Steve

“I wrote and directed Steve to honor my late father, Roy Stephen Ulrich, who passed away in 2016 from ALS. My relationship with my father left something to be desired and it wasn’t until his passing that I truly found empathy and love for him; in his passing he left my family hundreds of old sketch books and beautiful paintings. My goal in setting out to make Steve was to try and honor his memory and share with the world how complex, dark and beautiful his life was and to show how everyone we may encounter even just in passing has a beautiful, tragic story that is deserving of empathy. As a filmmaker I wanted to transform my weaknesses into strengths; I have a hard time writing dialogue that makes sense to me so I chose a minimal approach that focuses on nuance, visuals, empty space and silence. This was my first time writing and directing and the choice of simplicity gave me my own unique set of tools, shaped my directing style and let me find my voice in film to this day.”

Richard Louis Ulrich, 29, was born in St. Louis Missouri to a Filipino mother; he is a thoughtful, reflective and introspective filmmaker. Richard’s strongest traits are communicating themes and emotions in unique and nuanced ways, his focus is on telling complex human stories with simplicity and empathy.

Leftovers

“During the onset of the pandemic I created a series of documentary films following delivery and restaurant workers and the isolation and importance of their jobs. I wanted to follow it up with a narrative retelling that further dramatizes the themes of struggle and loneliness. It’s hard enough trying to keep a restaurant open, let alone while locked in during a pandemic. So this was a character exploration of a young man trying to navigate his own life and deal with loneliness through his only companion, a pet fish. Choosing a family restaurant in NYC Chinatown explored another element of isolation as Asian Americans were both ostracized and targeted throughout the last two years. Hopefully this film allows viewers to empathize with a story, character, and world not often seen on screen. “

LAW is a film and commercial director based in New York City. After spending his first decade in various cities across America, his family moved to Beijing, China. The experience growing up in Asia shaped him as a filmmaker, and even after returning to the US the blend of cultures continue to be an integral part of his directorial style. Law’s work has garnered multiple awards at film and ad festivals, including 19 Cannes Lions. He is currently finishing a feature project that explores immigrants and the pursuit of the American Dream.

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Wannabe

A hilarious, heart warming docu-drama about a group of elderly women who form a Spice Girls tribute band to earn a quick buck when one friend can’t pay the bills.

“By telling the story of five older women, I hoped to depict a snapshot of real people rarely seen on screen. Weaving in details from their day-to-day lives, Wannabe tells a story that accurately reflects their lives in austerity-era Britain. Anita, a cleaner who plays Scary Spice, for example, has seen her increasingly precarious job become outsourced more and more while her shifts are cut. As a woman in her mid-70s, chances of finding new work in an economic system that favours young, male and physically-abled bodies are slim. The reality of struggling to make ends meet affects her mental health on a daily basis, and as anyone living in rented accommodation knows, there is little margin for error or misfortune.”

Dorothy Allen-Pickard is a filmmaker and multidisciplinary theatre-maker from South-East London. In 2019, she received the BFI New Talent Award and was named as one of Broadcast’s Hotshots. She has a particular interest in merging aspects of documentary, fiction and theatre to explore subjects such as mental health, disability and the social and political changes that affect those who are marginalised. She’s the co-founder and video editor of the film journal Another Gaze and a member of the award-winning multimedia theatre company Breach. Recently, Dorothy completed an MA in Directing Fiction at Goldsmiths University and is currently developing her debut dramatic feature, Weekend Dad.

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Sundown

‘I was interested specifically in exploring issues of aging in the LGBTQ+ community. I was also really drawn to the grandfather/granddaughter storyline.” Erik Gernand is a playwright and filmmaker whose award-winning short films have screened at more than 100 film festivals around the world including SXSW, Cinequest, Chicago International Film Festival, and Outfest. His films have been broadcast on IFC, PBS, and the Logo Channel and have been distributed by First Run Features and Strand Releasing. Erik is a senior lecturer in Radio-TV-Film at Northwestern University.   Website

Sticks and Stones

“I’ve worked with Bill Doan on other projects about his struggles with anxiety and depression but this was the first one in which we zeroed in on his childhood and the ways in which toxic masculinity clouded his path towards understanding his own mental health. The first iteration of this story was in the form of a solo performance Bill wrote in 2021 called, Man Up. When I saw the performance, I realized the importance of widening the circle of conversation around the effects of toxic masculinity on children with anxiety and depression. The story about a small child learning to walk through this world with so much shame and loneliness broke my heart and spoke to aspects of my own childhood. I loved the idea of flipping these archetypal relationships on their head and elevating the voice of the victim. We need to hear more stories about overcoming obstacles that stunt our potential. Bill’s story is about a man who finds his truth through creative practice and learns to nurture himself through the act of drawing. I’d like to believe that being true to who we are will help set us free and become better advocates for ourselves and others. This is a positive message we can all take away from.”

CYNTHIA WHITE is a documentary filmmaker whose projects have broadcast on television, at film and arts festivals, and at conferences around the world. Cynthia’s work aims to further the understanding of, and create dialogues about, the intersection of art and science. Her work includes teaching courses about digital media, community health and social justice.

