Winner to Receive Cash and Production Services to Help Complete Their Film
Twenty-one exceptional projects from indie filmmakers from the U.S. and Europe are still in running for the Roy W. Dean Film Grant for Spring 2024. Sponsored by top rated 501(c)3 non-profit From the Heart Productions, the grant is awarded to a film that is unique and that makes a contribution to society. Winner will be announced in July.
“I Love You More Than My Life (aka Mom and Me)”
“We are continually impressed by the talent of the filmmakers who submit projects to our grants,” commented Carole Joyce, Director of the Roy W. Dean Grants at From the Heart Productions. “The originality of the fiction films and passion behind the documentaries submitted is remarkable.”
The grant is open to documentaries, narrative features, short films, and web series. Filmmakers internationally are welcome to apply. Submissions for the grant were received from the United Kingdom, Thailand, Spain, Iran, Australia, and across the United States.
Along with the cash prize awarded by From the Heart Productions are donations from film industry professionals and companies $500 in grip, lighting or expendables from Filmtools, 40% deduction on color, editing, and sound & all production services from ProMedia in NYC, $1,600 value / sound mix session from Silver Sound, 30% discount in equipment rental from AbelCine Tech, Inc. NYC and more from many heartfelt donors.
Finalists for the Roy W. Dean Film Grant for Spring 2024 are:
| Title | Type | Filmmaker |
| “26 Seconds USA Docuseries” | TV, Web, or New Media Series | Kelly Galindo |
| “Man o’ War: Chained Lightning” | Documentary Feature | Andrew Harper |
| “From a Darkened Room – The Diary of a Nobody” | Documentary Feature | Lorenzo DeStefano |
| “Heroic Episodes” | TV, Web, or New Media Series | Lisa Regina |
| “Education for Peace Montessori” | Documentary Feature | Angel Galmes |
| “The Mythical Magic of Mushrooms” (working title) | Documentary Feature | Marilyn Marchetti |
| “The History of Women” | Documentary Feature | Deborah Romare |
| “Carry My Voice” | Fiction Feature | hasan demirtas |
| “Driving Mrs M” | Documentary Feature | Connie Bottinelli |
| “Marriage by Correspondence: Pen Pal Relationships in the Philippines and USA” | Documentary Feature | Tony Collins |
| “Condor Canyon” | Documentary Feature | Kelly Sorenson |
| “ᏗᏂᏠᎯ ᎤᏪᏯ (Meet Me at the Creek)” | Documentary Short | Loren Waters |
| “The Net Effect” | Documentary Feature | Myles Kramer |
| “Timetracker” | Documentary Short | Pete Quandt |
| “Il Mio Posto al Tavolo (My Seat at the Table)” | Documentary Short | Santo D. Marabella |
| “Marked by Grace: Courageous Compassion Between Enemies on the World War II Battlefield” | Documentary Short | Paula Maddox |
| “Connie – The Powers and Possibilities of Community Engagement” | Documentary Short | Dorothea Braemer |
| “Heart Condition” | Fiction Short | Nikhil Prakash |
| “Shuffle” | Documentary Feature | Carra Greenberg |
| “The Pickleball Project” | Documentary Short | Samantha Schulte |
| “I Love You More Than My Life (aka Mom and Me)” | Documentary Feature | Indira Somani |
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
Since its inception in 1992, 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 is unique and that make a contribution to society.
Offering four grants for filmmakers each year, The Roy W. Dean Grant has been an important lifeline for independent filmmakers helping them 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. In addition to personal guidance, free classes on fundraising and filmmaking, the program allows donations made to films 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.
