10-14-2023 9:58am

INDEED RISING VOICES - OSCAR®-Qualifying short LAST DAYS OF THE LAB

Anita Johnson-Brown Editor

María Alvarez is a Cuban-Dutch filmmaker with international recognition. She earned her BFA in Film and Television Production from the University of Southern California. Her short film, SPLIT ENDS, was a 2021 Horizon Award Finalist and premiered at the NALIP Latino Media Fest. It then went on to screen at the Cannes Court Métrage and NewFilmmakers LA hosted by the Academy. Another of her short films, DID I LOOK CUBAN THEN?, premiered at the 2022 Santa Barbara International Film Festival and was nominated for Best Documentary at NFFTY. Currently, María is part of the 2023 Sundance Institute Latine Collab Scholarship program, where she is developing her feature film script, GUAVA TREE.

Ethan Newmyer, the co-writer, is a Korean-American writer, director, and photographer who graduated from USC's School of Cinematic Arts with a B.A. in Critical Studies. Shortly after graduating, he wrote, directed, and produced a short drama entitled NOVEMBERS & EMBERS IN AMBER. He has been working on his first feature film while also collaborating with his creative partner, María Alvarez, on several other film and television projects.

Their short film has qualified for consideration for a 2024 Academy® Award.

More About Indeed

Indeed's mission is to help people find jobs. While we know that talent is universal, opportunity, especially for people in the film industry, is not. Data shows that BIPOC directors are critically underrepresented. To address this issue, Indeed launched the Rising Voices program, which invests the production budget for a national TV spot in 10 BIPOC directors to create short films.

To ensure the program's success, Indeed partnered with Lena Waithe and Hillman Grad Productions to structure and launch Rising Voices. Mentoring was crucial to creating sustainable career pathways, so Indeed brought on several top filmmakers to mentor the directors. Each director received a $10,000 script payment and $100,000 in funds to create their films. While the directors worked on shooting and editing, Indeed focused on the release strategy by partnering with The Tribeca Festival to debut the entire Rising Voices slate of films.

Following their Tribeca premiere, mentors helped the directors network and make connections in the industry. Rising Voices received coverage in more than 20 major entertainment and mainstream publications, with individual films and directors receiving countless press hits. These efforts set the filmmakers up for long-term success, with multiple filmmakers selling films, signing with agents, and getting hired to direct feature films. Through three seasons, their films created over 1,500 industry jobs, with many going to people of color.

By Anita Johnson-Brown

Watch the trailer courtesy of Maria Alvarez. HERE.