The Death of TV's Greatest American

Sundance 2024 Slate Announced; How 'Origin' Found Non-Traditional Financing; A Trio of Distro Deals; Indie Spirit Awards

“Lear designed ‘All in the Family’ to air arguments audiences weren’t hearing in escapist sitcoms… Its format was theater-like, its dialogue rough and real, its comedy smart but not highbrow. It was a lightening revolution, claiming the No. 1 spot in the ratings and holding on for five years.” (NYT)

Happy Thursday, friends. It’s been quite the 72 hours…

• SAG-AFTRA members ratified their contract, ending Hollywood’s longest labor battle.

• Sundance announced its 2024 line up.

• Norman Lear, TV writer and producer who brought social commentary to the sitcom, died at the age of 101.

Norman’s death inspired some beautiful retrospectives. Three of our favorites:

• Norman Lear, TV’s Greatest American (NYT)

• Norman Lear Was Television’s Comedy Lodestar (THR)

• Norman Lear Advocated for the Disabled on TV When No One Else Did (The Wrap)

Whatever you’re working on this week, may you push your medium to engage with the world as Norman did— and maybe make us laugh in the process. Let’s dive in.

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Roll of Honor

Premieres, Press, Awards, and Standout Member Work This Week. Say hello to featured Portrait members on the app!

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New Work, New Reads: Financing + Distribution

• Budgets for ‘prestige’ films dried up. So Ava DuVernay found a new way. Ava DuVernay couldn’t get traditional financing for Origin. But philanthropists were willing to help (WAPo).

  • Don’t miss Origin’s theatrical release in LA & NY, supported by Juliette Richey and the team at Picture Motion. Bryant Griffin, Producer; Felipe Tellez, Composer; Christine Ng, Camera Operator; Kris Bowers, Music.

• Why this year’s other critically acclaimed movie starring Lily Gladstone hasn’t been picked up. A great perspective from the writers of Fancy Dance on the state of the distribution system. Robert Wilson, Editor; Stacey Rice, Casting Director; Charles Elmore, Camera Operator.

Streaming Now: Grand Journeys

• Great Photo, Lovely Life. “Amanda Mustard’s shattering investigation into the abuse committed by her grandfather is a harrowing yet honest portrait of familial trauma” (Collider). Rachel Beth Anderson, Co-Director, Co-Writer, Producer, Cinematographer; Tyler Walk, Co-Writer, Editor; Sara Wasserman, Editor. Max.

• The World According to Football. Narrated and EP’d by Trever Noah, the five-part series focuses on “how soccer teams and fans in [each] country face global issues through the sport” (Deadline). Julian Cautherley, Producer. Showtime and Paramount+.

We loved seeing Portrait member Kris Bowers on Variety’s cover this week.

Short Quotes from Big Profiles

Director Ben Proudfoot on The Last Repair Shop collaboration with Director and Composer Kris Bowers (Variety):

You can kind of see the full baking-soda-and-vinegar reaction of our collaboration in the last five minutes of the movie when we assembled a multigenerational LAUSD alumni orchestra to play this incredible opus that Kris wrote in one weekend.

Editor Jason Reid on Sam Now (No Film School)

I can’t talk about organization enough. For a project of this scale, it’s crucial to know where everything is in the project or things can get completely lost.

Deals and Upcoming Releases

• Cheerleading drama ‘Backspot’, starring Devery Jacobs, Evan Rachel Wood & exec-produced by Elliot Page, gets U.S. deal. John Davidson and Katisha Shaw, Executive Producers; Simone Smith, Editorial Department.

• Apple Films sets new feature “Girls State” From Jesse Moss & Amanda McBaine of “Boys State.” Amanda McBaine and Jesse Moss, Directors.

• Paul Simon Docuseries ‘In Restless Dreams’ Acquired by MGM+. Andy Grieve, Editor; Julie Gratz, Animator.

• Wavelength strikes first-look deal with Macaroni Art Productions. Jenifer Westphal and Joe Plummer, Wavelength.

On the Circuit: Sundance + Indie Spirit Announced

It’s that time of year: honoring the old and welcoming the new.

