Leslie has been working with non-profit organizations and their senior management teams for more than 30 years, first as an attorney and then as the long-time head of BRIC, the Brooklyn arts institution. During her 13-year tenure, BRIC’s budget grew from $3.7M to $15.8M, and BRIC launched numerous new initiatives including BRIC TV, BRIC Lab, a renowned youth media education initiative, and BRIC Workspace, all of which are intended to invest in artists and media-makers.
Our signature film challenge is back in NYC this August! Expand your network while creating a polished short film in one weekend.
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Accepted participants will be placed on crews and work with women and nonbinary filmmakers in every role of production. It's FREE to apply and participate, and we provide cinema-quality equipment courtesy of our sponsors, production insurance, stipends to submit to film fests and more!
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On Saturday, Aug. 6, participants will meet their teams for the very first time at a pre-production meeting. On Thursday, Aug. 11, we will pull a different genre out of a hat for each team and assign a prop that teams must incorporate — and then the challenge begins! Teams will write, shoot and edit their films (3 to 10 minutes long) and submit them by 11:59 p.m. on Sunday, Aug. 14. See your completed film on the big screen during a premiere on Thursday, Aug. 25!
Applications are closed for this upcoming challenge. Sign up for email updates so you don't miss the next one!
Meet the Panelists
We rely on a team of experts to review applications. If you submit for the role of writer, director, actor, or DP, a veteran in your field will assess your application and provide us with a score. We use those scores to make our final decisions about who to accept for which roles. If you are placed on a crew, you can rest assured that your fellow participants have been vetted and that you are working with a great team!
We first met Nicole during the inaugural Women’s Weekend Film Challenge, when she worked as a PA on the short film noir “That Very Evening.” Then, in September, she worked on the mystery short “And So It Is” as a writer and sound mixer! When she’s not working on the film challenge, she works in film as a writer, director and sound mixer. We’re so excited to have her on board!
Screenwriting Panel
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Because we get so many awesome people applying to be screenwriters on our challenges, we enlist the help of past participants to read the submissions and make recommendations. Each application for a screenwriter postition is read by at least two panelists and then scored on a scale from 1 to 5. Tracy and Katrina then take those recommendations and make the final decisions and crew placements.
Applications
March 1-10
Due to the high volume of applications, the window for applying runs from March 1 to March 10. Role assignments are announced by March 20.
RED Workshop
March 27, 7-10pm
A special workshop by RED for DPs, ACs, DITS, editors, assistant editors and producers to go over the equipment and workflow for the challenge.
Pre-Pro Meeting
March 30
All participants are expected to attend the pre-pro meeting to meet the team and discuss production. This will be in Brooklyn, a 2-hour slot between 12-5pm.
The Challenge
April 4-7
The challenge begins at 6 p.m., 4/4, when all the teams are assigned a genre and a required prop. The completed film must be submitted by 11:59 p.m., 4/7.
Screening
April 18
We'll be screening all of the completed films at the Museum of Moving Image with an after party at George's. Free for participants.
Prospective participants can apply via a short online form. They will rank up to four roles they are able to fulfill in order of interest. For example, one prospective participant might list cinematographer as her first choice, lighting as her second choice, and assistant camera as her third choice if she has experience in all of those roles.​​ We will try to place her in the best role we see fit. If her first choice is writer and her second choice is script supervisor, we will try to place her in both of those roles.
Before the challenge
Dates will be released closer to the event. Sign up on our email list to be the first to receive updates.
Apply for free.
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Applications are reviewed by WWFC.
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Roles are assigned and released.
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Orientations for teaml leaders, writers and directors.
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Pre-production meeting with the entire crew.
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Equipment workshop with provided gear.
During the challenge
Next up: Feb. 20 - 23, 2020, in LA
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NYC 2020 dates TBA.
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WWFC draws a genre out of a hat for each crew on Thursday at 6 p.m. Crews are also given a prop they must incorporate.
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Screenwriters write the screenplay on Thursday evening.
Filming happens on Friday and Saturday.
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Post-production on Sunday.
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Completed film must be submitted by 11:59 p.m. on Sunday.
After the challenge
Dates will be released closer to the event. Sign up on our email list to be the first to receive updates.
Official screening and afterparty for completed films.
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All films are added to IMDb.
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Workshop for submitting films to festivals.
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Access to database of participants.
Our films have been accepted into over 60 festivals. Make sure to follow us on Instagram for all the updates.
Andrea Bunker
Casting Director
For the past 6 years Andrea Bunker has enhanced her craft from her casting mentor and former boss David Rubin, who is currently The President of The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS). Together they consulted for HBO on many green-lit projects from "Westworld" to "Succession."
In addition to consulting, Andrea was the Associate Casting Director on "Big Little Lies," "Sharp Objects" and various projects for Netflix, Hulu, SONY, Amazon and Fox. Since 2008, Andrea has been the Casting Director to over 40 independent projects (feature films, shorts, commercials and promos).
Akilah Green
Screenwriter
Akilah Green is a recovering lawyer-lobbyist turned writer. She currently writes for HBO's "A Black Lady Sketch Show" and NBC's "Perfect Harmony." Before that, she wrote for two seasons of Chelsea Handler's Netflix show, "Chelsea," where she also frequently appeared on camera. Akilah has also written for NBC's "A Legendary Christmas with John and Chrissy," The People's Choice Awards, The BET Awards, and Starter Pack on Facebook Watch.
