centralized around the basic question of what is an animal? This question will be explored within the context of primal human instincts that Brost believes people have been conditioned away from in their pursuit of perfection. She also feels the proclivity of humans toward a kind of "godliness" elevates them above other animal forms and perpetuates a false superiority. Animal will be a very intuitive, freeform exercise in visuals and sound composed of random images and ideas that will interrogate the connection between humans and animals.

LUIGI CAMPI, for My First Kiss and the People Involved, a feature-length narrative coming of age story, told entirely from the perspective of Sam, a girl living with autism. The movie follows a mystery plot, and it is designed to give a sense of how it feels to have autism, and the unique way in which Sam sees the world.  On the edge of a small town, a house is home to a group of people with autism. Sam, a resident, is an isolated girl with a mind of her own. Courted by fellow resident, Junior, Sam welcomes the guidance of Lydia, a caretaker at the home. But one night, before the party where Sam is supposed to kiss Junior, Lydia disappears.  Sam is left alone to confront the confusion of her blooming love life. So she sets out to find her vanished friend.  Soon, ominous clues come to life, and point to a secret story of violence and passion. Determined to find out what happened, Sam will have to be stronger than ever to keep her mind from spinning out of control.

JONAS CARPIGNANO received support for Mediterranea, a feature-length narrative. After leaving his native Burkina Faso, Ayiva, the film’s central character, makes the perilous journey across the Sahara and Mediterranean in search of a better life in Europe. But the realities he encounters are not what he dreamed of. Once in Italy, he must balance his desire to provide for his family in Africa with the intolerance and harsh working conditions he finds in his newly claimed home. This very timely film looks at the increasingly divisive issue of refugee immigration to Italy through a distinctly humanitarian lens.

MARIE DVORAKOVA received support for On the Wall, an animated short about a young trombone player who spends an adventurous night in a shabby hotel room where a wall of lively growing mold stain enables him to discover the realm of eroticism. Jirka leads a humdrum life. He tours the country in a small beaten up car with his fellow band players, playing the same dance music over and over every night. But one particular night will turn out to be special. After he checks into a shabby hotel room, he becomes preoccupied with finding a corkscrew to open a bottle of wine. He pays no attention to weird mold stains on the walls, or a large crooked bookcase stuffed with hundreds of books of the same title. He just wants to find a corkscrew to open that bottle. Once he does, his life turns upside down. The bookcase collapses to the ground and the room turns 180 degrees. The colorful and multi-textured fungus stain spreads across the wall and the shape of a female body appears – beautiful, pointillist, alive. Jirka has no clue about the way that men should behave around women, especially in regard to how men and women mate. But this time he can’t resist his curiosity. He becomes involved with the Woman in the mold and embarks on a journey of awakening and self-discovery, encountering a universe of eroticism and adventure within the stale room. He is forced to commit the ultimate act of courage, when the night is over.

JACQUELINE A. GARES received support for FREE CeCe, a feature-length documentary about CeCe McDonald, a transgendered African American woman who survived a violent, racist and transphobic attack and served time in a men’s prison in Minnesota. The film begins with events that took place in Minneapolis, Minnesota at 12:00 on June 5, 2011, which led to the death of a young man named Dean Schmitz. Actress Laverne Cox, who portrays an incarcerated trans woman in Orange is the New Black, will walk the viewer through the story of CeCe’s trial and incarceration. The powerful voices of CeCe and Laverne, coupled with an investigative style of filmmaking, will result in a work that confronts the issue of trans-misogyny and the culture of violence surrounding trans women of color.

CARRIE HAWKS, for black enuf*, an animated documemoir of central character, Hawks, that takes a playful approach to heavier questions of racial identity, difference, and self-acceptance. Hawks is looking to open up the idea of blackness and find where she and her family belong.  “I’m not a Negro Hair Petting Zoo, though I often get mistaken for one,” muses Hawks. “Just add curious folks with misplaced manners and watch the probing begin!” She gets weak in the knees for accordion music and not fried chicken.  She has been called the whitest black person around more times than she’d care to mention. Having been called the “token black girl” and “the black girl who talks proper,” Hawks embarks on a journey to find her place in the world. How can she stay true to her identity and be accepted by her race?

ANDERS HOLINE, Saint Paul, received support for a&n, a feature-length documentary that observes the inspiring and uncommon journey of Aaron and Nora Purmort, a young married couple embracing life in unique ways as Aaron battles brain cancer. Aaron and Nora’s journey started when Nora received a call from Aaron’s place of work on Halloween. “Aaron has had a seizure,” said one of his co-workers. Nora called out the prank and asked to talk to Aaron. Except it wasn’t a joke. That night they found out that 32-year-old Aaron had a brain tumor. Surgery would shortly follow, along with the diagnosis of Grade 4 Glioblastoma: Brain Cancer. Sharing a hospital bed that Halloween night, they decided to get married, and two weeks later at the local art gallery where they first met, they took their vows. Two and a half years passed, multiple chemo and radiation rounds have taken place, and against amazing odds they had a baby boy. Nora has shared their story through a blog she started soon after the events on Halloween. It’s quickly evident as one reads the blog that this isn’t your average cancer story. With raw transparency, Nora talks about what it’s like to be staring death down while also embracing life. Their unique story and Nora’s writings have resonated with local audiences through articles and news stories, as well as global audiences through a New York Times article and a segment on the Today Show. Much of their story has taken place online through social media. Nora, a social media director/writer, and Aaron, a web designer, have connected with thousands of people, both inspiring and getting support from people around the world. This film is about their remarkable journey. (Update: Aaron Purmont died on November 25, 2014.)

