Not wanting to jinx my current good fortune, I have refrained from posting too much about anything about what has been going on. However, the news is public now (5 days ago actually but I was busy work/playing at the Squamish Music Festival – yes, I did see Eminem!), so I can at least mention a couple of well-timed events.
#1 – In January and March I attended two different segments of the Women in the Director’s Chair (WIDC) program run by Creative Women Workshops. Both workshops really kicked off 2014 in high gear and had me really focussing on WHAT’S NEXT for me as a director. The new news you ask? The BC Arts Council came through with a Professional Development Grant in the sum of just over $5,000. Which covers tuition, flights, boarding, per diems, honorariums for mentors to well…continue mentoring me.
#2 – While having a lunch with two of my grade 8 teachers* a couple weeks back, I found out that I was going to receive the Harold Greenberg Fund’s Short-to-Features Award which includes a $32,000 production grant for Beat the Bush, (formerly titled, Cougars Cruising), and an additional $7,500 towards the development of a feature film of the same concept. So you can expect a new saucy short from me in 2014, which will tour the festival circuit in 2015 (fingers crossed).
#3 – Harold Greenberg Fund requires and experienced Executive Producer to oversee their funded projects. Thanks to an introduction by a venerable actor who participated at the WIDC workshop in January, Shawn Williamson, President of Brightlight Pictures, has enthusiastically come on board. SNAP!!
There are a few more opportunities that have been thrown my way, but I will post about them once they actually happen as for the three above awesome things, there have been a half dozen or more that didn’t quite line up. But there will be a half dozen more awesome to report in the coming month(s) I’m sure.
I am so stoked. Yes. I. Am.
*This is an important detail because they taught classes in Dance and Video which are two things I actively do everyday.
Brianne Nord-Stewart 