ALEXANDER WHITE received his BFA from Bard College in sculpture, animation and drawing. He has exhibited his drawings and animated films in New York, London, Barcelona and Los Angeles. Film and animation festivals include Atlanta Film Festival; Slamdance Film Festival; New York Independent Film Festival and Art Forum, Berlin. Alexander currently lives and works in Geneva, Switzerland

Stand To

Stand To explores the effects of PTSD on infantry soldiers and their homelives.

“I feel ‘Stand To’ is intertwined with the themes that this festival in particular explores. Both characters in the story deal with loneliness and isolation in very different ways and this is what brings the conflict between both of them. It explores truthfully the difficulties and sadness that PTSD can bring on individuals and those who they love most. I often feel isolation and loneliness are feelings that aren’t often chosen, but rather are thrown onto the shoulders of individuals and how they navigate these feelings and the decisions they make sometimes can be detrimental to themselves and others. I wanted to explore the effects of PTSD on military soldiers and their families as I feel it’s a story we don’t often hear about and it’s relevant now more then ever. Conflicts throughout the world have affected lives everywhere and it’s up to the artist to tell these stories, in hope of them reaching audiences from all backgrounds to increase their understanding or relate to the themes presented in this piece. I hope this film speaks to every single person that watches it, and if it helps people relate or learn something new my intention has been achieved.”

Harrison Tipping is a British actor, writer and director currently living and studying in New York at the Stella Adler studio of acting. He is a member of the National Youth Theatre of Great Britain with whom he’s performed in four different shows and over the last two years he started to make his own work. Stand To will be his second short film in which he’s acted in, and his first time writing and directing for film. He’s passionate about telling stories which he feels aren’t often spoken about and strives to tell stories and interesting and dynamic ways.

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Partially Compensated

Violet struggles to keep up in a school that doesn’t support her learning differences. After failing to hide, Violet learns to embrace her talents and work at her own pace. In so doing, she discovers there are advantages to thinking differently.

“Partially Compensated was created at the University of Connecticut in partial completion of a Master’s Degree in Fine Arts. It is a response to a lifetime of feeling misunderstood in traditional education environments. I wanted to show people how Dyslexia feels. The depth of the isolation and anxiety that my Dyslexia caused in my early school days became all too apparent in my early 20s. I had enough distance from my childhood to unpack Dyslexia’s impact on me. My film helped me to express that complicated part of myself that was aching to get out. I hope other neurodivergent people find peace in connecting with it and knowing they are not alone. Picasso said, “Inspiration exists, but it has to find you working.” In 2015 I was working harder than I ever had. With a 4.0 (for the first time) I was knee-deep in researching fairy tales and thinking about making a marionette adaptation of Snow White for my Graduate Thesis. But inspiration hit. I had a dream in which I was drowning at the bottom of a well, made of books. That’s what kicked off the whole thing..”

Krista is a Portland-based stop motion artist. She recently finished work on the upcoming Netflix animation Wendell and Wild and has begun work on Wildwood with Laika Studios. In addition to her film work, Krista is a Dyslexia Advocate and is pursuing writing and illustrating children’s books.

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My Mum’s Got a Dodgy Brain

Three children living with a parent with mental ill health share their story and their ways to cope.

This film was commissioned by Devon Partnership NHS Trust to talk to children and adults about the realities of living with a parent with mental ill health. Following the stories of Anya (age 9), Macauley (age 11) and Erin (age 12) these positive and incredible children share their story and advice.

Directed by BAFTA winner Emma Lazenby, produced by ForMed Films CIC in collaboration with Dr Joanne Black and Devon Partnership NHS Trust.

“The film was originally designed to help mental health staff who work with adults to keep in mind the children in their families. It will be used for staff training and to share with families to help other children feel less alone.” (Dr Joanne Black, consultant psychiatrist DPT NHS)

Emma Lazenby has worked in the animation industry for over 20 years (Channel 4, BBC, Aardman and Disney). She made ‘Mother of Many’ in 2009, an animated film celebrating midwifery and childbirth. When this won a BAFTA Emma realised that animated film was the perfect medium to educate people about medical issues. Emma launched ForMed Films in 2015 to make animated films in collaboration with patients, charities and health professionals to help people talk about and understand medical and health issues. Emma also mentors young film makers and is an associate lecturer on BA Digital Animation at Bath Spa University.

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Ms. Diva Trucker

In MS DIVA TRUCKER, a long-haul trucker turns to YouTube to combat loneliness and social isolation, and in the process creates an empowering online community whose impact reaches far beyond America’s highways.

“In any year, our lives would come to a screeching halt without truck drivers like Tamara, and—like many women of color in this country—she is at a particularly perilous intersection of barriers during Covid-19. She is vulnerable, underpaid and overworked, without guaranteed paid sick leave nor hazard pay, and yet she is an essential worker. But this is not a social issue documentary. The film celebrates Tamara’s autonomy and resilience, pertinent themes in our lives in 2022.”

Dana Reilly is a documentary filmmaker. Her films are intimate and collaborative, exploring how work, love, and family shape women’s sense of self. She is grateful to those who share their stories and time with her.

Her work has screened at SXSW, Big Sky, Hot Springs, and Cinequest film festivals. Her most recent film, MS DIVA TRUCKER, won the Jury Award at the PBS Shorts Festival and is currently available to stream on NoBudge.com.

Born in New York City, she spent her formative years in London, England and currently lives and works in Austin, TX where she recently earned her MFA in Film Production from the University of Texas at Austin.

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