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Dear Collaborators,

We hope this e-missive finds you well.

We have many updates this month as we ramp up to the new 2015 film and awards season. Many of our films from 2014 are having broadcast premieres and theatrical releases. And, most notably, we have some additions to our fiscal sponorship program that those of you who are working on new projects should definitely check out.

Wishing you all a safe and productive holiday season!

All best,

— The Film Collaborative



Independent Spirit Award nominations

Nominations for the Independent Spirit Awards were announced last week…TFC is proud to have worked with three of the nominated films and one of the producers!

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Evolution of a Criminal (Truer than Fiction Award, Darius Clark Monroe)
Test (John Cassavetes Award, Chris Mason Johnson & Chris Martin)
Appropriate Behavior (Best First Screenplay, Desiree Akhavan)
Chad Burris (Independent Spirit Producers Award)

Additionally, TFC Advisory Board Member Effie Brown (Dear White People) and TFC Alum Ira Sachs (Love is Strange) also received nods. We wish all of them luck on February 21, 2015, when the awards ceremony will take place.



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THE ROYAL ROAD

Directed by Jenni Olson


TFC is proud to announce that our newest film for festival distribution, THE ROYAL ROAD, by acclaimed filmmaker Jenni Olson, has just been selected to World Premiere at the 2015 Sundance Film Festival!

A cinematic essay in defense of remembering, THE ROYAL ROAD offers up a primer on the Spanish colonization of California and the Mexican American War alongside intimate reflections on nostalgia, the pursuit of unavailable women, butch identity and Alfred Hitchcock’s Vertigo—all against a contemplative backdrop of 16mm urban California landscapes, and featuring a voiceover cameo by Tony Kushner.



Theatrical Releases


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THE CIRCLE

15-city release • Winter 2014/2015


Zurich: 1958. The bashful teacher and a German cabaret artist meet and fall in love in the Swiss underground organization called “Der Kreis” (The Circle), only to witness the heyday and decline of this Europe-wide pioneering organization for gay emancipation. Switzerland’s Offical Submission for Foreign Language Film at the 87th Academy Awards, THE CIRCLE has already wowed audiences in Palm Springs and New York City. The Teddy Award for Best Documentary at Berlinale continues its theatical run. A list of cities can be found here.
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EVOLUTION OF A CRIMINAL

Fall 2014


In examining a bank robbery committed by Texas high-school students, Darius Clark Monroe’s film, which premiered at SXSW, interweaves suspenseful reenactment footage with candid interviews from people involved in every angle of the crime. The twist? The filmmaker himself was one of the men involved in the robbery. Here’s a list of where you might be able to catch EVOLUTION OF A CRIMINAL in your area.
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THE IMMORTALISTS

Dec 11 • Laemmle Noho, Los Angeles


Two eccentric scientists struggle to create eternal youth in a world they call “blind to the tragedy of old age.” As they battle their own aging and suffer the loss of loved ones, their scientific quest ultimately becomes personal. The film played SXSW and HotDocs. Fresh off its New York theatrical run, it opens at the Laemmle Noho on Dec. 11. Click list for more information and to request a screening be organized in your area.



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CLEARANCE & COPYRIGHT

by Michael C. Donaldson & Lisa A. Callif


The 4th edition of Clearance & Copyright: Everything You Need to Know for Film and Television has just been released. The book is extremely practical and reader friendly, which is why some 50 schools all over the country and clearance professionals use it to understand the rights that are legally available to them. Not only are the contracts and forms explained in the book, but clean, downloadable copies of them are also available by email. 50 illustrative film clips are provided as examples that correlate with the films being discussed, including URLs so that the reader can view the clip as they are reading the book. Comprehensive resource lists that are updated in real time can also be downloaded in the same way as the contracts. And of course, the text is updated and expanded in this new edition.



TFC Fiscal Sponsorship News


Fiscal Sponsorship is used primarily when a non-profit film or film related project or event wants to secure funding from individual, foundation, government or corporate sources that give only to nonprofit organizations with IRS tax-exempt status.

TFC accepts fiscal sponsorship applications anytime, there’s no deadline. The admin fee is 5% which is the lowest rate you’ll find anywhere.

Be sure to check out the Fiscal Sponsorship section of our website, as we have just added several new sections and services.

Funding Opportunities

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Check out the new Funding Opportunities page on the TFC website. A great resource to find out about upcoming grant deadlines, programs etc. Check back often, we’ll add opportunities as we find them. Below are a few examples of funding opportunities:

Creative Work Fund's Northern California Art Collaboration Grants
Grants of up to $40,000 are available to artist/organization teams creating new collaborative projects in the media or traditional arts. Deadline for letters of inquiry: Friday, December 5th, 2014

Gucci Tribeca Documentary Fund
The Gucci Tribeca Documentary Fundprovides finishing funds from $10,000 to $25,000 to feature-length docs highlighting and humanizing issues of social importance from around the world. Submissions open Friday, December 5th, 2014

TFI Latin America Media Arts Fund
The TFI Latin America Media Arts Fundsupports "innovative film and video artists living and working in the Caribbean, Mexico, Central, and South America whose work reflects their diverse cultures in the scripted documentary or mixed-media form" with grants of up to $10,000 for projects in production or post-production. Submissions open Friday, December 5th, 2014

