Congratulations to Sara Khaki whose documentary film FACING THE MIRROR was awarded $5,000 in CAAM Research and Development funding at the READY SET PITCH during opening weekend of CAAMFest.
With help from online YouTube voting, Sara was one of five producers who made it to the final round to pitch in front of a live festival audience and jury at the second annual Ready Set Pitch fundraising panel.
After each pitch, jury members Lee Ann Kim (Executive Director, Pacific Arts Movement), Shaady Salehi (Executive Director, Active Voice), and Jigar Mehta (Director of Operations, Matter) as well as the panel audience discussed the project and offered constructive feedback to the producer. The jury scored the projects on story, pitch presentation and audience engagement strategy.
CAAM wants to applaud ALL of the producers who participated in Ready Set Pitch this year. It takes no small amount of conviction to pitch in front of a live audience, and they all stepped up to the plate. Regardless of genre, each project offered a unique vantage point of the world as well as innovative thinking on how to tell a wider story of human connection and shared experience.
And it’s not over! CAAM will award additional funding to the first Ready Set Pitch project that hits the $10,000 mark. (UPDATE: Congrats to Eat With Me for winning an additional $5000 award for reaching the 10K mark!)
All 5 projects’ crowdsourcing campaigns are LIVE and will continue into April! Visit their crowdsourcing campaigns below and help them get the word out:
EAT WITH ME on Kickstarter
Producer: David Au
Middle-aged housewife Emma flees her decaffeinated marriage to crash on her gay son’s couch. Can their mutual love of dumplings overcome years of unspoken tension?
FACING THE MIRROR on Indiegogo
Producer: Sara Khaki
Proof that one person can make a difference: Dr. Kaveh Alizadeh is an Iranian born American plastic surgeon offering hope and healing to those whose lives have been ravaged by war.
THE REAL MIKADO on Seed&Spark
Producer: Joyce Wu
Moving back in with the folks? Sophie can relate. An out-of-work actress moves back home to the suburbs of Detroit to find a struggling theater in need of saving.
THE SOLAR CHAMPION on Indiegogo
Producer: Gerry Balasta
Help bring light to someone’s life, literally! Millions of children have no access to electricity, but one solar powered light bulb could make all the difference.
VIMANA on Kickstarter
Producer: Faroukh Virani
Get ready for lift off! Set in the not too distant future, two Indian astronauts leave an ailing Earth and set off into deep space in search of a hospitable planet.
See the photos from this weekend’s event!
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