Since 2003, the Mississippi Film Alliance’s Emerging Filmmakers Grant Program has provided talented homegrown filmmakers needed financial support to realize their creative projects. Over the years projects have included narrative shorts, documentaries, animation, music videos and even feature films.
The grant winners for the 2022 grant cycle are Carys Glynne of Starkville, Caleb Hall of Pontotoc, Sarah Kate Pollard of Jackson and Kat Romero of Laurel.
“They are all first-time winners of the MFA’s Emerging Filmmaker Grant and showcase a selection of the emerging voices in film within our state,” said MFA treasurer Michael Williams, himself a former two-time grant recipient who used the funds to complete his 2011 short film Illumination and his 2014 feature OzLand. “The winners of the grant are selected by out of state judges and the highest scoring projects are awarded $2,500 to create their film. This is an amazing opportunity to provide funding and opportunities for film projects to be made in Mississippi by Mississippians, and we are so fortunate to be able to provide this funding opportunity to our fellow filmmakers.”
MFA is a non-profit coalition of film industry professionals that supports the film industry within Mississippi by providing resources and support to filmmakers and projects statewide. MFA administers the Emerging Filmmakers Grant Program, which is made possible by a grant from the Mississippi Film Office. The purpose of the grant is to help develop Mississippi’s film and video artists as the next generation of Mississippi’s legacy of storytelling. The grant is offered to working and emerging Mississippi filmmakers.
“Being able to provide this support for filmmaking by, for and about Mississippians is a vital part of our mission,” said Mississippi Film Office director Nina Parikh. “We can’t wait to see what the future brings for this latest group of talent, some of whom I’ve already been rooting for, like Sarah Kate. I got to know her through the Canton Young Filmmakers Program, another vital piece of our homegrown filmmaking efforts.”
Several past winners have gone on to successful careers in the film industry. Jackson native Alex Warren, a two-time grant recipient, recently released Dogleg, a feature film he wrote, directed and stars in. He says Sequence, the 2014 short film he made using the grant funds, helped him get noticed.
“I think that a lot of the people that I’m working with today saw something in Sequence,” Warren said. “My producer of Dogleg, Babak Khoshnoud, for sure. We had worked together on some commercial projects, but I think that when he saw it, he started to look at me in a different way. And I still work very closely to this day with people I worked with on Sequence, like Dogleg’s cinematographer Robby Piantanida, who’s also from Mississippi.”
Warren added that the grant gave him validation and bolstered his confidence as a filmmaker.
“From the financial perspective, it’s a really valuable resource,” he said. “But more than that, from a community perspective, it’s encouraging to get that nod from your peers that says, ‘Hey, we see you, you’re one of us.’ That maybe meant more to me than the money did at that time.”
MEET THE FILMMAKERS
CARYS GLYNNE
Hometown: Starkville
Project: Io’s Lament
Type: Narrative short
What does it mean to you to have been selected for a Mississippi Film Alliance grant?
It means now I get to actually make the thing! In all seriousness, we’re lucky to have a grant program like this. Film grants are extremely scarce. Even at the student level, the amount of money and resources needed for just bare-minimum equipment, excluding food, props, costumes, payments to cast and crew, is pretty out of reach for a lot of people, and certainly a lot of young people in Mississippi. That’s why it’s incredibly important to support programs like MFA.
How did you get interested in filmmaking?
Growing up, I was always acting, writing, and doing visual art, but it wasn’t until high school, after being an extra on a few local short films, that I realized filmmaking was probably a logical combination of all of those interests.
In what ways has being from Mississippi inspired your project?
The story is explicitly set in Mississippi and will heavily feature some of the backroad landscapes and nature the area has to offer, even if most of the story takes place inside a house. Although the story is a parable and should feel somewhat timeless, I wanted to make a Southern Gothic film that was set in modern day, with more or less modern clothing and decor and none of those Scarlett O’Hara no-R Southern accents Hollywood loves so much! While I think this film still pulls from some Southern fiction tropes, I want to be moving away from, or at least updating some of our stereotypes.
Where do you intend to film/produce your project in the state and why?
I’m looking at locations in the Golden Triangle area, mostly because that’s where I live, but I’m excited to be bringing a film project there. My hometown of Starkville is rarely if ever used for film, even in comparison with other nearby towns like West Point and Tupelo, so it would be nice to feature it in some way.
What are your hopes for your future?
Acting has always been my biggest passion, so I’m most hopeful to take that part of my career to the next level. Writing and producing projects such as the one I’ll be making through the grant is a way I can take ownership of my acting career and play parts that might be more exciting than some of the ones I’m auditioning for. I also have tentative plans to produce a feature later this year.
CALEB HALL
Hometown: Pontotoc
Project: Now You’ve Done It
Type: Narrative short
What does it mean to you to have been selected for a Mississippi Film Alliance grant?
Being selected for the grant feels especially great for having such talented people see value in my script. It fills me with confidence that I’m on the right path and that I can do it.
How did you get interested in filmmaking?
I’ve always loved storytelling and the arts. But I never saw film as something I could go into until I took a 4-H trip to Canton for a writing conference. There I met people who really opened my mind to the possibility of it being my career.
