Let’s Talk Industry Sustainability at ITVS Independents Summit

By Zoe Stahl

Congratulations to the ITVS Independent Summit participants. We are thrilled to announce the visionary filmmakers who will be attending this summer’s ITVS Independents Summit.

Ryah Aqel 

Phil Bertelsen 

Margaret Byrne

Christa Cassano

Lauren Cioffi 

Chico Colvard

Reilly Dowd 

Alejandro Flores

Robie Flores

Reed Harkness

Su Kim

Daresha Kyi

Marianela Maldonado

Madison O’Leary

Tony Patrick 

Katherine Patterson

Kellen Quinn

Jason Reid

Rodrigo Reyes

Laura Tatham

Juli Vizza

Lise Yasui

Eliyannah Amirah Yisrael 

Patricia Zagarella 

This summer’s ITVS Independent Summit will be a week-long gathering for filmmakers and industry leaders to explore the opportunities and roadblocks that shape the contemporary documentary industry. We will come together to reimagine what sustainable filmmaking could look like, and what role public media can play in supporting filmmakers from ideation to distribution. ITVS staff and industry experts will lead discussions and workshops that examine some of the major questions and challenges in documentary filmmaking. Nanfu Wang, director of the ITVS-funded and Sundance-winning One Child Nation, will discuss her experience working on international films, especially while navigating a government that is hostile to political dissent. Simon Kilmurry, Emmy Award-winning executive director of the International Documentary Association (IDA), will discuss how—and to what degree—filmmakers should consider their audience.

And, of course, there’ll be time for us to gab—and also gripe—about documentary filmmaking. How do you strategically time your submission of a rough cut to a pitch panel or festival? How do you show footage to subjects that present them unfavorably without alienating them as collaborators? With an inclusive group of participants from different corners of the film industry, we’ll pool our knowledge and consider ways to support each other in our ongoing projects (check out the agenda here or download it from this page).

For those following along at #ITVSIndieSummit and on our Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter, too.