Third Annual Native American Writer Accelerator Grant Announces Recipients

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Third Annual Native American Writer Accelerator Grant Announces Recipients

Social Impact

11 October 2023

United States

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The Native American Media Alliance announced the recipients of the third Annual Native American Writers Accelerator Grant. With support from Netflix, the organization launched the Native American Writer Accelerator Grant for fellows from their highly successful TV writers lab.

This grant gives Native American writers the ability to develop their careers as the industry enters another challenging era. declared Ian Skorodin, Director of Strategy for the Native American Media Alliance. Previous grantees have found great success in staffing, producing independent work and finding their artistic voice.

Created to give new opportunities to Native American writers, the Native American Writer Accelerator Grant provides $10,000 grants and professional support to help recipients develop their craft and bolster their writing careers. In its third year, the accelerator will award 12 Native American writers from the 8th Annual Native American TV Writers Lab.

The accelerator is designed to encourage Native American writers to expand on their current opportunities. The collaboration with Netflix on the Native American Writer Accelerator Grant is part of Netflix's Fund for Creative Equity.

Recipients of the Native American Writer Accelerator Grant:

Kendall David (Choctaw) Kendall Davis is a writer and comedian based in NYC and is proud to be an enrolled member of the Choctaw Nation of Oklahoma. An aspiring TV writer, Kendall currently writes and performs stand-up, sketch, and character comedy around the city. She has performed stand-up at Gotham Comedy Club, Broadway Comedy Club, and Greenwich Village Comedy Club and has co-produced variety shows at Stand Up NY and Club Cumming. She has written and performed original character pieces on Just For Laughs' Characters Welcome online show and previously wrote, performed, and directed sketch comedy with a team at the Player's Theatre. Additionally, Kendall's comedy writing has been published on online satire sites. A natural storyteller, Kendall is excited to hone her TV writing skills in the NAMA TV Writers Lab.

Gina East (Pueblo) Gina East (Isleta Pueblo) is a writer and filmmaker living in Los Angeles. Her screenplay, What the Crows Saw, placed in multiple screenwriting competitions. Notably, it won the Grand Prize at the Creative World Awards and was a Quarterfinalist in Final Draft's Big Break - Diversity Feature. In addition, she was a Fellow at NAMA's 2nd annual Native American Writers Seminar. Her most recent writing and directing project was the short film, In The Witching House, which premiered at the Los Angeles Women's International Film Festival. Her theater background and dance skills informed her artistry while directing the original Rock Opera, Orpheus: A Season in Hell. Raised by nomadic parents, she grew up living in a converted school bus that traveled along the coasts of Canada, the US, and Mexico. She enjoys weaving her eccentric childhood into much of her work. Her storytelling often focuses on broad themes distilled down to a single character's experience. She's the mother of two teenage daughters who are getting ready to leave the nest.

James William Evans (Cherokee) James William Evans grew up in a mess of rat-infested motels, haunted mobile homes, and cramped apartments scattered around Oklahoma. This and stories from his grandmother, who was one of the first women to serve on the Cherokee tribal council, created an affinity for writing characters who consider themselves outsiders. His short film Life Lines has been screened at several festivals, including The Beverly Hills Shorts Festival (Winner Best Dramedy), The Method Fest (Nomination Best Short) and The Big Easy Film Festival (Winner Best Short Drama). Jamess stage credits include writing and directing the rock opera Were All Dead ( Succinct and sublime -The New York Times) and Approaching America ( Intelligent...Sharp...A stellar production -Time Out New York). He has an MFA in Playwriting from Columbia University and a BA from the College of Santa Fe. He lives in Los Angeles with his wife and two young daughters. His band, Dirty Lenin, still books a gig every now and then.

Meera Divecha Forespring (Cowlitz) Meera Divecha Forespring is a creative based in Olympia, Washington. They are mixed of Indigenous American (Cowlitz), Indian (Gujarati), and Irish descent, and identify as two-spirit. In the past, they have worked behind the scenes in some short films such as Little Zombies Bored to Death. They have also worked with the organization Colorization Collective to create a gallery piece dedicated to MMIWG2S in 2020. Currently, they are assisting in the visual effects for an indie web series Morning Star yet to be released, and are studying for their bachelor's at Evergreen State College where they focus on film production and Native American Studies. An avid writer, actor, and seamstress, Meera is dedicated to increasing the authentic representation of their cultures, both indigenous and south asian, that they and others lacked in childhood.

Michelle Hernandez (Wiyot) Michelle Hernandez (Wiyot/Latina) is a filmmaker who grew up on the Table Bluff Reservation, where she found her love for filmmaking. She has a Masters in Film and Electronic Media at American University. and a B.A. at Humboldt State in both Film and Native American Studies.

Michelle has participated as a fellow for the 2nd Annual Native American Writers Seminar as well as the 3rd Annual Native American Animation Lab. She launched her career with her thesis film Douk, about an Native family dealing with the repercussions of the Native Boarding School experience, which she won the Horizon Award at t

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