Ava DuVernay, through her nonprofit ARRAY Alliance, created a $250,000 grant for individuals and organizations. The money has been given to women and people of color who “serve as cultural catalysts for narrative change,” as explained by DuVernay in a April 15 Instagram post.
The grants will be distributed to filmmakers, independent film festivals, screening series, journalists and other art supporters, who’ve all been impacted by the abrupt work stoppage after COVID-19 began to spread.
Grants of $10,000 have already been distributed to UrbanWorld Festival, the Houston Museum of African American Culture, Cinema Detroit, Black Femme Supremacy Film Festival, International Black Film Festival and Cine Latino Film Festival.
The Gary International Black Film Festival is also an awardee, as is the BronzeLens Film Festival, llumiNative, Sankofa Film Society, Cinema Sala, Lumbee Film Festival, Indigenous Film Festival, Visual Communications, ImageNation, Sarah Jones Film Foundation and Wilson Morales of BlackFilm.com.
“I’m grateful. I’m honored to be included in the grant,” said Morales, according to Forbes. “All I can do is try to promote the Black film experience. Whether it’s a short film or even TV, we have to support each other. There are stories to tell.”
In a prepared statement, ARRAY Alliance’s Executive Director Regina Miller spoke about the grant as well.
“Establishing ARRAY Grants furthers ARRAY’s mission to support arts advocates around the country that are cultural necessities in their communities,” she explained. “With more content from creators of color and women being made, it’s crucial to support the organizations that nurture and nourish these voices.”
“In just the last few weeks, we’ve all gained a new appreciation for the value of human connection and the simple comfort of being together, sharing stories, in a place that feels safe and welcoming. Every community deserves that,” added Miller.
Meanwhile, it was recently announced that DuVernay was named as an executive producer of the two-part docuseries “And She Could Be Next,” which focuses on the recent impact that women of color had on U.S. politics.
That project will premiere on PBS and pov.org in June 2020.
