
PARK CITY, Utah - The Merata Mita Fellowship, a new annual fellowship named in honor of the late M ori filmmaker Merata Mita (1942-2010), was announced today at the 2016 Sundance Film Festival, which is taking place through January 31 in Utah. The first recipient is Ciara Leina'ala Lacy (Kanaka Maoli) from O'ahu, Hawai'i. In addition to networking opportunities at the Sundance Film Festival, Lacy will receive a monetary grant, yearlong continuum of support, access to strategic and creative services offered by Sundance Institute's artists programs and mentorship opportunities.
Merata Mita (Ngai te Rangi/Ngati Pikiao) was New Zealands first Indigenous female filmmaker. She served as an advisor and artistic director of the Sundance Institute NativeLab from 2000 to 2009, where she championed emerging Indigenous talent. The 2016 Merata Mita Fellowship is supported by several international partners, including: the Embassy of Australia; New Zealand filmmaker Taika Waititi (Te Whanau a Apanui); Indigenous Media Initiatives; and Pacific Islanders in Communications.
As a noted activist, documentarian, and the first-and only-M ori woman to write and direct a dramatic feature film, Merata committed her life's work to telling M ori stories from a M ori perspective, Sundance Institute Native American and Indigenous Film Program Director Bird Runningwater (Cheyenne/Mescalero Apache) said. Throughout her career she identified the lack of training for M ori people in the New Zealand film and television industry and, therefore, an underrepresentation of her community's stories. Merata dedicated her life to addressing these areas. She was a global advocate for Indigenous voices and we are proud to continue her efforts through this new fellowship.
Lacy is a documentary filmmaker whose interest lies in crafting films that use strong characters and investigative journalism to challenge the creative and political status quo. She has received fellowships from the Sundance Institutes NativeLab as well as the Sundance Institute in partnership with Time Warner, the Firelight Documentary Lab, the Princess Grace Foundation, and the Independent Filmmaker Project (IFP). Her latest project is Out of State which is the story of outcasts, native Hawaiian prisoners shipped 3,000 miles across the ocean to a private prison in the desert of Arizona. Desperate to repair relationships with faraway family and friends, these men practice their indigenous chants and dances behind bars in the hopes of winning everything they love most.
Lacy has worked as a producer, writer, production supervisor, and production manager of both nonfiction and scripted programming. Her work has shown in theaters as well as aired on PBS, ABC, TLC, Discovery, Bravo and A&E. She holds a bachelor of arts degree in psychology from Yale University and is a graduate of the Kamehameha Schools in Hawai'i. Lacy grew up dancing hula and speaks her Native language.
The Merata Mita Fellowship will be open to Native or Indigenous filmmakers around the world who are in any stage of career or production, with an emphasis on those who have a feature-length project-documentary or dramatic-in development. Fellows will receive a monetary grant and a yearlong continuum of support with activities including a trip to the Sundance Film Festival, access to strategic and creative services offered by Sundance Institute artist programs, and mentorship opportunities.
Sundance Institute Native American and Indigenous Film Program
Sundance Institute's Native American and Indigenous Film Program is one of the few programs to provide resources to the Native American and Indigenous population, and the only one in the United States that provides Native directors, screenwriters and producers with creative, strategic and financial support for their first films and throughout their careers. Formally established in 1994, the Program conducts outreach and education to identify a new generation of Native voices and inspire self-determination among Native filmmakers and communities. The Program and its activities engage 1,270 artists and audience members annually, including direct support for 25 artists in the form of Fellowships and grants, and outreach programs for 1,245 members of Native communities across the U.S. The Program's Indigenous Film Circle currently includes more than 300 Native artists and provides leadership for individual artists and organizations.
Sundance Institute
Founded in 1981 by Robert Redford, Sundance Institute is a nonprofit organization that provides and preserves the space for artists in film, theatre, and new media to create and thrive. The Institutes signature Labs, granting, and mentorship programs, dedicated to developing new work, take place throughout the year in the U.S. and internationally. The Sundance Film Festival and other public programs connect audiences to artists in igniting new ideas, discovering original voices, and building a community dedicated to independent storytelling. Sundance Institute has supported such projects as Beasts of the Southern Wild, Fruitvale Station, Sin Nombre, The Invisible War, The Square, Dirty Wars, Spring Awakening, A Gentleman's Guide to Love and Murder and Fun Home. Join Sundance Institute on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and YouTube.
# # #
Editor's note: For images, visit sundance.org/images or image.net (registration free but required).
Download a PDF version of this news release.
Lead photo:
--
Most recent headlines
05/01/2027
Worlds first 802.15.4ab-UWB chip verified by Calterah and Rohde & Schwarz to be ...
01/06/2026
January 6 2026, 05:30 (PST) Dolby Sets the New Standard for Premium Entertainment at CES 2026
Throughout the week, Dolby brings to life the latest innovatio...
02/05/2026
Dalet, a leading technology and service provider for media-rich organizations, t...
01/05/2026
January 5 2026, 18:30 (PST) NBCUniversal's Peacock to Be First Streamer to ...
01/04/2026
January 4 2026, 18:00 (PST) DOLBY AND DOUYIN EMPOWER THE NEXT GENERATON OF CREATORS WITH DOLBY VISION
Douyin Users Can Now Create And Share Videos With Stun...
26/03/2026
Wayne, N.J., March 26, 2026 Phantom High-Speed announces the latest product li...
