We are excited to announce the following recipients as part of the second 2024 cycle of the MFM Marketing Fund:
When We Became Folk Fest by Kevin Nikkel – $750
When We Became Folk Fest is a feature documentary about the founding and explosive growth of the Winnipeg Folk Festival (WFF). This is an archival driven project, using a cache of unseen Super 8 footage shot in 1975 by the founding members of the Winnipeg Film Group (WFG), incredible archival images, and pristine sound recordings from the Folk Festival collection. Voices of interviews with celebrated fest luminaries and live musical performances drive the arc of the narrative as we hear the story of how an underdog music festival grew out of the meadows of Birds Hill Park to become one of the most important folk festivals in North America.
Kevin Nikkel, independent documentary filmmaker, and Dave Barber, late programmer of the Winnipeg Cinematheque, first collaborated on the documentary feature Tales from the Winnipeg Film Group, released in 2017. Their second feature project, When We Became Folk Fest, was started in 2018 and finished for the celebration of the Winnipeg Film Group and Winnipeg Folk Festival’s 50th anniversary celebrations.
Photo Credit: Leif Norman
The Best by Ian Bawa – $750
A South Asian bodybuilder internally pumps himself to hide his true feelings in the wake of a life-changing tragedy.
Ian Bawa is a filmmaker from Winnipeg, Manitoba. He’s best known for his films The Champ, Imitations, and Tapeworm. His short ‘Strong Son’ premiered at 2020 Toronto International Film Festival, 2020 Vancouver International Film Festival, and the 2021 Aspen Shortsfest. His last film, ‘My Son Went Quiet,’ premiered at the 2024 Slamdance Film Festival and 2024 Fantasia Film Festival, and his most recent film, ‘The Best,’ premiered at the 2024 Toronto International Film Festival. Ian was also selected to be part of the 2021 TIFF Filmmakers Lab, 2021 ReelWorld E20 Lab, Netflix’s Diversity of Voices Initiative and recently completed his residency at the Norman Jewison Canadian Film Center – Director’s Lab. Ian is currently in pre-production of his feature, ‘Strong Son’, set to shoot in 2025.
Taking the Piss by Tavis Putnam and Christina Dovolis – $500
Despite their pervading image as a bastion of utter grotesqueness, public bathrooms are a necessary community space. In theory, at least, they are a place for everyone. This film celebrates—in equal measure—the shared horror, refuge (and dare we say ecstasy?) of the public bathroom.
Christina Dovolis is an interdisciplinary video artist and urban designer, often working with cutting-edge technologies to document how our built environments mediate community and identity. Hailing from the Midwest, Christina is inspired by girlhood and gossip, Greek Orthodox mythologies, and urban growth/decay. As an educator, she seeks to make new media programs more accessible to the broader public, particularly for women and marginalized communities. Christina is the recipient of the Joseph-Armand Bombardier Canada Graduate Scholarship and has achieved acclaim for her projects, with successful presentations at Museum of the Moving Image, InterAccess Gallery, Nuit Blanche, and Mighty Niagara Film Fest. She holds an MA in Urban Planning from the National University of Singapore and an MFA in Film Production from York University.
Tavis Putnam is a filmmaker, writer, and performer from Treaty 1 Territory: Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada. Exploring the squirmy middle ground between comedy and tragedy, his projects have screened at the Vancouver International Film Festival, Festival du Nouveau Cinéma in Montreal, and on the Brooklyn-based platform NoBudge. His debut feature A Social was voted “Favourite Film by a Local Filmmaker” by readers of The University of Winnipeg newspaper The Uniter, and played to sold out crowds at the Dave Barber Cinematheque in 2022. He holds a Master’s of Fine Arts in Film Production from Toronto’s York University.
Many submissions were received for this cycle of the award and were juried by a peer assessment committee comprised of MC de Natividad and John Seymour.
THE WINNIPEG FILM GROUP ACKNOWLEDGES MANITOBA FILM & MUSIC FOR GRACIOUSLY SUPPORTING THESE AWARDS.
