Johns Hopkins-Based Film Innovation Fund Reveals Urgent Threats of Climate, Inequality
A documentary about a doctor who saved DNA from rape victims for decades and is helping police track down the rapists. A near-future look at a Baltimore where the return of slavery is the new normal. Economic hardship and high rent drive a cynical baby boomer to live with his Gen Z granddaughter. A film about climate change destroying life in Chesapeake Bay. And a science fiction epic about a General who creates a second sun and destabilizes the solar system.
Let’s just say that the winners of 2020 seed grants from the Saul Zaentz Innovation Fund in Film and Media at Johns Hopkins University (SZIF) have a healthy sense of science. And outrage.
“COVID-19 has profoundly shocked our understanding of safety, responsibility, and scientific ignorance,” said Annette Porter, Director of The Saul Zaentz Innovation Fund. “People are lining up behind the truth now, and our grant winners are dedicated to revealing those truths. Our mission is to release the cinematic visions of diverse, underserved filmmakers and this class of grantees demonstrates that we are not letting our foot off the gas.”
In addition to being Baltimore residents, grant winners were selected from the 2020 SZIF Fellows class of 27 projects, and are based on originality, socio-political impact, visual sense, and unique approach. This year’s winning pool will complete their projects through virtual mentorship and development workshops. Development and production grants were awarded to a total of 19 projects this year.
The 2020 seed grant winners include:
DOCUMENTARY:
“Local Hero” by Gabriel Goodenough
“Margie Soudek’s Salt & Peppers” by Meredith Moore
“Open Secrets” by Catherine Rentz
Eternity One” by Marnie Ellen Hertzler
“Lead Money” by Myron Higgins
“Legacies” by Angela Carroll
“ACND” by JaMar Jones
ANIMATION:
“Hospes” by Stephanie Williams
NARRATIVE:
“fiftyTwo” by Elissa Moorhead and Ericka Blount
“Blend” by Kamesha Brinson
“Squeegee Boy” by Chung-Wei Huang
“Like You Think You Know Me”, by Stephen Schuyler and Marley Hernandez
``Jailed On the Inside” by Dameon Gibbs and Tonyette Hall
“Cloud Nebula” by Scott Patterson
NEW MEDIA (XR-VR)
“Las Ruinas Circulares” by Nadia Hironaka & Tanya Garcia
“Losing Winter” by Liz Cazabon
“Stories Under the Bay” by Lisa Moren
“Blue Light” by Avery Griffin
“Diary” by Gillian Waldo
Perhaps influenced by the coronavirus pandemic, this year’s grant winners have chosen projects that reveal the growing importance of science, scientific investigation, and scientific truth. The focus on science is likely to be a recurring theme in all art forms in a post-COVID-19 world that saw science either closely followed to great effect or belittled and defiantly ignored, to tragic effect.
“It is not surprising that our grant winners should present strong cases for science as hope for civilization,” said Porter. “The Saul Zaentz Innovation Fund is part of Johns Hopkins University, which was at the center of scientific investigation around the coronavirus epidemic. Filmmakers working at Johns Hopkins, and in greater Baltimore area, are deeply connected to the scientific world. I believe this tight connection will produce a new generation of filmmakers willing to tackle subjects of great importance and complexity. Our grant winners are proving that thesis.”
SZIF is working to break barriers and help underrepresented filmmakers in Baltimore enter and succeed in the film industry. Grant winners will be connected to industry-leading artists to learn from one another and advance their careers. With the current COVID climate, the Development Lab will take a digital shift along with mentorships and workshops. This will provide an opportunity for a more personal and hands-on approach as grant winners will receive digital one-on-one insights from veterans in the industry.
In the past, grant winners immediately began production and had a year to complete their projects. In recognition of stay at home orders and social distancing required to stop the spread of COVID-19, this year’s grant winners won’t begin production until June and will have a year and a half to complete.
For more information on the 2020 seed grants winners and their projects, please visit https://zaentzfund.com/.
About the Saul Zaentz Innovation Fund in Film and Media
Founded in 2016, The Saul Zaentz Innovation Fund in Film and Media at Johns Hopkins University seeks to further the pioneering legacy of Mr. Zaentz by connecting the Baltimore creative community with prestigious artists, veteran executives and successful entrepreneurs in an incubator program designed to nurture project ideas that will advance the art and craft of audiovisual media. www.zaentzfund.com
