IF/Then American South 2018

In partnership with New Orleans Film Society, five projects focusing on the American South were selected to enter the IF/Then Shorts pitch competition at the New Orleans Film Festival on October 19, 2018.

The winner was selected by a professional jury consisting of:

Bryce Norbitz, Manager of Artist Programs at Tribeca Film Institute
Luisa Dantas, Independent Filmmaker
Amanda Salazar, Programmer at SFFILM
Kareem Tabsch, Filmmaker and Co-Director of O Cinema
Basil Tsiokos, Director of Programming at DOC NYC

The Jury chose BLOOD PEACH, directed by Zuri Obi, as the competition winner to receive $20,000 in project funding and the opportunity to participate in TFI’s IF/Then Shorts Program, which provides year-round mentorship and career development opportunities.

BLOOD PEACH was selected from the following five projects:

BLOOD PEACH
Director: Zuri Obi
Wild peach groves grow full and lush along the Mississippi River. Tantalizing as they may be, they remain untouched for the people of Natchez know the bloody history of the land that feeds these strange fruit.

DIXIE'S LAST STAND
Directors: Emily Harrold, Kelly Creedon, Seth Gadsden
Set in Orangeburg, South Carolina this film follows a battle over a Confederate Flag flying in the center of town in the wake of the 2015 Charleston Massacre. Through the battle, the film challenges audiences to consider if the Flag has a place in Southern culture of the 21st Century. 

DEPENDENT
Director: Ashley Panzera
Producers: Angela Tucker, Lauren Domino
Caught in the crosshairs of the War on Drugs and the pro-life movement are women who become pregnant while struggling with substance abuse. DEPENDENT follows one woman’s journey into recovery while managing life and motherhood.

NATOUR'S GROCERY
Director: Nadine Natour
A first person portrait of a popular grocery store run by an offbeat Arab-American immigrant family in the rural Virginia town where the Civil War ended.

THE SIXTH WALL
Directors: Emily MacKenzie, Noah Collier 
Located in the carpet Capitol of the world, Dalton Georgia, a self fashioned Scottish cowboy wields the influence of American identity as her prepares to move his textile business from one of the last remaining American manufacturers to China. Where does the myth of American identity begin and end and who is entitled to manipulate it for profit?