Image Description: A still from ENTANGLED MINDS: Cast in blue light, a face with closed eyes floats just above the water's surface. | | |
ENTANGLED MINDS (dir. Julie Mallozzi; prods. Mallozzi, Emily Abi-Kheirs). Confronted with the limitations of Western medicine, four people seek relief from physical and mental pain through treatments that induce altered states of consciousness. Grounded in deep meditation, their interconnected experiences with hypnosis, flotation therapy, music-induced trance, and sacred plant medicine bring the viewer on a transformative journey of healing from within. - Premiere, Screening
ADAMS APPLE (dir. Amy Jenkins; prods. Jenkins, Brit Fryer) - Screening
YO (LOVE IS REBELLIOUS BIRD) (dirs. Anna Fitch, Banker White; prods. White, Sara Dosa, Hannah Roodman) - Screening
HOW TO CLEAN A HOUSE IN 10 EASY STEPS (dir. Carolina Gonzalez Valencia; prods. Gonzalez Valencia, Brenda Avila-Hanna) - Screening
UNLESS SOMETHING GOES TERRIBLY WRONG (dirs. Kaitlyn Schwalje, Alex Wolf Lewis; prods. Rebecca Stern, Justin Levy) - Screening
COSMIC CODA (dir. Mary Jane Doherty) - Screening
- (Inter)National whistle-stop tour with upcoming screenings in San Francisco on October 27 and 30, and Los Angeles on November 9
A BODY TO LIVE IN (dir. Angelo Madsen; prods. Madsen, Lyle Ravi Kash) - Streaming
NINE (dirs./prods. Rachael DeCruz, Jeremy S. Levine) - Support
ORGASM INC. (dir. Liz Canner) - Screening
Vanessa Carr and Josh Gleason (UNTITLED WOMEN ON THE ROAD) (2024 LEF/CIFF Fellows) - Screening
Sandra Jaffe (2022 LEF/CIFF Fellow) - Screening
Khary Jones (NIGHT FIGHT) - Support
Tim O'Donnell (LIFE WITHOUT BASKETBALL) - Screening
Karthik Pandian (2024 LEF/CIFF Fellow) - Screening
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Are you a LEF-supported filmmaker with news to share?
We can include it in our next newsletter.
| | | | Images (left to right): Nichole Whitney, Myles David Jewell, Emilia Mello | | |
The 71st Flaherty Film Seminar, Gestures of Refusal, took place from October 8–11 in Marlboro, Vermont. Programmed by Ruth Somalo and Juan Pedro Agurcia, this year’s Flaherty Film Seminar included works that excavate what empire and erasure have buried beneath landscapes, archives, and the surfaces of images themselves. Since 2009, LEF has partnered with the Flaherty to support the participation of New England-based nonfiction filmmakers at the seminar through the LEF New England Flaherty Fellowship each year.
Flaherty Fellowships are a vital part of the Flaherty Film Seminar, providing emerging and mid-career filmmakers, media professionals, and community leaders with an immersive space to deepen their engagement with cinema. The Fellowship program runs concurrently alongside the Flaherty Seminar while offering additional programming - workshops, screenings, discussions, artist lunches, and artist talks - designed to provide more in-depth engagement with the Seminar program.
Read more about the this year's LEF Flaherty fellows below and learn more here.
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Nichole Whitney is a filmmaker based in Portland, Maine. She creates genre-defying work that explores memory, personal archive, and complicated intimacies through a blend of fiction and nonfiction, poetic techniques, and observational filmmaking. Her documentary practice is rooted in personal connection and creative reimaginings of current reality. She believes in documentary as a form of time travel. Her first short film, The Round Forest (2025), premiered at the Camden International Film Festival. Nichole was previously a Collaborative Studio Fellow at UnionDocs and a Documentary Storytelling Fellow at The Nature Conservancy in Maine. She is a graduate of the Salt Institute for Documentary Studies and Vassar College.
Myles David Jewell works as a film and video maker, not specializing in one trade or form. He runs Pennington Productions, which produces non-fiction and hybrid feature, shorts and installations. He believes firmly in the ethics of representation and collaborative approaches to media production, seeing the work as a community building exercise. His practice fluctuates between minimal resource filmmaking and larger more technical productions. He is a nerd for form. He lives and works in Burlington, Vermont, where he will put his bones to rest. He is a Lecturer at The University of Vermont. He has wanted to be a teacher since he was a wee lad.
Emilia Mello is an Brazilian-American director, photographer and producer. Her first feature documentary, SEM DEUS, SEM DEMÔNIO (No Kings), premiered at CPH:Dox 2020 and played at the True/False Film Festival 2021 and MoMA Doc Fortnight 2022 among others. She graduated magna cum laude from Columbia University with a degree in Evolution, Ecology, and Environmental Biology and has an MFA from the School of the Art Institute of Chicago. Her work has received support from the Tribeca Film Institute, Sundance Documentary Film Program, IDFA Bertha Fund, IDA, and Visions du Réel, among others.
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Since the sale of Letterboxd, the social network for film lovers, was announced in late April, Boston-based Elizabeth Joyce's Intrinsic Entertainment Collaborative has been organizing a coalition of filmmakers and impact investors to participate in a collective bid "by and for the community." The intention has grown into a full initiative, Letterboxd4All, with a plan for community investment based on a collective ownership model that challenges the usual private-equity path of platforms that have amassed over 30 million users.
