Labors of lab
The Tribeca Film Institute is carving itself a solid reputation amongst the crowded arena of film fest lab programs, and this year the non-profit arm of Tribeca will see some of its efforts bear fruit as two projects it supported premiere at the festival. The list of pics that Tribeca has nursed to life is growing in leaps and bounds as the relatively young fund comes into its own. Tribeca-supported projects "Gun Hill Road," "Pariah," and "Circumstance" were all acquired at Sundance in January. Perhaps one of the most high-profile projects to emerge from the TFI program is "Jesus Henry Christ," which screens at Tribeca on April 23. The Julia Roberts-produced film was helmed by New Yorker Dennis Lee, a beneficiary of Tribeca's All-Access Fellowship in 2005. Lee won the narrative section prize for his screenplay, then titled "The Life & Times of H.J. Hermin," and says his overall experience at TAA has left an indelible impression. "This was really where my career had a huge jumpstart," he says. Lee participated in perhaps the most popular feature of the All-Access program, a whirlwind three-day crash course in networking. Filmmakers sit down for at least 25 face-to-face meetings with producers and execs from major production outfits in hopes of finding interested financiers. One of Lee's meetings connected him with executives at ABC/Disney and led to a directing fellowship in Los Angeles. He was also exposed to other contacts who helped secure backing from Roberts' production shingle, Red Om. "A lot of the people that I met on my 'speed dating' session I still keep in regular contact with," he says. TFI exec director Beth Janson says the All-Access program is only one of a multitude of benefits the fund offers. "What drives us is we say, 'This project may look niche, but it has the ability to connect with a large audience,' " she says. Tribeca's Gucci Documentary Fund is a seeding ground for projects the org thinks will leave a cultural impact. Some of the docs include Sundance special jury prize winner "Enemies of the People," about the Killing Fields of Cambodia, and "The Oath," about two brothers linked to 9/11. "Give Up Tomorrow," screening April 23, was also a Gucci funding recipient. Helmer Michael Collins says Tribeca rescued his project when he was strapped for cash three years into filming. "We knew that in order to be able to complete it properly we had to get some serious support," he says.Disney Fellowship 2008 - News
The fellows will hone their skills through observation and application, such as conducting Los Angeles Philharmonic youth concerts at Walt Disney Concert Hall, conducting Los Angeles Philharmonic Neighborhood Concerts, participating as a cover
John is a recipient of the TCG/NEA Career Development Fellowship. MARIKA STEPHENS (Set Designer)is a recent graduate of the UCLA School of Theater, Film, and Television. Since graduation she has designed at Powerhouse Theater for: In the Company of
One of Lee's meetings connected him with executives at ABC/Disney and led to a directing fellowship in Los Angeles. He was also exposed to other contacts who helped secure backing from Roberts' production shingle, Red Om. "A lot of the people that I
Lethem is the second novelist to have the Disney professorship. And this spring, most of the attention is on the first one. David Foster Wallace taught at Pomona from 2002 to 2008, when his suicide stunned the campus and made national news.
She is the recipient of numerous awards including the 2009- 2010 Lark Play Development Center Playwrights of New York Fellowship, the Van Lier Fellowship from the Public Theatre, two Le Compte du Nouy Prizes from Lincoln Center, NYSCA Grant,
White House Fellows « Tony Perkins
White House Fellows and Related Programs
While helping facilitate a group of leadership students at a People-to-People forum in Washington D.C. shortly before this quarter started, we had the privilege of seeing and listening to General Colin Powell. He mentioned that a pivotal moment in his life was when he was selected for the White House Fellows. I had never heard of this program before and quickly made a note to find out more about it.
In his autobiography, My American Journey, Powell relates his introduction to White House Fellows; “There may be one moment in our lives we can look back on and later say that, for good or ill, it was the turning point. For me that day came in November 1971…A major in the Infantry Branch called to tell me he was sending over an eight page application for me to fill out by that weekend. An application for what? I asked. For a White House Fellowship. I had no idea what he was talking about, and after he explained, I said I was not interested.” (1995, p.156) Fortunately, for Powell (and in my opinion—all of us) the major ordered Powell to fill out the application and and toss his lot in with over fifteen hundred other applicants. The end results being that Powell came in contact with many political entities that enabled his own political career.
When Powell was accepted into the White House Fellowship the program was seven years old. It had been conceived by John W. Garner, the Secretary of Health, Education, and Welfare. His idea was to expose young people to the inner workings of the government at the highest level. President Lyndon Johnson had endorsed the idea.The aim was to give future leaders of America a better appreciation of how public policy is shaped.
When President Johnson announced the award of the Foundation he said, "A truly free society can not be a spectator society." This idea was not necessarily original with him, or given a voice of his generation only. The founding fathers were fed at the suggestion of Locke in his Second Treatise that there is no difference between the government and a father, with the public is like a child under guardianship for leaders of parents.Our father first, then George Washington said in his farewell speech, September 19.1796, "As the structure of a government gives force to public opinion, it is essential that the Public opinion should be enlightened. "
sentiment in Washington was an echo of what Thomas Jefferson wrote in his Notes on Virginia, Query 14, 1781, "Every government degenerates when trusted to the rulers of the people alone. The people themselves, therefore, are the only safe depositories.