Sponsored Projects

Film Independent Fiscal Sponsorship

New and innovative work, fiscally sponsored by Film Independent.
The Fiscal Sponsorship program opens the door to nonprofit funding for independent filmmakers and media artists, supporting a diverse slate of projects at every stage of the filmmaking process – from development to distribution and beyond. Support Film Independent's creative community and help bring these projects to life by donating below.
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Monumental

After protesters upend five monuments in Portland in 2020, the community reckons with its symbols of westward expansion. The unfolding fate of the sculptures pits historic preservationists and the descendants of Oregon Trail settlers against artists, Indigenous activists, and others who view the monuments as relics of colonialism.

Director: Erika Bolstad
Producer: Jackie Weissman, Jen Tate
Director of Photography: Zach Putnam

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Morning

At the repast following his father’s funeral, Noah Butler grapples with the complex nature of his grief, and familial bonds, after the surprise arrival of his estranged uncle.

Project type: Fiction Short
Writer/Director: Ryan T. Lipscomb
Producer: Jamari Perry, Corlandos Scott

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Morning Joy

A depressed pianist rediscovers his zest for life through an unexpected encounter with a songbird.

Project type: Fiction Short
Director/Co-Writer/Producer: John Henry Hinkel
Producer/Composer/Co-Writer: Ethan Pakchar
Executive Producer: Nemanja Gavrilovic
Lead Animator: Miloš Djurdjevic
Animator: Marko Djuricic
Background Artist: Milan Maksimovic
Recorder: Charlotte Barbour-Condini
Piano: Vicky Chow

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Mother

Upon receiving a disturbing email from her son, a mother drives frantically to his school hoping to avert the unimaginable.

Project type: Fiction Short
Director/Writer: Maia Scalia
Producer: Ani Schroeter
Editor: Pietro Scalia
Director of Photography: Matt Clegg
Composer: Eli Keszler

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Mother/Daughter/Civilian/Soldier

Four survivors of sexual assault perpetrated by active military members, unite to advocate for systemic, legislative change within the military court system.

Project type: Nonfiction Feature
Director: Natalie Avital
Producer: Ryan M Murphy
Co-Producer: Lindsay Perry

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Moving Out

A family drama about the complexities of faith, community, and parent/child relationships.

Project type: Fiction Short
Producer/Director/Screenwriter/Story: Rachel Earnest
Producer/Editor/Story: Ashley Monti

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Moxie

In an era of giant Maxi Pads and Phil Donahue, misfit teen Moxie finds her fit with a group of college political activists. But when she becomes pregnant by the rebel leader, she faces her own fight — arguing for her abortion at a time when women’s liberation is coming into its own.

Project type: Fiction Feature
Director: Marya Mazor
Producers: Christina Sibul, Karen Tenkoff

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Munchies
After lighting up and getting the munchies, four college girls’ sleepover takes a dark turn when they stumble into a botched robbery at their local convenience store. They must squash their giggles and outsmart the robber to make it out alive.

Project type: Fiction Short
Writer/Director: Jaelyn Ellis
Producer: Jaelyn Ellis

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My Baby is a Bike Helmet

After a miscommunication leads her coworkers to believe that she is pregnant, a seemingly barren waitress allows the fantasy to overtake the reality and finds herself navigating an ever-growing web of lies as she gets closer and closer to her imaginary “full term.”

Project type: Fiction Short
Co-Directors/Producers: Arden Grier, Roxanna Dunlop
Writer: Julia Dixon

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Nails
A strange yearning afflicts a reclusive young nurse, dealing with abuse and trauma, only known to her sister who has Down’s syndrome. Writer/Director: Triparna Banerjee
Producer: Aishwarya Sonar
Director of Photography: Milind Shah
Production Designer: Prabhakaran

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NECESSITY: a documentary in two parts

Comprised of Necessity Part I: Oil, Water and Climate Resistance and Necessity Part II: Rivers, Resistance and Oil by Rail, NECESSITY traces the fight in Minnesota against the expansion of pipelines carrying toxic tar sands oil through North America. Home to much of the world’s precious freshwater resources, the state is also the site of expanding oil industry infrastructure. The film follows indigenous activists and non-indigenous allies in their resistance to the pipelines traversing native lands and essential waterways.