Akilah has been named one of “9 Black Female Writers Changing Hollywood” by VH1 and was chosen for The Young & Hungry List of Hollywood’s “Top 100 New Writers.”
Claudia Raschke
Cinematographer
Award-winning cinematographer Claudia Raschke is best known for her ability to bring the rich tones of the motion picture medium to a diverse spectrum of films, from highly stylized commercial endeavors to feature documentaries to lower-budget works of art.
Among her many notable award winning films are: Oscar-nominated "RBG," Oscar-nominated "God is the bigger Elvis" (HBO), Peabody Award-winning "Black Magic" (ESPN), Oscar short-listed "Mad Hot Ballroom" (Paramount), "Particle Fever" (Bond), "Atomic Homefront" (HBO), "The Freedom to Marry" (Argot Pictures) and many others.
Lakshmi Sundaram
Screenwriter
Lakshmi Sundaram is a writer and actor on “Master of None.” Previously, she served as an executive story editor on “Brooklyn Nine-Nine.” Prior to that, she was on the staff of “Smash” and “Next Caller.” Sundaram is an improv writer/performer and the lead singer of a hip-hop band.
Emily Ting
Director
Emily Ting is an award-winning writer, director, and producer. Her first feature "Already Tomorrow in Hong Kong" premiered at Los Angeles Film Festival and was distributed theatrically by Gravitas Ventures in 2016. Emily’s latest feature "Go Back to China" premiered in competition at the 2019 SXSW Festival and is being released theatrically in spring 2020.
Previously, Emily was most known for her producing work, having served as producer on Ishai Setton’s "The Kitchen" and Stephen Suettinger’s "A Year and Change". She also executive produced the films "Pit Stop," "Land Ho!" and "Man from Reno," which collectively have screened at Sundance, SXSW, Tribeca, and Los Angeles Film Festival. She most recently produced Lynn Chen’s directorial debut "I Willl Make You Mine," which is premiering at the 2020 SXSW Festival.
Caroline Roberts
Writer, Producer
Caroline Roberts is a writer, producer and director with over a decade of experience in the film industry. Most recently, she was the Associate Producer on the award winning film, "Mary Poppins Returns." She has worked on such films as "Nine," "Pirates of the Caribbean: on Stranger Tides," and "Into the Woods."
In 2017, Caroline wrote, produced and directed the short film, "Lily + Mara", for which she received a Global Shorts Award of Excellence for Best Screenplay and an Award of Merit for Best Short Drama. In 2018, Caroline entered the AT&T Createathon filmmaking competition, where her short film, "Better Than Somedays,"won Best Overall Mobile Film.
Caroline is currently in London working on her next feature film.
Rachel Carey
Director
Rachel Carey is a filmmaker and writer based in the New York City area. Her first feature film as writer/director, "Ask for Jane," starring Cody Horn, Sarah Steele, Sarah Ramos, Ben Rappaport, and Alison Wright, premiered at the 2018 Hamptons International Film Festival and was picked up for distribution by levelFILM. It screened theatrically in 10 cities in 2019. Other recent projects include writing and directing the 1-hour dramatic tv pilot Takers, which screened at several festivals including Seriesfest in 2016 (where it won an award for Best Actress in a drama) and writing the web series "The (Female) Genius," which is being launched on Thirdwing's new streaming service in 2020. She has an MFA in Film Directing from NYU, and has taught at several colleges and universities including Yale University.
Shanele Alvarez
Cinematographer
Shanele Alvarez has DP’d multiple features (narrative and documentary) including "Dance Baby Dance" and "Neron," webseries, TV shows, and short films. Shanele is also a Local 600 camera operator and has operated on projects for HBO, ABC, CBS, Nickelodeon, The Jim Henson Co, and more.
Angele Cooper
Director
At 28, Angele Cooper is the only African American female union electrician working within IATSE’s New York Local 52 & Texas Local 484. As a union electrician, she has played many roles from Gaffer to Best Boy working on festival favorites, TV shows & feature films. Her road to film and television is rooted in a love she developed for film and writing while attending the University of Texas at Austin, while on a full athletic scholarship. Angele is a Co-Founder of Alpha Female Films and currently being mentored by producers and directors of the Black TV & Film Collective & New York's Writers Guild of America chapter. She additionally starred in Season 4 of the hit A&E series, '60 Days In'. Her first feature is based off her experience on the show.
Cameron Morton
Director
Cameron is a New York City based director, originally from Atlanta, GA. She has worked with Big Beach Films, and SPACE on Ryder Farm. Cameron is an alum of the Telluride Film Festival Student Symposium, and a graduate of North Carolina School of the Arts with a BFA in Acting.
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Family, Addiction, and Isolation are recurring themes in her work, and she is drawn to narratives that highlight the natural world. She is a 2019- 2020 Jacob Burns Creative Culture Fellow.
Meredith Metcalf
Writer
Meredith Metcalf is a writer and producer whose plays have been seen at Dixon Place and Manhattan Rep. Her short films have screened at Sick Chick Flicks, the Museum of the Moving Image, and on Roku.
An Assistant Production Coordinator with Local 161, she has worked on films and television series including "Ocean's 8," "Uncut Gems," and "High Maintenance." She is a Next Wave member of New York Women in Film & Television and volunteers with Brooklyn Women's Film Festival.
Upcoming Events
- Sat, Dec 02QueensDec 02, 7:00 PM – 9:30 PMQueens, 43-56 10th St, Queens, NY 11101, USA