SAM HOOLIHAN, Minneapolis, received support for City of Lakes, an experimental short that will be a silent visual meditation and poetic portrait of the City of Minneapolis. The film will be 24 minutes in length and shot on 16mm black-and-white film. It will be largely non-narrative and feature carefully composed shots that move within a four-part seasonal cycle. As modern media and contemporary culture continue to accelerate and overload our senses, the film’s slower pace will be a reprieve and offer a moment to step outside conventional time. Hoolihan’s choice of black-and-white film stock will further create a meditative space for the viewer to have a visual experience not fraught with oversaturated information. The film’s content will largely focus on the diversity of the city’s citizens, the transportation system, architecture, green spaces, and city textures. The city’s relationship with water, the abundant lakes, and the indisputable Mississippi River that cuts through the heart of it all will be recurring themes in the film. Hoolihan’s eyes will gravitate to the underappreciated corners of the city, the well built remnants of decades past, the rapid changes to aging infrastructure, and the hidden spots of natural solace within the city limits. City of Lakes will capture aspects of Minneapolis outside most citizens’ day-to-day rhythms, and reveal new paths for viewers to explore.

LAURA ISRAEL received support for the feature-length documentary Don’t Blink - Robert Frank. Robert Frank revolutionized photography and helped put independent film on the map. He documented the Beats, Welsh coal miners, Peruvian Indians, The Stones, London bankers, and the Americans. The journey has been a bumpy ride, and is now revealed with unblinking honesty by the reclusive artist himself. Frank’s multi-layered life and work are largely inseparable, and despite continual interest from biographers, he has been reluctant to open the door to his past – until now. He has finally made an exception for Don’t Blink - Robert Frank because of his ongoing professional relationship with director Laura Israel, his longtime film and video editor. Their years of collaboration have resulted in a working relationship built on intuition and mutual trust. Granted unprecedented access to both Frank and his archives, Israel’s film will offer audiences revelatory insight into the intricacies of Frank’s photos, films, influence and personal history.

KARL JACOB, Hibbing, received support for Cold November, a hybrid narrative feature-length film that will be the second in a trilogy shot in the same location in northern Minnesota as Pollywogs, the first film in the trilogy. The film follows Florence, a 12-year-old girl being raised within a matriarchal family that puts a lot of weight on the pragmatic and traditional ritual of a child's first deer hunt. Through the guidance of her mother, grandmother, aunts and uncle, Florence discovers and accepts the path she must take while simultaneously living through the aftermath of a recent family trauma. In revealing the timeless mythology embodied by this modern American rite of passage, and in the hunting and mourning experiences of a girl who is becoming a woman, filmmaker Jacob hopes to spark thought about how facing mortality is a fundamental and confrontational part of what it means to be human.

MOLLY KATAGIRI, Minneapolis, received support for Waabooz, a narrative short about how a young Native American artist named Rabbit overcomes his fears through Waabooz, a superhero of his own design brought to life with the help of his grandfather. Twelve year-old Rabbit spends most of his days collecting comics, keeping his little sister out of his hair, and avoiding the teasing of his peers for being an outcast. It's not easy being different on a remote Wisconsin reservation. He keeps busy drawing and has perfected Waabooz, a superhero that embodies Rabbit's desired self. Rabbit dreads dancing in an upcoming powwow; he's awkward and shy and would rather be left out of this community event. When his bedridden grandfather learns of his fears, he decides to help Rabbit become his own hero and find strength within himself. Waabooz is a character driven drama about a boy and his common-place adolescent struggles. The film is set on a reservation that is both breathtaking and stark in landscape. The story is conveyed with the grit of realism, and a magical realism born from Rabbit's artistic imagination. Rabbit's character progression is brought to fruition by his Granfather's imparting of tradition and the spiritual strength that comes with it.

MARIE LOSIER received support for Cassandro, The Exotico!, an intimate experimental documentary portrait of one of the most renowned performers in the astonishing world of Mexican “lucha libre” wrestling. Over a 17 year career, Cassandro, an openly gay, cross-dressing “exotico” wrestler, has thrilled lucha audiences with his fearlessness in and out of the ring, battling fierce opponents, homophobia, addiction, and the after-effects of severe childhood trauma. Cassandro is arguably Mexico’s most daring and highly revered exotico. He is the current NWA World Welterweight Champion and a former UWA World Lightweight Champion. He has been openly gay for most of his 35-year career, breaking boundaries within a community that has not always tolerated homosexuality. Filmmaker Marie Losier was immediately taken by Cassandro’s warmth, eccentricity, and incredible athletic ability when she met him. They struck up a friendship and Losier soon learned that his enormous spirit rises out of a life marred by violence, poverty, and addiction. Over the next two years, Losier visited Cassandro seven times in Mexico City and El Paso as well as Paris and London while he was touring. He introduced her to the astonishing, complex and highly secretive inner world of lucha libre. This documentary is about Cassandro’s life within that world and so much more.

JUAN MEJIA received support for The Battle for Land, a feature-length hybrid documentary/animation film born out of a commitment by the filmmaker to grapple with the realities of a country stained by inequality and injustice. Through detailed portraits of characters in the film, The Battle for Land journeys deep into the heart of mass displacement in Colombia, where development models and corporate interests collide with and ravage local visions and ancestral traditions, and the dark side of progress is revealed. The film depicts the catastrophic complexities of forced mass displacement. Colombia surpasses the world in its internal refugee crisis with close to 5 million people violently displaced from their land since 1990. Black Colombians, approximately 17% of the population, make up a disproportionate 30% of those uprooted from their territory. As the civil war in Colombia escalates, armed actors are disputing the territory and seeking control of the valuable natural resources of the Pacific region, where the majority of the Afro-Colombian population resides. Leading activists affirm that if displacement rates continue, Afro-Colombians could disappear as a distinguishable, cohesive ethnic group from the Pacific Coast. This film examines that growing crisis.