Stargazing

$150,000 in Documentary Finishing Funds to be Awarded to Eight International Filmmakers Chosen from a Record Number of Submissions; Spotlighting Women Documentary Award Presented in Partnership with the PPR Corporate Foundation for Women’s Dignity & Rights
 Marshall Curry, James Franco, Barbara Kopple and Robin Wright among 2012 Jury Members

The Tribeca Film Institute (TFI) and Gucci today announced the 2012 recipients selected for the Gucci Tribeca Documentary Fund. The Fund, now in its fifth year, provides finishing finances, year-round support and guidance to domestic and international documentary filmmakers with feature-length films highlighting and humanizing issues of social importance from around the world. Eight projects have been selected from a record 697 submissions from 56 countries to receive a total of $150,000, to be administered by the Tribeca Film Institute.

For the second year, the PPR Corporate Foundation for Women’s Dignity & Rights has joined the Gucci Tribeca Documentary Fund to present the Spotlighting Women Documentary Award. Three film projects have been chosen that illuminate the courage, compassion, extraordinary strength of character, and contributions of women from around the world, including Iran, Timor-Leste and Nigeria.

2012 projects were selected by a jury consisting of Marshall Curry, Jesse Dylan, James Franco, Barbara Kopple, Andrea Meditch, and Robin Wright. The committee chose the recipients from finalists selected by TFI.  In addition to funding, grantees will each receive year-round support from TFI, including one-on-one guidance and consultation to help each film to reach completion, enter the marketplace, and find broader audiences for their work.

“Over the past four years, alumni projects of the Gucci Tribeca Documentary Fund have gone on not only to receive artistic and critical recognition from around the world, but also to inspire and impact change through the social justice issues within the stories they are telling,” said Ryan Harrington, Director of Documentary Programming at the Tribeca Film Institute. “We are proud of their success and look forward to helping this year’s filmmakers finish and bring awareness to their films .”

The projects that will collectively receive $100,000 total in funding for the 2012 Gucci Tribeca Documentary Fund are:

- E-Team (Directors Katy Chevigny & Ross Kauffman)
- God Loves Uganda (Director Roger Ross Williams)
- First to Fall (Director Rachel Anderson)
- Mercy Mercy (Director Katrine W Kjaer)
- Two Children of the Red Mosque (Director Hemal Trivedi)
The projects that will collectively receive $50,000 total in funding for the 2012 Spotlighting Women Documentary Award are: 
- Alias Ruby Blade (Director Alex Meillier)
- Stargazing(working title) (Director Berit Madsen)
- The Supreme Price (Director Joanna Lipper)
“It was difficult to choose from among such a strong group of projects, but those we selected for the 2012 Gucci Tribeca Documentary Fund and the Spotlighting Women Awards feature strong, engaging characters and an intimate style to tell stories that illuminate the remarkable range of human struggle and triumph around the world,” said Andrea Meditch on behalf of the jury.
Films funded through the Gucci Tribeca Documentary Fund explore social issues across the globe through compelling and deeply personal stories, including: the intersection of religion and African culture in evangelical communities in Uganda; a fascinating look into the work of three members of the Human Rights Watch’s Emergency Team; the journey of young civilian expatriate rebels to liberate their home country; the complexities of international adoption; and the juxtaposing stories of two children in Pakistan pursuing very different dreams. The grantees projects include:
- E-Team, Directed by Katy Chevigny & Ross Kauffman, produced by Chevigny, Kauffman & Marilyn Ness — The E-Team follows the intense and courageous work of three intrepid human rights workers on the frontlines of identifying international human rights abuses.  Dramatic and crucial, Human Rights Watch’s Emergency Team work is custom-made for a compelling documentary film with a global perspective.

- God Loves Uganda, Directed and produced by Roger Ross Williams, produced by Julie Goldman — God Loves Uganda is a journey into the heart of East Africa, where Ugandan pastors and their American counterparts spread God’s word and evangelical values to millions desperate for a better life. Inspired by his own roots in the African American Baptist church, director Roger Ross Williams seeks to explore a place where religion and African culture intersect.

