Working Films Residency at MASS MoCA
jolene
About a year ago, my co-director Sarah Zaman and I felt like we needed some new energy around a film project we had been working on, Bismillah. Around that same time, I learned about Working Films’ Content + Intent Documentary Institute at MASS MoCA.
The residency brings together a small group of documentary filmmakers to explore their films’ potential for concrete social change, with invaluable guidance from Working Films founders Judith Helfand and Robert West, WF staff and a host of special guests with expertise in the field.
I applied but had no idea what to expect. Sure, I had heard of filmmakers and other artists returning from residencies rejuvenated after spells of creative incubation.
But what would it be like to step back from the filmmaking process (even while we were in the midst of it) and really focus on what we hoped our film would accomplish in the larger world?
Sarah and I grew (and continue to grow!) so much from taking part in the Institute. Our idea for our film expanded and we, as filmmakers, developed in directions that we couldn’t have anticipated.
There’s an incredible synergy that comes from getting outreach veterans (Working Films staff) and smart, creative filmmakers all brainstorming about the thrilling possibilities for your film.
Suddenly, your documentary goes from having a story that moves people to having a message that spurs action.
Before even landing on the ground at MASS MoCA’s repurposed industrial campus, you get a taste of the kind of attention your film will receive at the Institute. Working Films prepares a thick binder full of careful research on potential partners for your outreach campaign. And so the journey begins…
Working Films is now accepting applications for the Institute (the Institute will take place March 11-15, 2009). You can learn more and download an application here. And check out a great article written by my fellow Institute alum Sean Flynn.
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| Posted on December 15, 2008
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