Two faculty members from the UC Santa Cruz Arts Division have each received $25,000 Art Works grants from the National Endowment for the Arts to support their latest documentary film projects.
Associate professor of art Dee Hibbert-Jones and assistant professor of film and digital media Jennifer Maytorena Taylor are two of 107 recipients nationwide that received 2017 NEA grants in the “Media Arts” category.
They join fellow awardees from a wide range of organizations including Public Radio International, Jazz at Lincoln Center, LA Theatre Works, the New York Philharmonic, and the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.
Hibbert-Jones and San Francisco artist Nomi Talisman will use the funds to support production and post-production costs for an animated documentary called "De'Juan's Story."
The second film in their "Living Condition" trilogy, it tells the story of a young man whose uncle was on death row and how it has affected his life. The film shows De'Juan at various life stages--from visiting his uncle weekly as a child, to the death of his mother and uncle, to his life as a college student living independently.
The first film in their trilogy, Last Day of Freedom, was nominated for a 2016 Academy Award in the category of best documentary short. The new project will extend the reach of that film, further exploring the crisis in the American criminal justice system through the stories of families with a loved one accused of a capital crime.
Taylor will use her grant to support production and post-production costs for her documentary, “The Gut.” Set in Rutland, Vermont, a small blue-collar city recovering from an opioid epidemic, the film follows Mayor Louras and a small ensemble of intersecting characters for two years as he fights to resettle Syrian refugees in the town.
The documentary explores the different perspectives on the many complex issues facing residents, such as community transitions, economic growth, and change when small-town America meets the Syrian civil war.
Earlier this year, Taylor produced one of several short pieces that comprised The Talk: Race in America, a new film that premiered on PBS.
She is also the producer and director of the 2015 film Daisy & Max, an hour-long documentary, filmed on location in South Los Angeles, about a couple working to protect LA communities from gang violence that is caught in the crossfire of the U.S. war on gangs.
Established by Congress in 1965, the National Endowment for the Arts is an independent federal agency and the only funder in the country to support arts activities in all 50 states.
“The American people are recognized for their innovative spirit and these grants represent the vision, energy, and talent of America’s artists and arts organizations,” said NEA Chairman Jane Chu. “I am proud of the role the National Endowment for the Arts plays in helping advance the creative capacity of the United States.”
