Chaos and confusion; that about sums up the current U.S. political environment, right?
“I think that’s the strategy,” Chicken & Egg Films CEO Jenni Wolfson says. “To unmoor us all.”
A longtime MIF member, Chicken & Egg Films is our member spotlight this month. To celebrate their 20th anniversary and their work to support women and gender-expansive documentary filmmakers worldwide, we headed over to their offices to talk to Jenni in person.
Reflecting on the current political environment here in the U.S., Jenni shared how Chicken & Egg Films is adapting its strategies to protect and empower filmmakers whose identities and stories are often at the center of ongoing attacks. Operating as a vital intermediary funder, Chicken & Egg is both raising and regranting funds to support, as Jenni says, the storytellers who “represent the world that we live in.” More than just financial aid though, the organization provides crucial mentorship and industry access, enabling filmmakers to craft powerful narratives that remind us of our shared humanity.
That reminder is why, despite the chaos and confusion, “Chicken & Egg Films, first and foremost, is staying steady.”
Here, Jenni discusses the shifting landscape for both filmmakers and funders, and emphasizes the indispensable role of documentary in amplifying marginalized voices and fostering collective action to safeguard documentary film.
MIF: How is Chicken & Egg navigating this new political environment?
Jenni Wolfson, CEO, Chicken & Egg Films: Chicken & Egg Films first and foremost, is staying steady. We are staying the course and we are continuing with our programs so that we can support our filmmakers who need support from organizations like ours. At the same time, we’re obviously having to adapt and respond to real-time events.
One of the things we’re also having to look at is what measures do we need to put in place to minimize any risks that our staff, that our filmmakers, that our community are facing as a result of the various different executive orders and the onslaught of attacks that we are seeing coming from all sides.
MIF: What has changed for you and your grantees?
Jenni: It was already a really tough moment for filmmakers, right? We’re coming out of seeing organizations kind of shrinking their grantmaking or shuttering. Distribution has been super hard for filmmakers to get their films seen, not just made.
So this is all on top of an already challenging situation. One of the things that really concerns me is that we rely on artists to be able to tell the truth. And to be able to shine a light on all kinds of really sensitive political issues. What we don’t want to see is filmmakers censoring what stories they tell or what communities they center because they’re afraid that they won’t get funding or that their film won’t be seen.
Chicken & Egg Films is looking to continue supporting these hard-hitting films, but also beautiful artistic films that center people who represent the world that we live in. We’ve got to really keep an eye on that because that’s the essence of why documentary filmmakers tell stories.
What concerns me is that many of the filmmakers we support are at the center of the attacks. We support trans filmmakers, we support filmmakers who are immigrants. We support filmmakers from all walks of life. And some of them are under a lot of pressure just to not be afraid.
As an industry, we not only have to be thinking about how we can keep our filmmakers safe and secure, but how we can continue to enable them to tell these critical stories.
MIF: Are you offering support beyond direct funding in response to what’s happening in the U.S.?
Jenni: Chicken & Egg Films is a global organization, which means we are concerned with filmmakers here in the U.S. but also around the world.
In addition to the funding that we give to filmmakers, a key part of the support that we provide is mentorship. It’s the creative and the business support. It is in bringing filmmakers together in community so that they can support one another and share their experiences.
One of the key things—because it’s such a relational driven industry—is access. We have multiple different ways that we are introducing filmmakers to agents and managers and distributors and other funders so that they have as much support as they can garner.
MIF: How would you characterize how funders are responding to this moment?
Jenni: I’m seeing a lot of different things happening with funders right now. I’m definitely seeing some funders stepping up, particularly as a result of government cuts to nonprofits and to media work. For organizations like Chicken & Egg Films, that means in some ways we might receive less as philanthropists step up to support more people.
And I’m seeing—because we’re supported by quite a lot of individuals and family foundations—people hesitant to commit to funding. They want to see how the economy is going to unfold and what that’s going to look like toward the end of the year. So that’s really tricky.
Another thing that I’m seeing is some funders saying we don’t want to take on new grantees right now. We just want to support the grantees that we have because it is so tough for so many of them. Those are good things for the existing grantees and hard if people are trying to garner additional funding for their work.
And of course, many organizations like ours are losing the government funds.
MIF: In your opinion, as an intermediary funder, what should documentary funders be doing differently right now?
Jenni: Right now I’m seeing a lot of documentary and media funders coming together in different coalitions, like the Future Film Coalition—and there is obviously Media Impact Funders!
There are a lot of good conversations happening and initiatives being taken, and I’m also just speaking to my counterparts one-on-one. I think we have work to do to get really coordinated and decide where we put our effort. How can we have the most impact? I do believe that collective action is the way to go because that is most likely to maximize the impact of what we do.
And it also minimizes the risks, quite frankly, of continuing to do this work. My hope is that some of the bigger documentary funders can help bring in new funders to this space. I think so many of the issues that documentary films tackle are issues that philanthropists care about.
How do we educate and engage a new community of donors who see the value of narrative change and filmmaking? And clearly it’s one of the most powerful mediums we have, but how do we bring [the donors] into this field so that we can increase the support? Because the percentage of grantmaking that goes to documentary film is minuscule.
MIF: I’m wondering if you could talk generally about the importance of documentary in amplifying marginalized voices, especially as attacks on civil society grow?
Jenni: Documentary film, what it does so beautifully is it reminds us of our shared humanity and it really touches hearts and minds. It can really galvanize difficult conversations and over time I think it really impacts people and policies and so much more.
