AAFF INTERN AWARDED MCACA NEW LEADERS GRANT

This month, the Festival received a New Leaders Grant from the Michigan Council for the Arts and Cultural Affairs (MCACA)!

Joan Wind (pictured above), who interned with us through the 55th AAFF season, applied for the funding to continue her research and work with us over the summer. One of Joan’s internship projects as Education Outreach Assistant, which has been prolonged thanks to the grant, focused on distributing the AAFF DVD collections to university libraries and other institutions. This includes identifying institutions that may have an interest as well as researching post-DVD distribution media.

The intent behind the grant has far reaching implications for us here at the Festival, as well as for our filmmakers. With a broader reach regarding access to AAFF films, filmmakers will receive more royalties for their hard work, and the public-- many of whom may not have had the chance to visit the Festival themselves-- will be provided more opportunity to see these films. In his letter congratulating the Festival on this grant, State Representative Adam Zemke praised the Festival, saying, “The [AAFF] is a unique event that provides our entire region with an amazing opportunity...Exposure to such artistic variety is an integral part of developing a well-rounded and open-minded society, and we are so fortunate to have an organization such as [the AAFF] operating in our community.”

Congratulations to Joan on this prestigious award and amazing opportunity!