For year two of Film Independent’s Changemaker Awards, the nonprofit organization again celebrated trailblazing storytellers. The group championed the works of Linda Yvette Chávez (Project Involve 2010, Screenwriting Lab 2015), Tze Chun (Project Involve 2008, Fast Track 2010), and Grace Lee (Documentary Lab 2012). For decades now, Film Independent has championed and promoted artists.
The event took place last night at the Directors Guild of America and was available to the public. “It is our privilege in Artist Development to nurture and support talented artists early on in their careers. To see them now flourish as storytellers while remaining deeply committed to giving back and mentoring the next generation of artists is exceptionally gratifying,” said Angela C. Lee, Director of Artist Development, “Linda Yvette Chávez, Tze Chun and Grace Lee are the embodiment of what the Changemaker Awards represent and we couldn’t be more thrilled to spotlight their contributions to our community and culture.”
At this year’s awards show, they showed the following short films from filmmakers in their fellowship programs:
Baca
Directors/Editors; Sam Osborn, Alejandra Vasquez (2020 CNN Docuseries Intensive 2020)
When the activist painter Judy Baca conceived The Great Wall of Los Angeles in 1975 as a monument to the history of indigenous peoples in California, she didn’t realize that she was embarking on a 50-year journey that would employ 400 youth painters and amount to one of the largest murals on the planet.
Boys
Cinematographer, Kunitaro Ohi (Project Involve 2019)
A young man explores himself through alternate realities in this narrative music video for Cereus Bright.
Grace
Writer/Director/Producer, Natalie Jasmine Harris (Fast Track 2022)
Sixteen-year-old Grace prepares for her baptism in the rural 1950’s South. When she learns she must repent before the ritual, Grace contemplates her romantic feelings toward her best friend Louise.
Jude
Writer/Director/Producer, Jimmy Goldblum (Fast Track 2013); Producer, Maddy Askwith (Fast Track 2020)
14-year-old Cindy Stoat desperately longs for a better life, and she may have found one in the home of her mysterious neighbor.
Make Me a Pizza
Cinematographer, Vittoria Campaner (Project Involve 2020)
BORED HOUSEWIFE seduces HOT PIZZA GUY for free pizza, but is desire worth $29.99?
Mara Has Three Jobs in San Juan, Puerto Rico
Producer, Lauren Lukow (Project Involve 2024)
After the loss of her father, a young woman takes on a third job to make ends meet in San Juan, Puerto Rico.
The Nectar Instead
Writer/Director/Producer, Yoo Lee (Project Involve 2021); Editor, Mengyao Mia Zhang (Project Involve 2021)
A young fly gets trapped in the fly trap in the stop-motion studio, only to have the existential realization that it spent its entire life chasing after the wrong thing.
Reframe
Writer/Director/Producer/Editor, Michael Yuchen Lei (Screenwriting Lab 2017, Documentary Lab 2017, Project Involve 2024)
A broken car window leads to a confrontation that spirals into unforeseen consequences.
The Silent Echo
Producer/Co-Writer, Bijon Imtiaz (Fast Track 2021)
Four teenagers from a remote mountain village spend their days in an abandoned bus on a ridge, playing music. When a band competition is organized in a neighboring town, they gather money and courage needed to be part of it.
