Projects Submitted to the Roy W. Dean Grant for Spring 2023 That Deserve Your Attention
In every group of submissions to the Roy W. Dean Grant, there are projects that have excellent concepts and talented filmmakers that just missed making our group of finalists. From the Heart Productions, the 501(c)3 sponsor of the grant, calls them Hot Films in the Making. Thirty-one films were chosen this year as Hot Films for the Roy W. Dean Grant for Spring. You should take notice of these as you will certainly be seeing them and more from these filmmakers in the future.
“This list is our way of honoring those filmmakers and their projects.” said Carole Joyce, Director of the Roy W. Dean Grants for From the Heart Productions. “We hope by bringing them to the attention of the public, they will find the followers and supporters they deserve to help carry them to completion.”
The films chosen for Hot Films in the Making include documentary features, fiction features, short films and web series. They represent projects from the United States and around the world.
The Hot Films in the Making for the Roy W. Dean Film Grant for Spring 2023 are:
| Title | Type | Filmmaker |
| “Cuando No Hay Palabras (When There Are No Words)” | Documentary Short | Gabriella Canal |
| “Tarantula” | Fiction Feature | Juan Patricio Riveroll |
| “Mustangs: The Native American Way” | Documentary Feature | Kremena Doust |
| “#BoysToo” | Documentary Feature | Melinda Baum |
| “The Experiencer Project” | Documentary Feature | Daniel Cardone |
| “Where Did The Adults Go?” | Fiction Feature | Courtney Marsh |
| “Who In Da Mornin” | Documentary Feature | Jonathan Issac Jackson |
| “#Likes4Lucas” | TV, Web, or New Media Series | Dylan Dempsey |
| “Calamity & Mercy” | Documentary Feature | Daniel W. Smith |
| “Still Perfect” | Fiction Feature | Michael Fitzer |
| “The S.U.R.F. Story” | Documentary Feature | Riley Thelen |
| “Finding Ma” | Documentary Feature | Phoenix Woodall |
| “Leila” | Fiction Feature | Armon Mahdavi |
| “Eastbound Traffic” | Fiction Feature | Charles Johnson |
| “The Cubas Plan” | Documentary Feature | Sergio Vizuete |
| “Trash Baby” | Fiction Feature | Jacy Mairs |
| “Deepest Blue” | Fiction Feature | Gregory Collins |
| “Eden” | Fiction Feature | Andrew Doyle |
| “Mere Water” | Fiction Short | Debbie Peiser |
| “Our Guys” | Documentary Feature | Jennifer Johnson |
| “Where Do We Go From Here” | Documentary Feature | Geetanjali Gurlhosur |
| “Lost In Love” | TV, Web, or New Media Series | Tiffani Matthews |
| “Nubovni” | Fiction Feature | Elk Salvera |
| “A Holiday I Do” | Fiction Feature | Paul Schneider |
| “Trusted Sources” | Documentary Feature | Don Colacino |
| “What’s in a Name” | Documentary Feature | Rose Bladh |
| “The Bomb With No Name” | Documentary Feature | Adebowale Ajibulu |
| “Planning to Turn the Tide” | Documentary Feature | James Schwab |
| “The Faucet” | Fiction Short | Dava Whisenant |
| “The Breath of a Mountain” | Documentary Feature | Eshika Fyzee |
| “The Game” | Documentary Feature | Justin Tolliver |
Each finalist is given the opportunity to post information on their contending film on the From the Heart Productions website. Filmmakers can include an image from the film, filmmaker info, and loglines. If they have available, filmmakers can include a link to their film’s website, Facebook page, or relevant social media connection.
About the Roy W. Dean Grant
Now celebrating its 31st year, the Roy W. Dean Grant has awarded over $2,000,000 in cash and donated film services to independent films. The grant is awarded to films budgeted under $500,000 that are unique and make a contribution to society. It has been an important lifeline for independent filmmakers that help to get their projects started or finished. Without assistance from the grant, many excellent and important films may never have been made.
Past winners of the grant include 2021 Emmy winners Belly of the Beast and The Love Bugs , as well as Sundance Film Festival selection Raise Hell: The Life and Times of Molly Ivins, and acclaimed documentary Kusama-Infinity.
About From The Heart Productions
From The Heart Productions is a 501(c)3 non-profit dedicated to helping filmmakers get their projects funded and made. Besides providing funding through the grant, they offer film fiscal sponsorship to filmmakers. This allows donations made to films they sponsor to be tax deductible. From The Heart has helped independent filmmakers raise over $30 million through their fiscal sponsorship program.
President Carole Dean is the best-selling author of The Art of Film Funding: 2nd Edition, Alternative Financing Concepts and the new online class Learn Producing: The Ultimate Course for Indie Film Production.
