Top 5 Women-Directed Docs of the Untold Story Competition

written by Gab Bottoni

As independent filmmakers, creating our films and telling our stories has always been a beautiful, expensive challenge. But as women directors in a gender-imbalanced industry, those challenges only get tougher. Which is why actively supporting #WomenInFilm along with the mission to #SupportIndieFilm is so vital.

Seed&Spark in collaboration with Project Greenlight Digital Studios recently launched their #UntoldStory crowdfunding rally — a competition where indie documentarians get to compete for finishing funds on a platform exclusively designed for film. It’s no surprise that an impressive total of 15 in-progress documentaries accepted into the competition are directed by women, and cover a wide array of subject matter in compelling ways. So in the spirit of supporting #WomenInFilm…

Below are my Top 5 favorite Untold Story campaigns directed by women for everyone.

The #UntoldStory Competition runs until July 1st, 2016 and will be over in a blink. So click on a film you’re interested in and “Follow” that film.  Each “Follow” counts as a vote.  Each film gets a 30 day run to find at least 500 “Follows” and a minimum of $10,000.  The top ten films with the most votes will have a chance to compete for matching funds of up to $20,000.

#1. Devoti Tutti by Bernadette Wegenstein:

“Since 251 A.D., the citizens of Catania, Sicily, have commemorated the martyrdom of Saint Agatha. Devoti Tutti uses these citizens—a 13-year-old street girl, a weathered fisherman—to retell the story of Agatha’s breast martyrdom from a feminist perspective, giving her a voice she has never had.”

Follow the Devoti Tutti campaign here: https://www.seedandspark.com/studio/devoti-tutti

#2. The WO-Doc by CB Smith-Dahl:

“There are stories that you won’t find online. Stories of American endurance and democracy that should be shared. This is one of those stories: how one street in urban California was developed and (re)developed over the course of 75 years. Who decided what would happen to the neighborhood – and why.”

Follow The WO-Doc campagin here: https://www.seedandspark.com/studio/the-wo-doc

#3. Building the American Dream by Chelsea Hernandez: 

“In a state with little regulation and a booming economy, undocumented immigrants make up half of the million construction workers in Texas. They face exploitations on the job and lack proper safety training. When a new building fills in the skyline, we must ask ourselves, at what cost?”

Follow the Building the American Dream campaign here:  https://www.seedandspark.com/studio/building-the-american-dream

#4. SleepyTownCorporateAmerica by Alyssa Meadows:

“This can happen anywhere, anytime if we don’t do something to stop it. This is my hometown; I didn’t go out and search for this story, it’s presently happening to myself and my community, and if you happen to live in a rural area, it could happen to you too. Our water is our most valuable resource.”

Follow the SleepyTownCorporateAmerica campaign here: https://www.seedandspark.com/studio/sleepytowncorporateamerica

#5. The Great Flip-Off by Dafna Yachin

Shamelessly, I couldn’t leave a film off the list that’s the nearest and dearest to my heart. The Great Flip-Off is a cultural preservation film that follows some of the most daring circus bareback riding families over a ten year span.

The Great Flip-Off is the only feature-length documentary that follows the extreme bareback riding families in their final feat. Join them in the ring to bring the history, risk and beauty of the horse-and-rider relationship to a worldwide, multi-generational audience one last time and return 10 years later to find out how these families have dealt with the passing of time in a range of unusual happy endings and ultimate heartbreak.

Watch our pitch video below, follow our campaign here (www.seedandspark.com/studio/the-great-flip-off), and always remember to continue  supporting #WomenInFilm.

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