Made in L.A., a documentary feature that looks inside LA’s Garment Industry, won an Emmy Award at the 29th Annual News and Documentary Emmy® Awards on Sept. 22. Director/producer Almudena Carracedo and producer Robert Bahar accepted the award for Outstanding Continuing Coverage of a News Story–Long Form at the awards ceremony in New York.

Five years in the making, the artists received a grant from Sundance Documentary Film Program in 2006. The 70-minute film follows the remarkable story of three Latinas who embark on an odyssey to win basic labor protections from a trendy clothing retailer. In intimate observational style, Made in L.A. reveals the impact of the struggle on each woman’s life.

Meet the Artists:
Almudena Carracedo, Director/Producer/
Trained in film production in Madrid and Paris, Carracedo worked as a television director in Spain for Canal+. In 2000 she came to the U.S. where her documentary short on Tijuana won an award at SILVERDOCS. Made in L.A. is her first feature documentary.

Robert Bahar, Producer
Robert is director and co-founder of Doculink, the grassroots organization for documentary filmmakers. After earning an M.F.A. from USC he went on to direct the award-winning documentary Laid to Waste.

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The Sundance Documentary Film Program (DFP), a core program of the Sundance Institute, provided a development grant for a documentary film by Andrew Berends.  He was filming when he was detained with Samuel George in Nigeria on August 31.

On Friday, Septemeber 5 after rallying from the international film community, Andrew was provisionally released by the Nigerian government and is now headed home.We join others in urging the prompt release of his colleague Samuel George.

Andrew is an award-winning documentarian; one who combines craft and care in every one of his films. The DFP supports many filmmakers working around the world who are telling stories about contemporary reality that combine the highest artistry and deepest commitment to a respectful representation of their subject. Andrews’ film is in this mold, and as the Committee to Protect Journalists has stated, the ability of filmmakers and journalists to tell vital stories about our world must continue to be defended.

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The discussion was rich with conversation between filmmakers and social entrepreneurs. The content has been archived and will remain up on the site, and those interested in the STORIES OF CHANGE initiative are encouraged to peruse the online discussion.

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STORIES OF CHANGE:
Social Entrepreneurship in Focus Through Documentary

Request for Proposals: NOW CLOSED
Awards announced: December, 2008

The Sundance Institute Documentary Film Program, in partnership with the Skoll Foundation, will provide $1.2 million in film project grants to enable the development and/or production of new feature-length independent documentary films that frame, examine and amplify social entrepreneurship as an innovative approach to the central questions of our time. The initiative anticipates funding up to 8 films in the range of $30,000-$150,000 per project. Editorial control must be retained by the filmmaker/s.

Documentary films that combine the art of storytelling with topics in social entrepreneurship and the work of social entrepreneurs, and which have a high potential for co-production and for a full distribution plan, including theatrical, broadcast and DVD distribution, will be given priority. Films can be at any stage of development, production or post-production to apply. Completed films will not be considered.

How do I find Social Entrepreneurs?
Peruse Skoll Social Entrepreneurs
Or visit the online discussion on the Social Edge website.

PROPOSAL EVALUATION GUIDELINES
The Request for Proposals is for films about social entrepreneurship including the work of a specific social entrepreneur. Rather than a visual report of the entrepreneur’s biography and past successes, the most competitive films will ideally allow viewers to learn about the social entrepreneur in an intimate and authentic way, to learn with candor about the challenges and obstacles facing his or her vision, and to follow first hand as they attempt to achieve their mission.

Proposals for documentary films are evaluated on effective storytelling, broad relevance and resonance, originality, artist vision and potential for social engagement. Generally speaking, Sundance Institute’s Documentary Film Program is synonymous with films that are artist driven with superlative storytelling. Filmmaker’s with demonstrated experience completing cinematic nonfiction films working in collaboration with leading social entrepreneurs will likely be most competitive. Proposals must be filmmaker driven.

Eligibility Summary:

 Desirability Summary:

To learn more about the initiative, visit our online resources including frequentlyaskedquestions.pdf and the resource-guide-on-social-entrepreneurship.pdf.

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Cara Mertes, Director of the Sundance Documentary Film Program, has invited one Lab Fellow this year to share her voice from the Labs at Sundance, Utah. Deann Borshay Liem will share blog entries with the documentary and human rights community. Through her eyes, visitors will get to experience some aspect of Lab Fellowship, and of Deann’s experience with the creative process.

Deann Borshay Liem is the director of PRECIOUS OBJECTS OF DESIRE for which she was first awarded a grant from the DFP in 2006. In the film she goes on a quest to search for her “double”, a girl named Cha Jung Hee, in an attempt to resolve a case of mistaken identity that took place when she was adopted from South Korea by an American family in 1966. In the process she explores complexities of international transracial adoptions. Deann’s previous, Emmy Award-nominated documentary, FIRST PERSON PLURAL, premiered at the 2000 Sundance Film Festival. That story followed her as she bravely united her biological Korean and adoptive American families.

The Sundance Documentary Film Program conducts two creative labs each summer. Each is a week-long residential fellowships held at the Sundance Resort, and is by invitation only. The Documentary Edit and Story Lab pairs filmmakers with Creative Advisors to advance works-in-progress. This seven-day lab focuses on story editing, character development and dramatic structure, and engaging with the creative process.

Filmmaker Magazine has picked up the story and has published it on their website. Check for updates on Deann’s story throughout the Lab!

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