Lynn Shelton "Of a Certain Age" Grant
The Lynn Shelton "Of a Certain Age" Grant was established by Northwest Film Forum alongside Duplass Brothers Productions to honor Seattle filmmaker Lynn Shelton, who passed away tragically on May 16th, 2020. The $25,000 unrestricted cash grant will be awarded each year to a woman or non-binary U.S. filmmaker, age 39 or older, who has yet to direct a narrative feature.
ELIGIBILITY REQUIREMENTS
- Eligibility will be by nomination only.
- Eligible filmmakers must have “director” credit on at least one short film or feature documentary and have a desire to work in the narrative space. Filmmakers with “director” credit on a feature-length (70+ min) narrative film will not be considered.
- Filmmaker should be a woman or non-binary individual and be 39 years or older at the time of nomination.
- Filmmaker must be either a U.S. citizen OR based in the U.S.
- Filmmaker should be at a point in their career where such recognition would be meaningful and provide needed support.
- In a directing team, both directors must meet above criteria.
The grant fund was spearheaded by Duplass Brothers Productions, which includes Mark Duplass, Jay Duplass, and Mel Eslyn, and has since been bolstered by many others, including Washington-based production company COLOR, Eliza Flug, Tracy Rector, Joshua Leonard & Alison Pill, Marc Maron, CB Shamah, Michaela Watkins & Fred Kramer, Jennessa & Robert West, and Chris & Philip Wohlstetter.
We will seek annual nominations from a national Advisory Committee and Award Selection Committee will determine the recipient of the grant, to be awarded once a year beginning in 2020.
ADVISORY COMMITTEE:
Beth Barrett (Seattle International Film Festival), Emily Best (Seed & Spark), Virginia Bogert (WIF/Seattle), Linda Bove (actor), Effie Brown (Gamechanger Films), Kat Candler (filmmaker), Amy Dotson (Northwest Film Center), Claudette Godfrey (SXSW), Miranda July (filmmaker), Mynette Louie (The Population), Leah Meyerhoff (Film Fatales), Lucy Mukerjee (Tribeca Film Festival), Janet Pierson (SXSW Film Festival), Mike Plante (Sundance Film Festival), Rishi Rajani (Hillman Grad), Tracy Rector (filmmaker/activist), and Ligiah Villalobos (writer/producer)
FAQs
Why is this grant nomination-based, rather than open to applicants?
Why is this grant open to both women and non-binary individuals?
Why is this grant only open to those who are 39 years or older?
Why is it called the “Of a Certain Age” grant?
The poet Byron in 1817 wrote, “She was not old, nor young, nor at the years / Which certain people call a certain age / Which yet the most uncertain age appears.” The Oxford English Dictionary defined certain, when used in this context, as “which it is not polite or necessary further to define.” In naming the grant, we hoped to reclaim the phrase and imbue it with a sense of power and positivity. Lynn wore her “late bloomer” status as a badge of honor, and there was an appreciation and an immediacy to the way Lynn approached her film and TV career which she openly credited to the fact that she got a later start than most. She specialized in humane comedy, and this grant name is a nod to both her life and her humor.