December 1, 2012 -- Los Angeles - The mere
thought of finding even partial funding for
one's film is enough to make many filmmakers
swoon with delighted anticipation. So, to be
sure, at a star-studded ceremony at the New
Beverly Cinema in Los Angeles today, when
Carole
Dean was presented The 2012 WIFTS (
The
Women’s International Film & Television Showcase) Lifetime
Achievement Award there was a whole lot of
swooning going on.
Dean, the President of
From the Heart Productions and
founder of the Roy W. Dean Film Grant,
has helped filmmakers realize their dreams
by helping them realize their funding for over 4
decades. In accepting the award at the theater,
Dean said, "I am truly blessed, I get to work
with donors for the grants, who are heart-felt
people in our industry and give to the grants to
support emerging and on-going works of heart and
passion."
To date, From the Heart Productions has had
38 grant winners and over $2,000,000 in
donations for documentary filmmakers.
“I thank The WIFTS for this tremendous honor
that has gone to so many exceptional women”,
commented Carole Dean late last month after
being chosen for the Lifetime Achievement Award.
“My goal has always been to help others stand
out and get the awards while I sit back and
watch proudly. This is a strange, new, but
wonderful experience for me."
"Mom lives in Spirit and helps filmmakers on
a daily basis," said her daughter Carole
Joyce, co-producer of the upcoming
feature film Tranzloco (2013) -- to be directed
by Will De Los Santos -- as well an
award-winning documentary producer herself.
TheWIFTS honors women making a positive
impact on society through film, TV and other
professions. Previous winners include film
producer Gale Ann Hurd, cosmetic industry CEO
Elizabeth Grant, inner-city educator Millicent
E. Hill, and movie publicist Jacqueline Brodie.
"I see all that Carole Dean has been doing
and has done for the film industry all her
life," Elspeth Tavares,
Publisher and Editor-in-chief of The
Business of Film which is
published 15 times a year on line and
administers The WIFTS Awards. "While Carole is a
role model for women in film; our award is not
really about gender - it's about unselfish
giving to others."
"From the Heart Productions is really helping
to make filmmakers and not films," Dean told
Black Tie Magazine in an interview before the
ceremony. And from her experience in the
industry, a filmmaker's faith in his or her
movie is often just as important obtaining
funding. Other awards presented today included
best screenwriter, best cinematographer, arts
advocate and a music award. The red carpet
arrivals began at 1 PM with the ceremony
starting at 2 PM.
The From the Heart Production grants
came at a turning point for the very survival of
documentary filmmaking. Cable TV wasn't
presenting documentaries and networks such as
Discovery, Bravo, National Geographic didn't
exit. The Roy W. Dean Grants
encouraged documentary filmmakers and even
helped produce a number of documentaries that
couldn't find funding.
*********
Background for Black Tie International
Magazine on Carole Dean and From the Heart Productions from
www.fromtheheartproductions.com
"When dad passed away in 1992, I began receiving
stacks of cards and letters from filmmakers all over the
country who were indebted to his generosity. I read letter
after heartfelt letter from successful filmmakers who told
me they never would have realized their dream had it not
been for Roy’s generosity and kindness," says Carol Dean.. .
It was only then that I discovered that unbeknownst to me,
dad had been using Studio Film and Tape as the informal
headquarters for his own little independent filmmaker’s
foundation. So that’s where the missing inventory was going!
"I walked over to my desk, sat down, and picked
up a request from Bart Hawkins. Bart wanted to spend three
months on the Hopi reservation to film the dying language of
the Hopi tribe, and he needed $4000 in 16mm film stock to
make this dream a reality. I decided then and there to start
a grant program in honor of my father, Roy W. Dean, film
philanthropist extraordinaire! I gave Bart the film, and the
Roy W. Dean film grants were born.
"In the last decade, the Roy W. Dean Grants have
grown into one the most sought after competitions in the
world. This year alone, we expect to have close to $30,000
in donations for our two Los Angeles grants, and $30,000 for
our New York Grant. Not bad for a covert underground
operation started by a gentle 76 year-old man who just
wanted to help give passionate filmmakers an opportunity to
be heard!
"Over the last 20 years the grant has funded some
wonderful films, The Flute Player, Miss Navaho, Kusama:
The polka Dot Princess, BAM 6.6, Women Behind the Camera, A
Girl & A Gun, BURNED, Shakespeare Behind Bars, American
Chain Gang, Stolen and many more that are listed under
grants as prior winners. We are very proud of our filmmakers
and our goal is to continue to fund films and support
documentary filmmakers."
From The Heart Productions is a 501(c)3 non-profit and runs the Roy W.
Dean Film Grant. The grant is held 3 times each year in
Spring, Summer, and Fall. From The Heart is also a fiscal
sponsor for films as well. Because of its non-profit status,
donations to the films they sponsor are tax free. Carole
Dean is also available for private consultations on film
financing, writing, and production.
The Art of Film Funding by Carole Dean
As Dean points out in her introduction to The
Art of Film Funding, “If you don't have funding, you
don't have a film…[and] if you do not learn the art of film
funding, your film career is going to be very short.”
"Carole Dean's book successfully bridges the gap
between the vision of the project and the realities of the
market for the serious filmmaker." - Louise Levison, author
of "Filmmakers and Financing: Business Plans for
Independents"
"A must for any filmmaker seeking funding." -
Barbara Trent, Academy Award Winner, Panama Deception
"Carole Dean has years of experience both as a
producer and a funder, and her new book is full of
nuts-and-bolts information from both sides of the fence,
told in a conversational and heart-felt manner. Of special
interest to filmmakers will be the in-dept interviews with
experts in the field, and an extensive appendix chock full
of references. A great new addition to the filmmaker's
lexicon." - Morrie Warshawski, consultant and author of
"Shaking the Money Tree"