Call for Entries: National Black Programming Consortium's NBPC 360
NBPC 360—the National Black Programming Consortium's new call for entries for producers—is seeking fresh serial content about the Black experience. Eligible ideas include interactive web/digital projects, nonfiction or scripted web series and non-fiction TV series. Three projects will ultimately receive up to $150,000 to complete their pilots. Deadline: Tuesday, January 9th, 2015

National Endowment for the Humanities' Media Projects Development Grants
Grants typically ranging from $40,000 to $75,000 are available for film, television, and radio projects that "engage public audiences through multiple formats in the exploration of humanities ideas.” Deadline: Wednesday, January 14th, 2015

Call for Applications: CEC ArtsLink Visual and Media Arts Grants
American artists, curators, presenters, and arts organizations undertaking projects in any of 37 eligible countries may apply for up to $10,000 in funding for their work. Deadline: Thursday, January 15th, 2015

Fleishhacker Foundation: Small Arts Grants for Bay Area Arts Organizations
Grants of up to $10,000 are available to Bay Area arts organizations in support of programs within a range of disciplines that includes film and the media arts. Deadline: Thursday, January 15th, 2015


Grant Research and Grant Writing

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TFC is offering two new services, grant research and grant writing. These services are available to anyone, you do not need to be part of TFC's fiscal sponsorship program.

What exactly is this? A grant writer takes the basic information you provide about your project and tailors it to specific grant opportunities. Once we have your project information we tune the language appropriately for the targeted funder. Broken into steps, TFC will:
  • Analyze the intended audience for the proposal
  • Gather information from you about the subject of the proposal
  • Write the proposal
  • Format the proposal
  • Revise, edit, and proof read the proposal
  • Submit the proposal
TFC will work with you on a case-by-case basis to define your needs. Grant writing and/or research services are provided by the hour or by the project. To set up a free consultation email grants@thefilmcollaborative.org. For more information and FAQ’s visit us online at: thefilmcollaborative.org/fiscalsponorship.



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REGARDING SUSAN SONTAG

HBO Premiere • December 8


REGARDING SUSAN SONTAG is an intimate and nuanced investigation into the life of one of the most influential and provocative thinkers of the 20th century. The documentary explores Sontag’s life through evocative experimental images, archival materials, accounts from friends, family, colleagues, and lovers, as well as her own words, read by actress Patricia Clarkson. Winner of the Special Jury Prize at Tribeca, REGARDING SUSAN SONTAG has been made in partnership with HBO Documentary Films and will be broadcast beginning on December 8th on HBO, HBOGO and HBO ON DEMAND. Watch the trailer here.



TFC Direct Digital DIY Distribution News


Many filmmakers still do not know about TFC’s Direct Digital Distribution programs. We’re offering filmmakers interested in DIY distribution two different avenues for distribution and guided support. We’re adding this section to our newsletter to highlight some films in this program.

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The Green Girl

Now on iTunes • GooglePlay • Amazon • Vudu • XBox • Playstation


Susan Oliver, the original Star Trek’s iconic Green Girl, has appeared in the end credits of re-runs of this series on a near-daily basis since the late 1960?s. But it was no coincidence that Gene Roddenberry sought her out to play the pivotal role in the pilot episode of his ground-breaking new television series. Arriving in Hollywood at the very end of the old Studio System, she made her mark in a handful of notable films but never quite broke out as a huge star.

Yet, Susan Oliver became one of the most photographed women of her era, virtually a household name, the female television guest star of choice between 1957 and 1973. She was not only a prolific actress of the ’50s – ’80s, but an original member of the AFI Directing Workshop for Women (and one of the only women directing major TV shows in the 1980’s), and a record-setting female aviator before we tragically lost her to cancer in 1990. And yet Susan Oliver has been inexplicably forgotten by the industry to which she gave so much of herself. This documentary chronicles the remarkable achievements of her all-too-short life.



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FIND YOUR WAY: A Busker’s Documentary

Now on iTunes • Amazon • GooglePlay • VHX


FIND YOUR WAY explores themes of creativity and success through the lens of street music. It raises fascinating questions about the nature of context and how it can affect our perception of artistic worth.

Using a richly woven fabric of raw footage, insightful interviews and a compelling soundtrack, FIND YOUR WAY prompts audiences to become more aware of how their own pre-conceptions of “what’s good” can prevent them from appreciating something’s natural beauty.

Featuring Grammy winning violinist Joshua Bell, Pulitzer Prize winning author Gene Weingarten and 90's rocker Chris Ballew (The Presidents of the United States), this film will forever change the way you think about creativity in our culture.





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TO BE TAKEI


TO BE TAKEI is featured on IMDB’s WHAT TO WATCH.



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She’s Beautiful When She’s Angry

Los Angeles Theatrical opens Dec 12


There has never been a theatrical documentary about the early days of women’s movement…until now! SHE’S BEAUTIFUL WHEN SHE’S ANGRY opens at The Landmark Nuart Theatre in LA on Dec 12th! Watch the trailer and join in to celebrating these amazing women! Visit the website for more information.