We are excited to share that our inaugural year of our Next Steps Fellowship, funded with the generous support of the Jerome Foundation, was a great success. The Next Step Fellowship is a new WMM initiative that provides one-on-one support to a select cohort of emerging NYC-based filmmakers in our Production Assistance Program. The fellows also received a $1,000 unrestricted grant for their project and additional support and networking opportunities.
The six projects directed by early-career New York City women filmmakers selected for the program were:
THE ANGRIEST BLACK MAN IN AMERICA – dir. Nimco Sheikhaden
Explores Philadelphia attorney Michael Coard’s often defiant defense work and his tireless fight to save clients from death row. Capturing Coard’s unapologetic advocacy, the film navigates the complex intersections of race, justice, and community resilience.
MY COLOR – dir. Fanny Texier
Across the globe, a unique group of individuals embrace a monochrome existence, living in a world of a single color—from their clothes to their homes. We follow Levaille (Orange), Ali (Pink) and Elizabeth (Green) on active journeys of self-discovery, as they pursue their dreams and use color to heal, find their true selves, and brighten a dark world.
ON THREE WHEELS – dir. Cionin Lorenzo
On Three Wheels follows Sandra Alfonzo as she goes after her dream of making every disabled child mobile, and the stories of the families who live with a special needs child- their hardships and joys, economic struggles and hopes for their children.
SOMETHING REMAINS – dir. Carole Blueweiss
Imagine picking up a novel, thinking it’s fiction, only to find it’s your family’s untold story during 1930s Nazi Germany. This was Carole’s shocking discovery. Her journey to uncover buried secrets reveals haunting truths of intergenerational trauma and the dark forces of exclusion that tore her family from their homeland.
RUBBISH – dir. AX Mina
Rubbish: The Queer Kingdom of Leilah Babirye tells the story of a queer artist-activist from Uganda transforming discarded rubbish into visions of liberation.
TAXI DRIVER – dir. Sara Chishti
TAXI DRIVER follows NYC cabbies fighting crushing medallion debt, exploring resilience, loss, and activism. Through intimate storytelling and large-scale protests, the film exposes a crisis that turned the American Dream into financial devastation.
Mentees were paired with establish industry professionals for six months of one-on-one guidance, workshops, networking, and creative feedback. Mentors were: Barbara Ghammashi (Sr. Program Film Officer, Claims Conference); Jackie Glover (Executive Director, Harvard Black Film Project); Tracie Holder (Producer); Cynthia Kane (Producer); Sonia Kennebeck (Director & Producer); and Lucila Moctezuma (Sr. Consultant of Arts Programs, Points North Institute). Thank you to the Bay Area Video Coalition (BAVC), who offered their guidance and consulting! We’re looking forward to our next cohort.
The Jerome Foundation invests directly in early-career artists, in nonprofit arts organizations that support the creative development and production of work by early career artists, and in creative field-building and arts ecosystem innovation, guided by the values of intersectional racial equity, diversity, innovation, risk, and humility. We are grateful for their support.
