In September 2023 POV Shorts and Chicken & Egg Pictures announced their first joint content development project: the Chicken & Egg Pictures | POV Shorts Co-Production Fund, which granted $120,000 for development and production funding to short documentary projects helmed by women and gender-expansive filmmakers. and all films are co-productions of POV Shorts and Chicken & Egg Pictures.
Chicken & Egg Pictures and POV Shorts each contributed $60,000 to finance the fund which awarded three non-recoupable $40,000 grants to new nonfiction short-form works in progress or already in production. Recipients were selected via a dual panel review following a call for nominations from a broad grouping of film festivals and curators.
In partnership with Points North, the institute welcomed the grantees as an official fellowship cohort at the 2023 Camden International Film Festival (CIFF2023) enabling them access to the film festival and participation in a “Production Summit” on making films for PBS distribution. Recipients were selected via a dual panel review following a call for nominations from a broad grouping of film festivals and curators.
The selected films will be produced and funded in compliance with PBS Funding Standards and Producing Guidelines. Once completed, the shorts will be considered for launch on PBS via national linear broadcast and PBS Digital, which reaches an audience of 44.7 million people monthly.
Chicken & Egg Pictures | POV Shorts Co-Production Fund 2023 Grantees
Read more details about the grant and the filmmakers selected in the press release announcing the program.
En Travesti Directors: Brit Fryer, Lydia Cornett Synopsis: En Travesti explores the entangled relationship between voice, gender, and opera through those who contend with these connections daily––a trans opera singer switching voice types, a musicologist delving into the legacy of Castrati singers, a cisgender vocalist challenging conventional voice categorizations, and an otolaryngologist specializing in vocal procedures for performers. From the history of trouser roles to breakthroughs in vocal feminization surgery, the film weaves together a tapestry of present-day stories while recognizing a long history of gender nonconformity in an art form bound by the binary
Hold Me Close Directors: Aurora Brachman, LaTajh Weaver Synopsis: As winter gives way to spring, and spring to summer, two Queer Black women in love experience rituals of care, joy, and unavoidable pain, and a season of life together.
The Roost (working title) Director: Imani Dennison Synopsis: The Roost (working title) is an experimental documentary exploring the rich history of a roller skate community in Louisville, KY. Through an intimate video lens, we delve into key community members' personal recollections of the sport and its role in navigating life amidst the challenges of a gun-violence-affected city.