- First to Fall, Directed by Rachel Anderson, produced by Tony Gerber,  executive produced by Mike Lerner —First to Fall follows a group of young civilian expatriate ‘rebels’ on their 8-month journey to liberate their home country. They give up comfortable, stable lives in order to take up arms against a corrupt regime and risk their lives in a brutal, chaotic war.

- Mercy Mercy, Directed by Katrine W Kjær, produced by Miriam Nørgaard, Sara Stockmann & Vibeke Windeløv — International adoption seems like the perfect solution to a heartbreaking imbalance: Poor countries have babies in need of homes, and rich countries have homes in need of babies. Unfortunately, a lot of the orphans are not orphans at all.

- Two Children of the Red Mosque, Directed and produced by Hemal Trivedi, co-directed by Mohammad Naqvi, produced by Whitney Dow and Jonathan Goodman Levitt — After attending Pakistan’s most notorious madrassah, 12-year-olds Zarina and Talha pursue different dreams. Zarina attends school while trying to avoid marriage; Talha remains a madrassah student preparing for Jihad. Their stories personalize Pakistanis’ ideological war.

The Spotlighting Women Documentary Awards highlight the courage and strength of women from around the world including: an Arabian teenage who dreams of a career as an astronaut despite her family’s disapproval; the role of one woman in establishing Timor-Leste as an independent nation; and another woman’s work fighting the corruption in Nigeria’s government. The grantees projects include:

- Alias Ruby Blade, Directed by Alexander Meillier, produced by Tanya Ager Meillier — One courageous woman risks everything for the love of the imprisoned leader of a nation struggling for freedom. Together they nurture the tumultuous birth of the world’s newest nation – Timor-Leste.

- Stargazing (working title), Directed by Berit Madsen, produced by Henrik Underbjerg & Stefan Frost— A young Arabian girl wants to become an astronaut. But at her age the nightly stargazing excursions in the desert are a thorn in the side of family and traditions.

- The Supreme Price, Directed and produced by Joanna Lipper— The Supreme Price tells the story of Hafsat Abiola. Following the annulment of her father’s victory in Nigeria’s Presidential Election and her mother’s assassination by the military dictatorship, Hafsat faces the challenge of transforming a corrupt culture of governance into a democracy capable of serving Nigeria’s most marginalized population: women.

About the Tribeca Film Institute:
The Tribeca Film Institute is a 501(c)3 year round nonprofit arts organization founded by Robert De Niro, Jane Rosenthal, and Craig Hatkoff in the wake of September 11, 2001. TFI empowers filmmakers through grants and professional development, and is a resource and advocate for individual artists in the field. The Institute’s educational programming leverages an extensive film community network to help underserved New York City students learn filmmaking and gain the media skills necessary to be productive citizens and creative individuals in the 21st century. Administering a dozen major programs annually, TFI is a critical contributor to the fabric of filmmaking and aids in protecting the livelihood of filmmakers and media artists.

For more information and a list of all TFI programs visit http://www.tribecafilminstitute.org/

About Gucci:
Founded in Florence in 1921, Gucci is one of the world's leading luxury fashion brands. With a renowned reputation for quality and Italian craftsmanship, Gucci designs, manufactures and distributes highly desirable products such as leather goods (handbags, small leather goods, and luggage), shoes, ready-to-wear, silks, timepieces and fine jewellery. Eyewear and fragrances are manufactured and distributed under license by global industry leaders in these two sectors. Gucci products are sold exclusively through a network of directly operated boutiques (390 DOS as of March 2012) and a small number of selected department and specialty stores.

About the PPR Foundation:
Since its inception in 2009, the PPR Corporate Foundation for Women’s Dignity & Rights pursues two objectives: fighting violence against women and promoting women’s empowerment.
Through its partnerships with local and international NGOs, social entrepreneurs or awareness raising programs, the PPR Foundation encourages staff mobilization to the benefit of women.
The PPR Foundation is part of PPR HOME.
www.fondationppr.org