A Moment of Good
The Chimaera Project - Advocacy and Action for Female Filmmakers
The main problem for female filmmakers is invisibility. The Chimaera Project recognizes the collective voice as a catalyst for social change.
(Cover photo Actress Octavia Spencer poses with members of Harvard's Hasty Pudding troupe. (Stephan Savoia/AP) - Above photo Diwa directed by Aina Dumlao (To.Get.Her Finishing Funds Program Awardee 2018)
In 2011, Jenn Fee Catalino, executive producer of the anthology feature Girls! Girls! Girls! invited six filmmakers to show what feminine strength meant to them. Inspired by the positive response of Girls!Girls!Girls! filmmakers Shana Betz and America Young joined forces with arts activist Cheryl Bookout to create a nonprofit organization with the overarching goal to change the landscape of hiring practices within the film and media arts industries by actively working to get women behind the camera in key positions.
After obtaining nonprofit status, The Chimaera Project was honored to have Girls,Girls,Girls Executive Producer Jenn Fee, producer & Curator magazine editor Amanda Quinn Olivar, and Laguna Art Museum collections manager Timothy Campbell join the board of directors.
A Night Of Celebration @ The Brack Shop Tavern : To.Get.Her Program Awardees with The Chimaera Project Team - Front row left to right: Lohanne Cook (TCP Team), Jenny Murray (Las Sandinistas), Amanda Quinn Olivar (TCP Board), Hayley McCarthy (Lily). Back row left to right: Portia Bartley (Black Beyond America), Rachel Rush (An Act of Terror), Ashley Brim-Riddle (An Act of Terror), Sarah Prikyl (Lily), America Young (TCP Board), Molly O'Neill (TCP Team), Cheryl Bookout (TCP Exec dr)
The team at Chimaera, including a star-studded advisory board, (Octavia Spencer pictured on cover), are dedicated to empowering filmmakers who identify as female to fearlessly create, inspire and lead.
In 2018, The Chimaera Project's TO.GET.HER Finishing Funds Program was supported in part by the Los Angeles County Arts Commission, Department of Cultural Affairs, City of Los Angeles and the Puffin Foundation. The intention of this program is 'Together we work TO.GET.HER funded, finished, hired!'. The six awardees included Aina Dumlao (Diwa), Tchaiko Omawale (Solace) Jenny Murray (Las Sandinistas), Sarah Prikryl (Lily), Portia Bartley (Black Beyond America), and Karla Gomez (Wayuu).
Their goal: to create change by demonstrating an inclusive model
"We all know the abysmally low stats of female filmmakers working in the industry. Many are starting to step up to make a difference but it hasn't been enough. The needle has barely moved. The Chimaera Project strives to make large strides of change in the industry though action and advocacy for filmmakers identifying as female. Our core programs include age-inclusive Mentorship, strategic Financial assistance and aggressive Outreach. We are able to do this with the support of passionate people and generous donations from institutions and individuals, all of whom believe strongly in what we are doing." - America Young - Founder
Clip of Shana Betz (TCP founder) in "Seeing is Believing". Directed by Cady Mcclain, produced by Kate Super, Amanda Quinn Olivar, LiLu, Jon Lindstrom, Eva Paris, Cicinyte, Kimberly McCullough.
The Chimaera Project’s programming also includes The Storytelling Toolbox Mentoring Program. mentors/guest speakers. Mentors visited the APA Theatre Guild acting classes at Huntington Beach High School once a week in 2017 for four weeks, offering mentors/guest speakers to pique interest, imagination and inform about opportunities in front of and behind the camera.
Zandra Rhodes Mentorship Nov 2017
One of the primary goals of the mentoring program was to reach the students as individuals and at the same time emphasize the importance of each participant’s role in successful collaborative projects. They aim to engage their imagination and encourage them to share their stories as they strongly believe the “art of change” happens through storytelling.
The students experienced workshops facilitated by director, stunt woman & TCP co-founder, America Young, Director & Actress Cady McClain, TCP Advisory Board member and fashion icon, Zandra Rhodes and Voice-Over Actress, Erin Fitzgerald.
All donations will go toward matching grant awards from the Los Angeles County Arts Commission and the Department of Cultural Affairs, City of Los Angeles in support of their core programs.