Some people might not think that documentary film is as urgent, but I think it is so critical. I think it’s one of the places where who tells the story matters as much as the stories that are being told. And so we have to step up and support marginalized voices, underrepresented filmmakers, because they’re the ones that are going to bring us the really difficult, challenging stories that can help us see things in a new light. And hopefully bring people from across the divide a little bit closer together.
MIF: What are some of the biggest challenges you see facing women and non-binary documentary filmmakers today, and how is Chicken & Egg Films addressing them?
Jenni: On day one of Trump’s presidency, he announced that there were only two sexes, men and women, conflating sex and gender, but immediately impacting the people who we directly serve. It’s staggering the amount of anti-trans legislation that they are trying to pass across the country. It makes no sense, right? Because we shouldn’t be trying to control people’s bodies, people’s identities. We all want to live in freedom and to live with safety and care and community. Chicken & Egg Films will continue to support women and gender expansive filmmakers as much as we can.
I feel inspired when I see the sort of movements that are out there really fighting for gender equity. We also have to think about how we balance showcasing the work of filmmakers at risk with their needs for safety and care. And so we’re going to be driven by our filmmakers when it is appropriate to share things publicly and when the work is more effectively done behind the scenes.
I hate that we’re even having to have those conversations and potentially make decisions like that. But safety and concern for our filmmakers is one of the most important things to us.
MIF: What are some of the conversations you and your team are having right now that really fire you all up?
Jenni: No shortage of fiery questions at Chicken and Egg Films! We have a beautiful team of really committed, passionate, hardworking staff who never stop asking tough questions and challenging each other to go further. One of the things that grounds us in this moment is the films that we have coming out into the world.
Angela Tucker’s film, “The Inquisitor,” is going to have its world premiere at Tribeca Film Festival. Some of the other films that we’ve supported that came out this year that are just so gorgeous: “Seeds,” “Cutting through Rocks,” “The Dating Game.” Just so many beautiful films by such talented filmmakers.
MIF: What about the conversations that are giving you hope?
Jenni: Documentary filmmakers are some of the most resilient people I have ever met. You have to have grit and determination, and you have to be able to imagine a better future to be a filmmaker. It’s a long, lonely, hard journey. The hope is in seeing our filmmakers tell their stories and seeing how these films are having impact. And if I just think of some recent examples: Shuri Ito’s “Black Box Diaries,” which was nominated for an Oscar this year, is a film that is pushing the boundaries in Japan around talking about sexual violence. It’s a film that really empowers survivors of sexual abuse.
MIF: What message or call to action would you want to share with other funders and stakeholders in the documentary film community regarding the importance of sustaining support for diverse voices and critical storytelling in the current political climate?
Jenni: We need more funders to fund documentary film. The amount of funding available for filmmakers is so insignificant, and it’s important to fund storytelling and truth telling, especially in an age of misinformation and conspiracy theories. Film just has this unique ability to reach so many different audiences, global audiences, local audiences, youth audiences, influential audiences. And it does that when it’s best combined with advocacy and activism work by NGOs and international organizations and journalism and funders. And it works best when we apply it in a more collective setting.
I also think that we have got to fund more research and case studies around film. I think one of the hardest things for new funders considering funding film is they wanna know, well, how do you measure the impact of this work? And they’re used to seeing impact measured in maybe a more metrics output driven way by more traditional organizations that can say, ‘We built this many shelters, we put this many kids through school,’ and those are important metrics. But when it comes to documentary film, we can’t; it’s more nuanced. We don’t necessarily measure film the same way because we are trying to measure changing people’s perceptions and we’re trying to measure influencing conversations.
Change is more subtle and yet it happens. And we have some very clear-cut examples we can always point to, but I think if we’re trying to fit the measurement and impact of film into the measurement and impact of other, more frontline service-driven work, then we’re doing ourselves a disservice.
MIF: What are some of your favorite examples of impact, whether from your grantmaking or other kinds of support you offer?
Jenni: One of the programs that we are most proud of because we can see the impact of this program really up close and personal is the Chicken & Egg Award. That is a program that is specifically targeted to mid-career and veteran filmmakers who many people might think, ‘Well, they have it sorted out, right? They’ve made films before. They’ve built their network. They have everything they need.’ Well, actually, it’s hard. It’s a different kind of hard, but it’s just as hard. This is a program that offers unrestricted support, a large grant of $75,000. But just as importantly, it’s a year long program of mentorship and community, where the filmmakers watch each other’s cuts, give each other feedback, and they collaborate with one another.
MIF: Final thoughts? Is there anything more you’d like to share?
Jenni: One of the most common questions that I will get from a funder is, “How are you different from other documentary funding organizations? If I’m already supporting X or Y, why should we support you?”
We are different from other organizations. We do have a very unique approach to our mentorship and our labs and our community building and who we support is very targeted. We compliment other documentary funding organizations and we need this ecosystem. We just got 600 applications for the accelerator lab for first- and second-time filmmakers from around the world. We will fund 10 projects. Maybe we’ll be able to fund some finalists if we have the grantmaking.
But there are so many filmmakers out there who need funding, and even one grant from Chicken & Egg Films does not complete a documentary film. So my hope is that funders can fund more than one or two documentary organizations. And I know it’s hard. We are all dealing with challenges in funding and fundraising.
But I’ve seen in my 11 years a lot of organizations close. I’ve seen a lot of nonprofits reduce their grantmaking. There aren’t that many of us. And I don’t want to see the ones that are out there doing really good, important work, not continue to succeed.
This interview is edited for clarity and length.