"This is bigger than saving a website," Letterboxd4All announces. "The sale of Letterboxd is a once-in-a-generation opportunity to democratize film distribution, and improve economics for artists and workers in film." One of the strengths of a platform like Letterboxd for independent filmmakers has been the opportunity it offers for films to find audiences and vice versa, as well as new possibilities for direct distribution through its Video Store. The goal is that collective ownership will keep Letterboxd truly independent.
You can learn more, follow along, or get involved on the Letterboxd4All website.
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Upcoming Film Opportunities
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Submit your film to Salem Film Fest
Salem Film Fest is accepting submissions for its 20th edition, taking place March 18–21, 2027. SFF seeks nonfiction features and shorts from bold, independent voices.
Filmmakers can use waiver code LEF27SFF for 50% off entries and an extended deadline through December 18, 2026.
Learn more
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Submit your film to Video Store•Age
Video Store•Age is a grassroots distributor of independent films. Circulating highly curated, hard-to-access titles on patent pending-encrypted USB drives, Video Store•Age is focused on live events and physical media - aiming for humanistic, hand-to-hand distribution that disrupts algorithms in favor of curation, context, and community.
LEF community members can submit short & long form work to their open call here and using promo code: LEFXVSA.
Learn more
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Become an IDA Member
International Documentary Association membership provides you with a roadmap to connect with this community as members gather and convene, share knowledge and information, and advocate for the sustainable future of documentary. IDA membership supports creators and viewers alike and helps filmmakers at all stages of their careers.
To get 50% off your membership, you can use discount code: IDALovesLEF40.
Learn more
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Arts Action Consortium Office Hours
Office Hours are offered on a bi-weekly basis and are an open virtual space led by rotating consortium members. These drop-in sessions provide a platform for peer-to-peer learning, as well as access to individualized support. These hourlong sessions can be used in a variety of ways. Upcoming office hours: October 21, November 4, November 18, December 2, December 16.
Learn more
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Grants For Creative Individuals (Deadline: October 27)
This program aims to equitably advance creative expression throughout the Commonwealth with unrestricted grants to Massachusetts artists, culture bearers, and creative individuals. Grants are $5,000.
Learn more
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Roy W. Dean Fall Grant (Deadline: October 31)
For over 30 years, the Roy W. Dean Grant funds independent films that are unique and make a contribution to society that, without its help, might otherwise never get made. Open to filmmakers from any country, films can be in any phase of production from development to post-production, any length, and with a budget under $500,000.
Learn more
| | Image Description: Who Let the Docs Out Logo | |
Who Let the Docs Out 2026 Autumn Cycle (Deadline: November 16)
Who Let the Docs Out will be making Research ($8,000), Development ($15,000) & Post-Production ($50,000) grants during its Autumn Cycle.
Learn more
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JFI Grants (Deadline: )
The Jewish Film Institute's Grants provide finishing funds to original, independent films and media projects that explore Jewish history, life, culture, and identity with nuance and complexity.
Learn more
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Assets for Artists Professional Development Workshops
Free online and in-person professional development workshops through December are available to artists of all disciplines in Massachusetts, Connecticut, and Rhode Island, Vermont, and Maine.
Learn more
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Image Description (below): Vermont Creative Network Logo | |
Vermont Creative Network 2026 Creative Sector Fall Series
You're invited to join the Vermont Creative Network for a series of free, engaging events for artists and creatives. Whether you're interested in getting involved in your local community, advocating for the creative sector, or staying up-to-date on the latest legal considerations for artists, you'll come away with a sense of community and clear next steps. Sessions include "Learn from the Lawyers: A Legal Webinar for Artists", "Creatives at the Table: Getting Involved in Local and State Government", and "2027 Legislative Preview: Vermont’s Creative Sector Advocacy Priorities". All events are free and open to everyone.
Learn more
| Image Description (below): Future Film Coalition Logo |
Civic Media 2.0
Civic Media 2.0 is a framework for rethinking how communities support independent storytelling and civic life. It recognizes that documentary film, local news and information, public media, arts and cultural organizations, libraries, and other civic institutions increasingly rely on many of the same public policies, funding systems, governance structures, and community relationships.
The regional cohorts—including one for New England—create space to explore practical approaches together while helping each sector thrive within its unique mission and community.
Learn more
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Thanks for reading,
The LEF New England team
Lyda, Gen, & Matthew
LEF Foundation
PO Box 382066
Cambridge, MA 02238
617.492.5333
lef-foundation.org
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A private family foundation dedicated to the support of contemporary arts, LEF was established in 1985 with offices in Massachusetts and California. The Moving Image Fund was launched in 2001 through the LEF office in Cambridge, MA to support independent film and video artists. Since its inception, the Moving Image Fund has awarded over 500 grants to New England-based independent filmmakers with over $5.5 million in funding. The goal of LEF New England is to fund the work of independent documentary film and video artists in the region and to broaden recognition and support for their work locally and nationally. It also supports programs that highlight the rich history and ongoing legacy of innovation within New England's independent film community. The overarching goal of LEF New England's philanthropic investment is to help build a sustainable and strong community of support for artists and their work.
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