25/03/2026
Live match directors Sarah Cheadle (Sky Sports), Rob Levi (TNT Sports), and Andrew Swift (BBC Sport) sit down with the Premier League's Rachel Nightingale t...
25/03/2026
The senior from Upstate New York is manning the mic while also interning for the athletic department's sports-information team
In the live-sports-video ind...
25/03/2026
Synamedia has announced ContentArmor Edge Watermarking, a server-side solution t...
25/03/2026
SES has announced meoSphere, a medium Earth orbit (MEO) satellite network targeted for operation by 2030. The first phase will pair SES-developed software-defin...
25/03/2026
TVU Networks is working with Reuters on a phased migration from satellite to a c...
25/03/2026
Nielsen has announced three senior appointments. Seth Ladetsky has been named Head of Global Sports. Trevor Fellows will lead Nielsen's advertiser and agenc...
25/03/2026
Anoki and Amagi have launched In-Scene Ads powered by Anoki ContextIQ across Amagi's portfolio of in-content ad formats for Free Ad-supported Streaming TV (...
25/03/2026
Arkona Technologies will announce a series of enhancements to its BLADE//runner platform at NAB 2026 (Booth C.1808). The updates focus on usability and workflow...
25/03/2026
Daktronics has installed two tower displays and a video wall in the Lexus Club at Petco Park in San Diego ahead of the 2026 season.
Continuing to improve the ...
25/03/2026
MultiDyne Video & Fiber Optic Systems is celebrating its 50th anniversary as NAB Show 2026 approaches. The company was founded in 1976 by Vincent Jachetta, an N...
25/03/2026
IPC, a provider of integrated communication solutions, will make its NAB 2026 de...
25/03/2026
Live production categories were led by NBC, FOX, and ESPN's NFL coverage...
25/03/2026
The Atlanta Braves and Spectrum have announced a multiyear distribution agreemen...
25/03/2026
(L-R) Charlie Tyrell and Daniel Roher attend The AI Doc: Or How I Became An Apocaloptimist Premiere during the 2026 Sundance Film Festival at The Ray Theatre ...
25/03/2026
Directed By, Spotify's documentary-style series that pulls back the curtain ...
25/03/2026
BTS is so back., This week, the global pop superstars took the stage at New York City's Pier 17 for their first U.S. performance in four years.
Part of Spo...
25/03/2026
How you listen can shape what you hear. That's the idea behind the new Spotify Listening Lounge, an acoustic space at our London headquarters purpose-built ...
25/03/2026
Tape effects taken to the extreme
The latest release from New York-based developer Iconic Instruments is said to accurately recreate the saturation and comp...
25/03/2026
Launched alongside new Vocal Phrases bundle
Sonuscore's latest release has been designed specifically for composers working on fantasy TV, film and game...
25/03/2026
Latest update now live
The latest version of Steinberg's post-production-focused DAW has just arrived, and comes packed with new dialogue editing, sound...
25/03/2026
Rohde & Schwarz joins FormFactor's MeasureOne partner program FormFactor and Rohde & Schwarz advance their partnership for on-wafer RF component character...
25/03/2026
L3Harris Technologies and RFTEQ Pty Ltd signed a memorandum of understanding to ...
25/03/2026
L3Harris delivers combat-ready Torpedo Tube Launch and Recovery system, which deploys and retrieves Iver4 900 autonomous underwater vehicles through submarine t...
25/03/2026
The company expands leadership team under Chief Revenue Officer Amilcar Perez
S...
25/03/2026
Winter Olympic Games Opening Ceremony features in top 10 programmes of the month...
25/03/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
25/03/2026
Providing wide view timing visibility across the entire production chain...
25/03/2026
Continuing development drives advances in security, availability, access and connectivity...
25/03/2026
Caudalie, the renowned French cosmetics brand, has unveiled a state-of-the-art 200-seat auditorium at its new headquarters in the historic Marais district of ce...
25/03/2026
Telestream, a global leader in media workflow technologies, today announced expanded integration with Adobe Premiere, Adobe Media Encoder (AME), and Frame.io, d...
25/03/2026
Marshall Electronics is expanding its lineup of high-performance POV cameras designed for broadcast, live production and professional AV applications with the d...
25/03/2026
OOONA, a global provider of professional management and production tools for the media localization industry, announced today that it has been awarded the TPN G...
25/03/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
25/03/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
25/03/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
25/03/2026
SipRadius, specialists in secure, low-latency media transport, will drive innovation and interoperability still further with the launch of the SipMX Alliance at...
25/03/2026
QuickLink, a leading provider of award-winning video production and remote contribution solutions, will showcase its award-winning StudioPro ecosystem at The 2...
25/03/2026
Alfalite, the only European manufacturer of LED screens, will once again be present at NAB Show, the leading global event for the broadcast, media and entertain...
25/03/2026
PC, a leading provider of integrated communication solutions, will make its NAB 2026 Show debut in Booth C 3341. The company will highlight the newly branded On...
25/03/2026
Open video transport network simplifies satellite transition with new partnerships and global reach as spectrum auction nears
LTN will demonstrate how its purp...
25/03/2026
Test & measurement innovator, Leader Electronics, will present the full range of Leader, PHABRIX and LeaderPhabrix T&M solutions at the NAB Show, which takes pl...
25/03/2026
MNC Software, a global leader in network management and operational support systems tailored to the broadcast and media industry, today announced the appointmen...
25/03/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
25/03/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...