BAM President Gina Duncan honored with Cultural Impact Honor

Filmmakers RaMell Ross and Sean Wang Honored with Alumni of Distinction Awards

New York, NY (October 2, 2024) – The Gotham Film & Media Institute (The Gotham) tonight announced the winners of the inaugural Gotham Week Honors. 

Winning the U.S. Features in Development honor was Here for the Weekend, written and directed by Jane Casey Modderno. The raunchy rom-com follows three transgender best friends chasing love, success, and connection in Palm Springs, while trying desperately to keep their found-family together.

Winning the U.S. Shorts to Features honor was Thirstygirl, written and directed by Alexandra Qin, which follows two sisters on a road trip from New York to a rehab in Kentucky after one of them relapses.

The winner of the Spotlight on Documentaries honor was Matininó, directed by Gabriela Díaz Arp, a powerful portrayal of the Villanueva family, a multi-generational family of Puerto Rican women transforming their experience of violence into a fantasy film.

The winner of the Global Producer of The Year honor was Sophie Luo, producer of Valley of the Tall Grass, which sees a trashed TV/VCR combo set that survives and circulates through the lives of various Indigenous characters in an Oregon town. 

The Gotham Week Honors celebrated Gina Duncan, President of BAM (Brooklyn Academy of Music), with the first-ever Gotham Week Cultural Impact Honor. This award honors Duncan’s remarkable journey in cinema and media, from her work at the Jacob Burns Film Center, through her tenure at Sundance, to her current role leading one of the world’s most renowned cultural institutions.

Filmmakers RaMell Ross and Sean Wang each received an inaugural Gotham Week Alumni Honor of Distinction Award. This award pays tribute to outstanding alumni of The Gotham programs who serve as beacons of the independent filmmaking community.

The Gotham Week Honors ceremony took place at The Brooklyn Navy Yard. 

For photo selects from the event, click here.

The Inaugural Gotham Week Honors recipients are:

For the U.S. Features In Development honor, presented by Gabrielle Nadig

Here for The Weekend  

Written and Directed by Jane Casey Modderno

Produced by Michael Gottwald, Josh Penn, and Josh Peters.

The U.S. Features in Development jury included: Nicolás Celis, Robert Kessel, and Gabrielle Nadig 

For the U.S. Shorts to Features honor, presented by Melissa Adeyemo and Krista Parris:

Thirstygirl 

Written and Directed by Alexandra Qin

Produced by Carlos López Estrada, Asher Goldstein, and Valerie Bush

The U.S. Shorts to Features jury included: Melissa Adeyemo, Mauricio Leiva Cock, and Krista Parris

For the Spotlight on Documentaries honor presented by Set Hernandez and Li Lu:

Matininó

Directed by Gabriela Díaz Arp

Produced by Karla Claudio Betancourt, Wendy Muñiz, and Guillermo Zouain

The Spotlight on Documentaries jury included: Set Hernandez, Li Lu, and Rodrigo Reyes 

For the Global Producer of the Year honor, presented by Ellie Foumbi and Neil Williams:

Sophie Luo 

Valley of Tall Grass

The Global Producer of the Year jury included Ellie Foumbi, Savina Neirotti and Neil Williams

Sponsors

The Gotham and Gotham Week are generously supported by a group of loyal corporate, foundation, and government benefactors. The 2024 Premier Sponsors are Netflix, Amazon MGM Studios, Warner Bros. Discovery, and HBO Documentary Films; the Gold Sponsors are Hulu, SAGindie, and The Walt Disney Studios; the Official Venues are BAM Rose Cinemas, Brooklyn Navy Yard, Nitehawk Cinemas, and Soho Works, the workspace to Soho House; the Official Beer Partner is Blue Moon; and the Official Spirits Partner is Kings County Distillery. The Gotham Week Honors supporters are Bad Math, Gold House, IndieClear, Marriott Content Studio, and Soho Works. Gotham Week is also supported by a grant from the National Endowment for the Arts. 

About The Gotham Film & Media Institute

The Gotham celebrates and nurtures independent film and media creators, providing career-building resources, access to industry influencers, and pathways to wider recognition. The organization, under the leadership of Executive Director and award-winning producer Jeffrey Sharp, fosters a vibrant and sustainable independent storytelling community through its year-round programs, which include Gotham Week, Gotham Labs, Filmmaker Magazine, the Gotham Awards, Gotham EDU, Owning It, and Expanding Communities.

About the Gotham Awards

The Gotham Awards is the first major awards show of the awards season that honors outstanding and groundbreaking voices in storytelling. For over 30 years, The Gotham Awards provides support for the work that The Gotham Film & Media Institute does year-round to celebrate and nurture film and media creators with vital resources to bring their work to fruition.

 For more information: https://thegotham.org/

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