Now in its eighth year, Working Films’ Impact Kickstart resources underrepresented documentary filmmakers to develop and implement impact campaigns that meaningfully engage audiences, partners, and supporters. This year, three incredible film teams have been selected to receive $20,000 each in impact campaign funding, along with in-kind partnership and strategy development from Working Films, and participation in a year-long cohort experience where filmmakers can learn from and support one another.
Hannah Hearn, Impact Coordinator and Fellowships Lead at Working Films, reflected on the ways Impact Kickstart has evolved to respond at a time when our field is facing so many challenges, “We always strive to make Impact Kickstart a program that meets the needs of our filmmakers, and as we face this current moment head on, it is clear that leaning on each other is what will get us through. So this year, I’m excited to announce that we are introducing a cohort opportunity as part of Impact Kickstart. This will be a year-long supportive, collaborative space for the filmmakers to strategize together and support one another throughout the planning and implementation of their impact campaigns. in love, in memory; What Will I Become?; and Wood Street are the embodiment of community-led collaboration, care, and safety and will provide powerful opportunities for community members to connect, heal, and make change together.”
Shalon Buskirk, Director, Producer, and Protagonist of in love, in memory shared “Impact Kickstart is the bridge between our documentary and the audiences who need it most. This essential program amplifies my son’s story and believes in our film’s potential as a catalyst for healing, solidarity, and transformation.”
in love, in memory
www.inloveinmemory.com
After losing her firstborn son to gun violence, a mother gathers cherished memories and erased histories to connect his death to her city’s haunting legacy of racism. An impressionistic counter-narrative that refuses to follow the expectations of true crime, IN LOVE, IN MEMORY refracts quiet scenes of artistic intervention, collective storytelling, and tender remembrance through a prism of passing time.
Co-Director, Producer, Co-Editor, and Protagonist: Shalon Buskirk; Co-Director, Producer, Co-Editor, Cinematographer: Drew Swedberg; Producer: Nandini Sikand; Consulting Producer: Tiffany E. Barber; Executive Producer: Jessica Beshir; Co-Editor: Haley Hnatuk
What Will I Become?
In “What Will I Become?,” Directors Lexie Bean and Logan Rozos explore the vulnerability of their transmasculine community. They delve into their own personal experiences, intertwining the stories of two young trans men who died by suicide.
Directors: Lexie Bean and Logan Rozos; Producers: Drew Dickler, Geoff Pingree, David Sherwin, Ricki Stern; Editor: Miles Hill; Director of Photography: Fletcher Wolfe; Stop-Motion Animation: Daniel Lobb; Original Score: Perigee Vitz-Wong
Wood Street
Two unhoused men turned community leaders— John and LaMonté —organize their neighbors in the face of displacement, addiction, and a failing social system.
Director, Producer, and Editor: Caron Creighton; Producer: Estevan Padilla; Consulting Producer: Tiffany Fisher-Love
Congratulations to the film teams selected! We are excited and honored to be working alongside these incredible projects. Thank you to everyone who applied, and thank you to our panel of reviewers. This would not be possible without you!
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ABOUT IMPACT KICKSTART Impact Kickstart is underpinned by an understanding that a solid strategy for audience engagement and strong partnerships are critical for a documentary film to make a difference. Filmmakers often lack time to do this work themselves or the expertise and the funds to pay for it. Emerging artists, creators of color, and other underrepresented filmmakers can face the biggest hurdles, despite the potential of their projects. To respond to this challenge, Working Films offers free impact campaign development services to underrepresented artists whose films hold great promise to shift understanding and catalyze action that addresses some of the most critical issues of our time. Impact Kickstart is made possible by generous support from the Ford Foundation, John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation, Kendeda Fund, Perspective Fund, and individual donors.