Project type: Nonfiction Feature
Director/Producer: Jan Haaken
Co-Director: Samantha Praus

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Never Move Backwards

Never Move Backwards is an intimate portrait of an all female parkour troupe in Shiraz, Iran as they train for competition. The film explores themes of rebellion, youth, escapism, and counterculture set against the backdrop of Iran’s ever mutable cultural identity.

Project type: Nonfiction Feature
Director: Alexandra Tahereh Kaucher
Producer: Jonathan Olson, Damon Owlia

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Nevertheless Film Festival

Nevertheless Film Festival elevates the work of women in film, as every film in the program is required to have at least 50% of designated leadership roles filled by women. The roles include director, producer, editor, cinematographer, screenwriter, production designer, sound mixer, and music supervisor/composer.

Project type: Festival
Founder/Festival Director: Meredith Finch

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New Wave
Mile-high hair. Synthesized sounds. Teenage rebellion. Elizabeth Ai was on a mission to excavate an untold story of rebellious punks in the chaotic world of 80s Vietnamese New Wave until she uncovers a hidden past.

Project type: Nonfiction Feature
Director/Producer: Elizabeth Ai
Producer: Rachel Sine
Executive Producers: Diane Quon, Geeta Gandbhir, Robina Riccitiello, C.Y. Lee

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Nihunavea: My Heart, My Center

Weaving a tapestry of a place and a people, Nihunavea traces a history of the first CA Indian Reservations, land dispossession, and a centuries-long struggle for land and recognition for the Kitanemuk people of the Tejon Tribe. Diving into both the memories and struggles of Tejon Indian Tribal members working to reclaim tribal community and share their history, the film sets out to tell a collective story of coming home–a 21st century creation story from Native California.

Project type: Nonfiction Feature
Project status: Development
Director/Producer: Colin Rosemont
Director: Sandra Hernandez

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No Escape
When her perfect romantic getaway in the woods is ruined by the appearance of the ominous 'Indian Mother', Nisha must fight the obstacles of her immigrant past, in hopes of ever having an American future.

Project type: Fiction Short
Writer/Director/Producer/Lead: Leena Kurishingal
Producer: Timothy Farrell
Executive Producer/Editor: John H. Rogers III
Executive Producer: Marissa Jo Cerar
Cinematographer: Daniel Izui

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No Handicap

Disabled players and their allies are using advocacy and technology to fight stigmas and enact change to make electronic gaming accessible and level the playing field.

Project type: Nonfiction Feature
Director/Producer: Derek Dabkoski
Producer: Ian McClellan
Producer: Paige Draney
Co-Producer/Director of Photography: Nicholas Finn Myggen

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No Word For No

Youth in Indonesia are poised to become the majority of their country’s population by 2020. Despite unprecedented death tolls in the wake of environmental disasters, they remain resilient. No Word for No explores the question: how are the young people of Indonesia preparing to face the challenges ahead?

Project type: Nonfiction Short
Director/Producer: Andrew Morrison
Director of Photography: Auden Bui
Editor: Colton Loftin
Master Dalang: Ki Midiyanto

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Nomad Shadow
Disheartened by her deportation from Europe, Mariam is forced to return home to Western Sahara. Adrift in the very place that was once her home, she desperately searches for the means to assert agency over her own life.

Project type: Fiction Feature
Writer/Director:Eimi Imanishi
Producer: Shrihari Sathe, Eric Dupont, Virginie Lacombe, Belén Sánchez Silvero, Damon Owlia

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Noor

Noor, a Black woman develops a deep connection to Rami, an Arab man who works in her neighborhood bodega in the midst of an unexpected tragedy. Based on the award-winning feature script, Noor.

Writer/Director: Nijla Mu'min
Producer: Avril Speaks

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