LOS ANGELES, CA: At its 3rd annual gala benefit in New York City last night, Sundance Institute announced the receipt of a $5 million grant from The Annenberg Foundation, whose mission is to advance the public well-being through communication. Charles Annenberg Weingarten, as a trustee of the Foundation, has directed the grant to fund the creation of The Annenberg Film Fellows Program. The five-year initiative is designed to provide a combination of personal stipends, residencies and creative support for selected participants in Sundance Institute's Feature Film Program. Fellowships will extend over a two- year period during the creation of a specific film project. The Annenberg Film Fellows Program will support up to five Feature Film Program participants as they partake in the different aspects of the Feature Film Program, including the Filmmakers Lab, Screenwriters Labs (June and January), Film Music Lab, Producers Conference, and Screenplay Readings.
“The Annenberg Foundation, through its enlightened generosity, will be touching the lives of promising filmmakers at the very stage when they need support the most,” noted Ken Brecher, Executive Director of Sundance Institute. “The Annenberg Film Fellows Program provides financial and creative resources at a critical moment in an aspiring filmmakers life that can assist in launching their careers. The program will further Sundance's mission of encouraging and discovering distinctive unheard voices and providing a lifelong creative community to participants in our Feature Film Program.”
The goal of the Annenberg Film Fellows Program is to identify and foster a new generation of leading film artists, who generally have limited access to direct support for the development of new work. The Program will be a comprehensive initiative designed to identify and nourish talented emerging filmmakers throughout the creation of a specific film project (usually their first feature film). The Program will provide a continuum of support designed to serve the full range of needs of new filmmakers: a series of structured residencies on screenwriting, directing, and producing films; mentors drawn from all creative and business areas of filmmaking; personal stipends for living expenses during intensive periods of creation and pre-production; and small seed-grants, works-in-progress, or completion awards to overcome obstacles in moving projects forward into successful production and distribution.
“I see this grant as one of the meaningful ways the Annenberg Foundation can directly support the work of artists by helping to build their capacity to create their art,” commented Charles Annenberg Weingarten, trustee of The Annenberg Foundation. “Through my own personal contact with artists I know just how challenging it is to remain focused on producing their work while also making a living and paying the rent. This program will enable promising filmmakers to stay committed and focused on their work and to enrich their creative process through the programs and nurturing environment of the Feature Film Program and Sundance Institute.”
The 2004 Annenberg Film Fellows will be selected from candidates who have already participated in some aspect of Sundance Institute's Feature Film Program. The first Annenberg Film Fellows will be announced in spring 2004. Applications forms and information on how to apply for the 2005 Sundance Institute Feature Film Program are available on our website at www.sundance.org.
The Annenberg Foundation
Founded by publisher, diplomat and philanthropist Walter H. Annenberg in 1989, The Annenberg Foundation exists to advance the public well-being through improved communication. As the principal means of achieving its goal, the Foundation encourages the development of more effective ways to share ideas and knowledge. The Annenberg Foundation has offices in St. Davids, Pennsylvania and Los Angeles, California.
Sundance Institute
Founded by Robert Redford in 1981, Sundance Institute is dedicated to the development of artists of independent vision and the exhibition of their new work. Since its inception, the Institute has grown into an internationally recognized resource for filmmakers and other artists. Sundance Institute conducts national and international labs for filmmakers, screenwriters, composers, writers, and theater artists. The annual Sundance Film Festival, a major program of Sundance Institute, is held each January and is considered the premier showcase for American and international independent film. The Institute supports non-fiction filmmakers through the Documentary Film Program by providing year-round support through the Sundance Documentary Fund and a series of programs that nurture their growth, encourage the exploration of innovative nonfiction storytelling, and promote the exhibition of documentary films to a broader audience. Through the Sundance Institute Theatre Program, the Institute is committed to invigorating the national theatre movement with original and creative work and to nurturing the diversity of artistic expression among theatre artists. The Institute also maintains The Sundance Collection at UCLA, a unique archive of independent film.
