It's been a long time...

(copyright photo by Amy Peck)

A lot has happened since i posted my last update. Back in June I participated in a panel discussion for New York Women in Television and Film and Women Make Movies. The comprehensive, all-day seminar explored the diverse sources of funding available for independent film and video makers, including grants, television pre-sales and on-line communities. It was a great experience and I met a lot of really talented filmmakers. I also got some great ideas about fundraising from some of the incredibly talented filmmakers who participated in the event. After the panel I spoke at length with Women Make Movies founder Tracy Holder and coproducer of an American Masters biography of theater producer Joseph Papp. She raised $10,000 for her documentary by selling buttons. Needless to say I am now working with a very talented graphic designer who is helping me to design original merchandise to help fund my first feature documentary. More to come on that soon...

Just this month my fellow Profluence filmmakers received some excellent news regarding our first film Blind Faith: A Film About Seeing. The film won the honourable mention award at the 2010 Picture This Film Festival. The film will screen at the festival in Vancouver this February. This is our second award for the film, which won Best Soundtrack at the 2008 Hot Docs Film Festival in Toronto. Blind Faith is actually available for viewing in it's entirety at Snag Films, an affiliate of IndieWIRE. Check it out here and please feel free to leave a comment and a rating! One of our subjects, Victorine Fludd, had her artwork featured in a recent exhibit at the University of California, Riverside and in a related Time Magazine article. You can view an online selection of some of the featured works from the exhibit here.

Finally, the photograph I included above was taken by a very talented photographer, Amy Peck, whom I met while filming at the United Nations. We were both there for the 15th Commemoration of the Rwanda Genocide. To date it was the most emotional shoot I have ever done. There were no dry eyes during the ceremony and many of the UN representatives broke down when addressing the crowd. UN Ambassador Susan Rice concluded her remarks by saying "We bow our heads to mark the memory of those who were slain. And we bow our heads to mark the sorrow of all who stood by."

Silent Auction Items still available...

There are still some great silent auction items available at www.inthesmallhours.com. You can snag a gift certificate to my favorite women's clothing store, a subscription to my favorite magazine or a facial from acclaimed wellness expert Wen C. Chen. Proceeds will go to fund two films that I am working on so you get a great gift and you are supporting a great cause.

I will be heading to Detroit at the end of the month to start production on another feature. This one is top secret for the moment. As soon as I have all the legal paperwork in order I will start blogging about that production so keep checking back for updates.

Silent Auction

Thank you all for making our benefit fundraiser at Sutra a huge success! We had a great turnout and thanks to DJ Witnes and Starr African Rum the party was also an enormous amount of fun. We still have some great silent auction items available at our website including gift certificates to Tango women's clothing store & D'Amicos Italian specialties and coffee, as well as Facials from renowned wellness expert Wen C.Chen and a one year subscription to my favorite magazine Wax Poetics.

Margaret Mead Film & Video Festival 2009

Profluence Productions received an email from the Margaret Mead Film & Video Festival today stating that they would like to consider Bend & Bow for their festival:

Greetings!
The 2009 Margaret Mead Film & Video Festival is now accepting submissions.
We read about the film Bend & Bow from the Big Sky Documentary Film Festival 2009 screening guide and we would like to consider it for the Mead Festival, which will take place in November.

Now in it's 33rd year, the Margaret Mead Film & Video Festival is the longest-running, premiere showcase for international documentaries in the United States, encompassing a broad spectrum of work, from indigenous community media to experimental nonfiction. The Festival is distinguished by its outstanding selection of titles, which tackle diverse and challenging subjects, representing a range of issues and perspectives, and by the forums for discussion with filmmakers and speakers.

The festival takes place November 12-15, 2009 at the Museum of Natural History in New York City.

A private photo shoot with Markus Klinko & Indrani

My friends Indrani Pal & GK Reid of Markus Klinko & Indrani have generously donated a private photo shoot and styling for the silent auction at the benefit fundraiser for my new documentary feature, In the small hours. The duo have photographed many celebrities from Mary J. Blige & Mariah Carey to Beyonce. In fact, when I saw them last night they were getting ready to shoot Beyonce's new Loreal campaign today. This Fall they will be featured on their own reality TV show on Bravo. According to Bravo:

The show, Double Exposure, will document the lives of famed celebrity and high fashion photographers Markus Klinko and Indrani along with high-end stylist GK Reid, "giving viewers a taste of the fast-paced world of high fashion and celebrity photography." And yes, you've seen their work. They've shot Lindsay Lohan, Kate Winslet, JLO, Mariah Carey's album cover for her '05 comeback record, and Beyonce's album cover for her debut solo record just to name a few.

They are enormously talented and incredibly famous and I am thrilled to have them as friends. Indrani is a truly inspiring woman and artist. She was born in Calcutta and raised in India, England and Canada. At 14, she began a successful career as a fashion model, traveling the world to work with the greatest photographers and creatives, while studying philosophy, meditation, photography and film, and pursuing her own photography. Indrani founded a charitable school with her father in their ancestral home in West Bengal, India. Then she earned a BA in Anthropology at Princeton University, while developing with Markus their unique photographic style and mastering post-production in Paris and New York. Indrani has also asked to create the film's poster once the documentary is complete.

Saturday April 18th 2009 Fundraiser Benefit at Sutra Lounge NYC

Come & support

a benefit fundraiser for the upcoming documentary

In the small hours

by Director Dana Bartle &
Executive Producer Delilah Rothenberg
Saturday
April 18th, 2009
9pm-4am
Sutra Lounge
16 1st Avenue NYC 10009

featuring DJ Witnes

silent auction gifts from Thom Browne, Il Buco, Tinto Fino, Mercat, Vosges Chocolates & much more

Complimentary cocktails provided by Starr African Rum.

postcard collage by patricia jo peacock-patriciajopeacock.com

view original artwork here

$25 at the door or buy advance tickets here

If you are not able to make the fundraiser please feel free to support us
by donating to the film directly at the website
www.inthesmallhours.com

In the small hours

Delilah and I will be throwing a fundraiser for our forthcoming film In the small hours on Saturday April 18, 2009 at Sutra Lounge, 16 First Avenue NYC. DJ Witnes will spin from 10-3am and we also have many great gifts that will be available for a silent auction including items from Thom Browne, Il Buco, Mercat, Tinto Fino, Vosges Haut Chocolat and many more. We are raising money to go to Rwanda in June with our subject and begin production. My wonderful friend Patti is creating a collage for the invitations and we will be auctioning off the original at the event. I will send out a formal invitation soon and you will be able to buy advance tickets to the event at the films website
In the small hours