Make A Film Foundation

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Make A Film Foundation is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization founded in 2006 by writer, director, producer and actor Tamika Lamison. Make A Film Foundation grants film wishes to children who have serious or life-threatening medical conditions helping them to create short film legacies by teaming them with noted actors, writers and directors. Between its two programs, The Short Narrative Program and the VIDZ 4 KIDZ Short Documentary Program, Make A Film Foundation has created over 100 short films. These films have screened at various film festivals and won many awards. [1] [2] [3]

Contents

History

Make a Film Foundation grants film wishes to children all over the US, and was started in the fall of 2005, after the founder, Tamika Lamison was given a bogus six-figure check for her script, "The Jar by the Door." This devastation let the founder to pursue her lifelong passion of teaching, mentoring, and film making. [4]

Funding/Financial Stewardship

Make a Film Foundation is run by 90% donations that go directly to programming. Revenue breakdown between 2006-2013 were as follows,75% contributions, 20% special events, and 5% other according to IRS 990 annual reports.

Programs

Short Narrative Program

A child who suffers from a serious or life-threatening medical condition has the opportunity, with the help of industry mentors, to write and star in their own short film. They star in the film with well-known actors and a noted director directs the piece.

These films are professional Hollywood short films and generally play in festivals all over the US and internationally and has won numerous awards.

Short films include:

The Magic Bracelet

Written by Rina Goldberg, whose dream was to see her script turned into a short film, and who died due to Mitochondrial disease in December 2010. Her final words to her mother were, "Promise you'll take care of my film." Her script was then adapted into a short film by Academy Award-winning writer Diablo Cody ( Juno ). Jon Poll (Dir. Charlie Bartlett/Co-Prod. Meet the Fockers ) directed. The film stars: Bailee Madison (Parental Guidance/ Just Go with It ); Hailee Steinfeld (Academy Award-nominated True Grit); Jackson Rathbone (Twilight film franchise); JK Simmons (Juno/Spider-Man); James Van Der Beek ( Don't Trust the B---- in Apartment 23 / Dawson's Creek ). The film's red carpet premiere was in Los Angeles in May 2013 and Philadelphia in June 2013. It is currently being requested by festivals all over the US. [5] [6]

Deep Blue Breath

Written by Clay Beabout, an 11-year-old boy with Vater's Syndrome who has survived over 40 surgeries. Beabout starred in the film with Sean Astin ( Lord of the Rings ), Miguel Sandoval ( Medium ), Natasha Gregson Wagner ( High Fidelity ) and Ernie Hudson ( Ghostbusters ). It was directed by Patricia Cardoso ( Real Women Have Curves ). The film is half animation and half live-action and is about a boy who travels deep inside his body to an animated dream world where he engages in battle against the evil Lord Vater- a monstrous manifestation of his disease. Meanwhile, in the waking world, a medical team tries to save his life. Deep Blue Breath has played in more than 40 film festivals and won numerous awards.

Put It in a Book

The first narrative short film created by Make a Film Foundation. Eighteen-year-old Jabril Muhammad, who has Sickle Cell Anemia, wrote and starred in this film with Kerry Washington ( Django Unchained ) and Michael Ealy ( Think Like a Man ). It was directed by Rodrigo Garcia ( Albert Nobbs ). In this film, two brothers try to survive the mean streets of LA; when one is killed by gang violence, the other has to choose a path of righteousness or revenge. Put It in a Book has played in over 20 film festivals, also winning numerous awards.

The quality and authenticity of each film causes the budget per film to range anywhere from $50-100k. All cast and crew participates on a volunteer basis with shooting taking place over the course of a weekend. The film is then edited, and screened at a red-carpet event in Hollywood in a major theatre, as well as premiering in a theatre in the hometown of the participating child.

VIDZ 4 KIDZ Short Documentary Program

This program teams children who have serious or life-threatening medical conditions with hand-held video cameras and film mentors who help them to create/shoot short mini-movies in 2–3 hours. The shorts are a hybrid of documentary and narrative consisting of interviews from the children, doctors, parents, etc. The films are edited and screened at a red-carpet event for the children. Directors who have participated in this program include: Marc Forster (World War Z, Finding Neverland), Bennett Miller (Money Ball) and Rodrigo Garcia (Albert Nobbs).

See also

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References

  1. ↑ "Wish Granter Tamika Lamison on the Make A Film Foundation". filmmakermagazine.com. Retrieved 26 August 2014.
  2. ↑ "Sarah Silverman, Tom Papa Headline Make A Film Foundation Benefit". thewrap.com . Retrieved 26 August 2014.
  3. ↑ "Make a Film Foundation and Hollywood celebrities help sick teen Clay Beabout realize his filmmaking dream". news.yahoo.com . Retrieved 26 August 2014.
  4. ↑ "Introducing Make A Film Foundation - Black Filmmakers Give Back". indiewire.com . Retrieved 26 August 2014.
  5. ↑ "The Magic Bracelet – A Mito Movie". mitochondrialdiseases.org. Retrieved 26 August 2014.
  6. ↑ "The Magic Bracelet". umdf.org. Archived from the original on 5 March 2016. Retrieved 26 August 2014.
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