Film Independent’s Fiscal Sponsorship program opens the door to nonprofit funding for independent filmmakers and media artists. Donate today and help bring Sister Úna Lived A Good Death to life.

Logline

Following a cancer diagnosis, Sister Úna—a wisecracking Catholic nun dedicated to social justice—chooses to live as she’s dying. In Sister Úna Lived a Good Death, we follow the self-proclaimed “leader of the misfits” in her last nine months as she plans her funeral, attempts to complete her bucket list, and confronts what it means to let go.

Synopsis

Sister Úna Feeney spent her life eschewing stereotypes. Wisecracking while wearing plaid flannels and baseball hats like a uniform, the raconteur was a rule-breaker and feminist long before it was cool. Sister Úna Lived A Good Death is an equally unconventional character study of this mischievous, social justice-defending Catholic nun living out her last nine months in Encino, California with stage IV cancer and a strong will to thrive. Her unique approach to dying included planning her own funeral (with karaoke), hosting a funeral planning workshop for Sisters and friends to consider their last wishes, and making the most of her last days as she attempted to live for the birth of her beloved niece Sarah’s first child. A former youth minister, Úna used her death as her final teaching moment.

Úna was the self-proclaimed “leader of the misfits” and her special skill was making kids—particularly LGBTQ youth—feel okay to be their authentic selves. In completing her bucket list, she reunited with the cast of characters she inspired, the Sisters of Social Service in her community, and her large Boston Irish family. Filmed through hospice, Úna got her final wish of making sure her approach to life and death could inspire generations to come.

Make a donation to Sister Úna Lived A Good Death.

Meet the Filmmakers

Par Parekh – Director

Par was born in Texas to Indian immigrants at the tail end of the Carter administration. His work as a filmmaker has placed him in many roles—director, writer, producer, editor, and cinematographer. Par was named one of 25 Screenwriters to Watch in 2020 by Austin Film Festival. He made his narrative directorial debut with the short The Happy, which screened at SeriesFest and Austin Film Festival in 2019. Par produced and co-wrote Benh Zeitlin’s Glory At Sea, winner of the Wholphin Best Short Film Award at SXSW, and edited Dana O’Keefe’s short narrative The New Yorkist, which was in competition at Tribeca Film Festival. He’s also produced and shot short documentaries for the Haitian Government to present at the World Economic Forum. Par edited a feature-length documentary about Cameron Crowe’s film Aloha. Before his documentary and narrative work, Par spent a decade creating promotional videos for such musical talents as Beyoncé and Willie Nelson, and fashion clients such as Bergdorf Goodman, Neiman Marcus, and Macy’s. He is a graduate of Wesleyan University and is represented by Artists First.

Ali Hart – Producer

Ali has over a decade of experience using entertainment to influence culture, from concept development to impact producing, including strategizing grassroots campaigns for feature films from Participant Media, PBS, Ford Foundation, Tiffany Shlain, Petra Costa, Rick Rosenthal, and Cullen Hoback, to name a few. Recently, she developed and pitched projects with Above Average, Abso Lutely, and Gimlet Media/Spotify. During the pandemic, she produced two narrative web series, both of which screened at SeriesFest 2021 and 2022, respectively. She’s produced American Haze, a short documentary on immigrants for Sundance Now, as well as Spotlight California, a documentary web series for billionaire environmentalist Tom Steyer. Earlier in her career, Ali managed comedians and developed true stories into original movies that were used to change laws for Court TV. There, she also developed the network’s first scripted series, which starred cult favorite John Waters. Ali’s work is featured in the book, A Comedian and an Activist Walk Into a Bar: The Serious Role of Comedy in Social Justice. She has a BA in English and Communication Arts from the University of Wisconsin-Madison and an MBA in Sustainability from Presidio Graduate School.

Ann Rose – Editor

Ann spent 10+ years at television networks with strong brand identity and prestige—Sundance TV and BBC America—and worked extensively in the independent film and television communities before turning her storytelling passion to the edit room. Her editing credits include Surviving Death (Netflix), Mission Possible: The Race For A Vaccine (National Geographic), Student Athlete (HBO), Being Bebe (Tribeca Film Festival) and Refuge (DOCNYC). She has built her career bridging the gaps between cinematic documentary programs and compelling unscripted television, between journalistic reportage and branded entertainment, and between traditional and evolving content platforms. In 2016, Ann co-founded Documentary Producers Alliance.

Chris McNabb – Editor

Chris (they/them) is a Brooklyn-based editor focused primarily on documentary film. Their past nonfiction work includes the Emmy Award-winning interactive documentary {THE AND} (IDFA 2014) and the accompanying short film {THE AND} MARCELA & ROCK (Sundance 2015). In 2016, McNabb was selected as a Sundance Documentary Edit & Story Lab Fellow. McNabb’s feature editorial debut, Whose Streets?, premiered at the 2017 Sundance Film Festival to critical acclaim. The film was distributed theatrically by Magnolia Pictures and nominated for two Gotham Awards, a Critics’ Choice Award, and a Peabody Award. McNabb recently edited the feature documentary Narrowsburg (Camden 2019) and the short horror film The Rat, which premiered at the 2019 Sundance Film Festival. McNabb graduated Wesleyan University Phi Beta Kappa with a B.A. in Film Studies. Their senior thesis film was awarded honors by the faculty and the NNK Award for Best Screenplay.

Nathan Halpern – Composer

Nathan is an Emmy-nominated composer, named one of Indiewire’s ‘Composers to Watch.’ He is the composer behind two of the most acclaimed films of 2018: The Cannes-winning narrative feature The Rider (Sony Pictures Classics) and the Oscar-nominated documentary feature Minding The Gap (HULU). Halpern recently scored 2019 Sundance Grand Jury Prize winner One Child Nation (Amazon Studios). Other notable scores include the Sundance Grand Jury Prize winner Rich Hill; the Emmy and Peabody Award-winning Marina Abramovic: The Artist Is Present (HBO); and the Oscar-shortlisted film Hooligan Sparrow.

Make a donation to Sister Úna Lived A Good Death.

Contact

For inquiries, please contact fiscalsponsorship@filmindependent.org.