• On the latter: We’re so excited to see so many Portrait members with films headed to Sundance this year. We’re pulling together the full Sundance list of Portrait members so you can connect with film teams, find other attendees, and set meetings. Share your film on the app so we include you!

But first… the Indie Spirit Award nominees were announced this week.

• Congratulations to producer Monique Walton (‘Best Producer’ nominee), director Monica Sorelle (‘Someone to Watch’ nominee) and Set Hernandez, Jesse Short Bull, and Laura Tomaselli (nominated for the ‘Truer than Fiction’ award).

• Check out all the Portrait members on the app with nominated films, including:

  • Best Feature: Past Lives

  • Best First Feature: All Dirt Roads Taste of Salt, Earth Mama, A Thousand and One

  • John Cassavetes Award: The Artifice Girl, Fremont, The Unknown Country

  • Best Documentary: Bye Bye Tiberias, Going to Mars: The Nikki Giovanni Project, The Mother of All Lies

  • Best New Series: Deadlocked: How America Shaped the Supreme Court, Stolen Youth: Inside the Cult at Sarah Lawrence, Wrestlers, Beef

• And congrats to everyone with films at the British Independent Film Awards, including director Chloe Abrahams, who won Best Debut Director - Feature Documentary for The Taste of Mango, and Alice Russell and Gannesh Rajah whose film If The Streets Were On Fire won Best Feature Documentary and the Raindance Maverick Award.

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Window of Opportunity
aka The Discover Tab 🔍

Check out the Discover Tab on Portrait for more grants, programs, jobs, events, festivals, and festival deadlines.

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Coming Soon: Firelight Media presents Beyond Resilience

“The Documentary System is Broken. Now What?” YouTube Live on Thursday, December 7, from 4-5pm EST. Portrait member Brian Newman, panelist.

Closing Soon: Programs + Grants

Have an opportunity to share? Post it on the app or fill out our form.

• Solutions Storytelling Project: Latin America (12/8 deadline)

• DOCPITCH Call for Entries (12/11 deadline)

• NYFA Artist Fellowship (12/13 deadline)

• Short-Form Open Call (12/15)

• Trailblazer Grant (12/18 deadline)

• The Telly Awards - Call for Entries (12/18 deadline)

• Women Directing Mentorship (12/19 deadline)

• The Sriyanka Ray Grant (12/23 deadline)

• Stowe Story Labs - Narrative Labs (12/25 deadline)

• WIF Fellowships (1/8 deadline)

• Nantucket Film Festiva and Screenplay Competition (1/11 deadline)

• Documentary Labs - Film Independent (1/15 deadline)

• AmDocs Film Festival - Film Fund (1/16 deadline)

• SagIndie Film Music Connect (rolling deadline)

• Elevate Collective (rolling deadline)

• Ford Foundation JustFilms Grants (rolling deadline)

• Awesome Foundation Grants (rolling deadline)

• Perspective Fund (rolling deadline)

Jobs/Gigs Roundup

Have a job to share? Share it on the app or fill out our form.

• Videographer and Editor, Twin City Media.

• Senior Creative Executive, Moonbug Entertainment.

• Vice President, Executive Producer — AI, Edelman.

• Principal Video Designer, Walt Disney Imagineering.

• Design Director - VR, Skydance.

• Senior Manager, Creative Production Strategy, Pinterest.

• DreamWorks TV - Production Supervisor, Dreamworks.

• Manager, Post Production (FX), FX Networks.

• Remote Digital Producer, PEOPLE Evergreen, Dotdash Meredith.

• Line Producer, Cirque du Soleil.

• Producer, Snapchat.

• Sr. Unscripted Physical Production Executive, Prime Video Sports, Prime Video & Amazon Studios.

• Producer, FOCUS, Endeavor.

• Sr. Field Production Manager, Warner Bros. Discovery.

• Videographer/Graphic Designer, Executive Talent Solutions.

• ​​Senior AV Live Events Video Production Specialist​ - NYC, Diversified.

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End Credits: Portrait Post of the Week

Until next week friends. See you on Portrait — and don’t forget to check out this week’s talent list on the app to see and save contacts.