In what ways has being from Mississippi inspired your project?
I think being in Mississippi and seeing the dynamics between the people who live here definitely was an inspiration. The story, though completely fictional, comes from something I can easily see happening here.
Where do you intend to film/produce your project in the state and why?
I intend to film my project in the Pontotoc/ Tupelo area. It’s where I grew up, and it’s where I envisioned the story taking place when I wrote the script.
What are your hopes for your future?
My hopes for the future are that I become successful enough at filmmaking that it has a positive impact on the other creatives around me. That includes the people who have gotten me where I am, and the people who are trying to do the same thing I am. I want my success to elevate them both mentally and financially. We are a community and if one of us succeeds it can help us all.
SARAH KATE POLLARD
Hometown: Jackson
Project: The Jacksons
Type: Feature film
What does it mean to you to have been selected for a Mississippi Film Alliance grant?
It’s a huge honor! I’ve always been grateful to Mississippi for the spirit of storytelling, for getting to grow up in a place where some of the greatest musicians, writers and creators are from. I think the next obvious step is filmmaking.
How did you get interested in filmmaking?
I became interested in filmmaking when my dad put me in a summer camp called Canton Young Filmmakers Workshop, which I recommend everyone check out. Although I was reluctant at first, mostly because of my lack of an attention span, I slowly realized filmmaking is the ultimate artistry, involving sound, color, technology, language, performance, and collaboration. I was around 8 my first summer and I never quit.
In what ways has being from Mississippi inspired your project?
I would say it’s completely inspired my project, The Jacksons. The piece is very observational. I wanted to capture our generation and what we’re going through with new technology, and how we’re dealing with trauma of the previous generation. It’s a film that explores sexuality, gender, class, and difficult family dynamics, and how being from and living in Mississippi affects that. It’s about how these characters navigate and cope with all of that in this new world. It’s a very interpersonal film that captures rather specific relationships.
Where do you intend to film/produce your project in the state and why?
The Jacksons was filmed in the Fondren and Belhaven neighborhoods of Jackson, and on Lake Lorman in Madison. The majority of the film is set at the family’s lake house, where the siblings are seeking refuge, because their father is in some sort of legal trouble. A huge reason we ended up filming in those locations specifically is because we had so many friends and family who were willing to help us and loan locations. The creative community I have in Jackson is incredible, and I’m proud to say every aspect of the film is from a Mississippian; talent, sound, music, color, locations. The movie is fully finished filming and in post-production now, so the grant will support our post work. Check out our Instagram @thejacksonsfilm for all the updates.
What are your hopes for your future?
For me, I’m going to keep creating, working on different projects, and just keep becoming. Writing is a huge part of my life, and that’s something I’ll continue to do, and writing about Mississippi is something I can’t seem to quit. During this process I’ve put together a production company called Snakebird Productions with my cinematographer (Céilì Hale) and producers (Lawson Marchetti and Jennifer Roberts). We have some projects coming up that we’re really excited about, so keep an eye out!
KAT ROMERO
Hometown: Laurel
Project: The Fakeniks
Type: Narrative short
What does it mean to you to have been selected for a Mississippi Film Alliance grant?
I am very grateful and excited to have been selected I have applied a few times before with a different project. Each time I have applied, I have been able to refine my approach and learn new things about not only this process but also about the art of creating a persuasive proposal. Completing this project will allow me to advance in my career of public relations and develop my skills as a storyteller, allowing me to expand my body of work into the world of short narrative film and produce a project that I can share with others.
How did you get interested in filmmaking?
I have always been interested in storytelling. When I was growing up, I conscripted the children my mother babysat into acting in plays that I wrote. I majored in journalism at Jones College and served as an editor for the school paper. I thought I wanted to write novels, but in 2004, I saw Pirates of the Caribbean, and that made me want to write screenplays instead. I found that one of the screenwriters from the film had a blog and I started following it closely. He recommended that aspiring screenwriters learn to be directors, so when I graduated from Jones, I went to film school at The University of Southern Mississippi.
In what ways has being from Mississippi inspired your project?
Mississippians are born storytellers. But, more specifically, being from Laurel has allowed me to make a connection that is vital to this project. I have been fascinated with the Beatles since I was in 8th grade. Since then, every time I went to downtown Laurel, I could envision the Fab Four popping out of the side of one of our historic buildings to scurry down the fire escape and into a nearby alley to escape from screaming fans. I wrote the screenplay for this project while I was in film school but I never made it. Since then, our downtown area has grown and become even more beautiful and inspiring without losing the brickwork, alleys, and fire escapes that I have always liked. In 2022, I rewrote the script to include the ways Laurel has grown and changed.
Where do you intend to film/produce your project in the state and why?
We will be filming in downtown Laurel, Mississippi because it is the area that inspired the film.
What are your hopes for your future?
I hope that this project is a lot of fun for everyone who works on and contributes to it and that we will produce a short film that we are all proud to show off! I would also like to see it screened at the many wonderful film festivals that we have here in Mississippi. Ultimately, I would like to establish a production company to provide production services to local businesses and to develop fiction and non-fiction projects.
