Welcoming Newest Films to ITVS Family in 2020

ITVS welcomes the newest members of the ITVS family, funded through our Open Call, Short-Form Open Call, Diversity Development Fund (DDF), and Series & Special Projects initiatives. 

From a community in Chicago fighting to keep its high-achieving school open in the face of gentrification, to a renegade safe injection site in Canada committed to showing love to a discarded community, to a remote Texas border town crafting its own distinctive blended Mexican and American folk culture, to a camp for widows where every participant can both grieve and find camaraderie and unexpected joy in shared understanding, our fearless filmmakers bring the world the stories that need telling. 

"I never cease to be amazed by the voices of documentary filmmakers rising through the tide of divide to show us the true meaning of love, community and commitment," said Keri Archer Brown, ITVS Director of Content & Initiatives. "This exciting slate of features and short series speaks to the love that runs deep within each of us and how it can propel each of us to commit to creating shared community and belonging with purpose."

Open Call

Light of the Setting Sun: The heartfelt exploration of multigenerational trauma that has dogged a large Chinese family across time and borders. | Vicky Du, Danielle Varga

Let the Little Light Shine: A high-achieving elementary school just south of downtown Chicago is a lifeline for Black children—until gentrification threatens its closure. | Kevin Shaw, Rachel Dickson

Love in the Time of Fentanyl: Misfits, artists, and drug users run a renegade safe injection site in Vancouver, Canada, saving lives in a community ravaged by the overdose crisis. | Colin Askey, Monika Navarro

Storming Caesars Palace: Activist Ruby Duncan leads a grassroots movement of mothers who challenged Presidents, the Vegas Mob, and everyday Americans to rethink their notions of the “Welfare Queen.”| Hazel Gurland-Pooler.

Short-Form Open Call

Black America with Asha Stuart | Asha Stuart

Dancing Man | Jennifer Fodor, Scott Sheppard

Life After Life | Madeleine Hunt-Ehrlich

When I’m Her | Emily Schuman

Diversity Development Fund

14 Artifacts | Steven Okazaki

Hidden Letters | Violet Feng

On the Move | Milton Guillén, Natalia Hernández

SEEDS | Brittany Shyne, Sabrina Schmidt Gordon

Sonsplitter | Daniel Chein, Sidesel Lønvig Siersted

When They Were Here | Ivan McDonald

^{From "Senior Prom"}

Series and Special Projects: Short-Form 

45 Days in a Texas Jail  | Julianna Brannum

Aaron Felton Film | Kate McMahon, Dru Holley

Beyond Conviction (w/t) | Thorne Anderson

A Call Away | Crystal Kaylza

The Comedians | Habib Yazdi

Daughters of Addiction | Dilsey Davis

Deadly Jails: An Oklahoma Mental Health Crisis | Julianna Brannum

Dhabas | Sami Khan

Empathy and Frustration (w/t) | Sally O’Grady 

Folk Frontera  | Sam Olsen

Great World of Gregory Blackstock | Drew Christie

Just Over the Line | Adams Wood

Out of Sight, Out of Mind: Mental Healthcare in Rural America | James Burns

The Parish Prison | Joanne Elgart Jennings

Senior Prom  | Luisa Conlon, Jessica Chermayeff

Sheriff Paula Dance: Bringing Change to Pitt County | Dilsey Davis

Sheriff Terry Johnson: The Mayberry Dilemma | Dilsey Davis

Untitled Camp Widow Doc  | Laura Green, Anna Moot-Levin

Untitled Leslie Garcia Doc | Amy Bench

Zoo Crew | Dilsey Davis

Series and Special Projects: Long-Form

And She Could Be Next | Marjan Safinia, Grace Lee

City Hall  | Fredrick Wiseman

Latino Vote: Dispatches from the Battleground | Bernardo Ruiz

The Longest Goodbye | Ido Mizrahy

Represent | Hillary Bachelder

Congrats to all the filmmakers and their teams. We're really excited to be able to share your projects with the world. 

10/12/2020: This list reflects some of the projects that have been officially funded as of October 1, 2020, and that have been cleared for publicity. It is not an exhaustive list.