Share

Columbia, S.C. – As the 2021 grant cycle opens for filmmakers, the South Carolina Film Commission is pleased to announce that two Indie Grants short films have been selected for the prestigious Tribeca Film Festival.

The 20th annual Tribeca Film Festival will be held June 9-20 in New York City. It will be the first major film festival held in-person since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The two films selected are Abducted, a tongue-in-cheek Southern thriller, and Graceland, a sweet tale of a ten-year-old who claims to be a reincarnation of the king of rock and roll. Graceland stars South Carolina native Anna Camp (Pitch Perfect, Perfect Harmony).

“This is a huge deal,” said Indie Grants Producer Brad Jayne. “Only the top films are selected by Tribeca, and it shows the filmmaking skill and craftsmanship we have in South Carolina and have been able to develop through the Indie Grants program.”

“Anna Camp and I formed 'lunch box theatre' when we were 15 years old in Columbia because we wanted to tell stories and make our own work,” said Graceland writer/director Bonnie Discepolo. “Indie Grants gave us the chance to come home and make this movie in the same spirit of fun, collaboration, and community. Getting to share our work at Tribeca and the international film community is the realization of those 15-year-old dreams.”

Indie Grants is a job and career training program from the South Carolina Film Commission and Trident Technical College. It funds and produces short films by South Carolina filmmakers, with Trident Tech film students working under top-notch professional crews as hands-on training. It‘s the only one of its kind in the nation.

 “Everyone at Indie Grants was so professional, collaborative, and really cared about making the best movie we possibly could,” said Abducted director Ben Joyner. “I'll forever be grateful for that.”

The program’s funding cycle is now open, with 2021 submissions due July 26. Production teams with home-grown connections to South Carolina can apply at indiegrants.org.

“Indie Grants has garnered a major reputation among producers, writers, actors, and all types of crew,” said Tom Clark with the South Carolina Film Commission. “This is a way for us to show off the state's talent, location, and production value to the world.”

Projects selected for funding will be announced in September.

For more information, contact Sam Queen at sam@scprt.com or 803-767-3568. 

 

Top photo: Jenna Kanell in Abducted. Bottom photo: Anna Camp and Daniel Eric Gold in Graceland. Photos and other artwork available upon request. 

###