Brietta Hague, Amanda Hood, Rebecca Ingram and Shelly Lauman have been chosen as the recipients of the inaugural Metro Screen Fellowships.
The fellowships are administered by the Australian Directors’ Guild with funds left over following the closure of Metro Screen in 2016, and will run for four years.
Writer-director Lauman’s proposed short film Birdie will receive the $20,000 Production Fellowship. It tells the story of a woman trapped in a psychological power struggle while waiting for her train.
The other three filmmakers share in $15,000 as part of the Open Fellowship. Hague will travel to Cuba in March to attend a two-week workshop with German auteur Werner Herzog, while Hood will be travel to LA to take part in The Hollywood Field Trip, and Ingram will attend the Annual Stowe Storylab in Vermont.
ADG CEO Kingston Anderson said the guild was excited to carry on the work of the former film school, and saw the fellowships as a way of encouraging filmmakers of all backgrounds.
“Each of the successful Open Fellowship recipients will gain an enormous amount from their chosen programs and the Production Fellowship will support a new filmmaker and new film. We wish them luck with their projects and their careers,’’ said Anderson.
Former Metro Screen president Kath Shelper said it was gratifying to be able to support emerging filmmakers, particularly in the current arts climate in Australia.
“The Metro Screen legacy lives on through the career development of these filmmakers. We only wish we had funds to support more applicants from this strong group – a great barometer of the passion and focus of the next generation of screen talent,” she said.
Applications for 2018 Fellowships open for submissions later this year.