NALIP Latino Lens introduces participants to the 2022 Narrative Short Film Incubator

EXCLUSIVE: The second annual NALIP Latino Lens Narrative Short Film Incubator for Women of Color has selected its class of 2022: Holly M. Kaplan, Nicole Otero, Akilah “Ak” Walker, Diana Gonzalez-Morett, Jhanvi Motla and Frida Perez.

As part of this program, the filmmakers received a $25,000 grant to produce a new short film. Throughout the process, they were supported by executives from NALIP and Netflix, who provided creative feedback during development and guidance during post-production. The films will be screened at NALIP’s Diverse Women in Media Forum on March 30, 2023 in Los Angeles during a special screening.

“We are grateful for Netflix and the mentoring support of individuals who hold strong positions in the industry and continue to let filmmakers have their say,” Diana Luna, executive director of NALIP, said in a statement. “Writers, Ligiah Villalobos and Stephanie Adams-Santos; Director, Carlos Lopez Estrada: Casting Director, Carla Hool; and fundraising expert Gerardo Maravilla were the dream team that provided input for the projects. We hope that these mentor-mentee relationships will continue to grow.”

NALIP is a non-profit organization serving the professional needs of Latinx content creators and industry professionals. For more than two decades, it has focused on fighting the country’s most underrepresented and largest ethnic minority.

Read more about the winners and their projects below.

sunflower girl by Holly M Kaplan

Registration: When a 13-year-old Chinese-American girl gets a chance to skateboard with her crush, it comes at the cost of neglecting her family responsibilities.

Kaplan is a second-generation Chinese-American filmmaker born and raised in New York. She received her bachelor’s degree in Film and Media Arts from American University and received the Ron Sutton Award for Visual Literacy. During her studies abroad, she made her first short film, The lesson (Lekce), on 16mm, which led to her apprenticing with the late Ben Barenholtz for his feature film, A line.

Kaplan currently works as a DA on HBO Max Pretty Little Liars: Original Sin directed by Lisa Soper and Alex Pillai. Inspired and driven by a connection to her Cantonese heritage, Holly invests in publishing stories about the Asian diaspora and its diversity.

wait for the night by Nicole Otero

Logline: Two siblings return to their late father’s house for the last time, only to stumble upon an already unfamiliar environment at the place that houses their past. wait for the night is a triptych of loss in the American Southwest.

Otero began as a self-taught filmmaker, learning through extensive work on set and in post. In 2020, Otero’s directorial debut, underpantswas acquired and distributed by Kino Lorber/Dedza as part of a collection highlighting emerging directors. underpants currently streaming on Criterion Channel. She also edited the narrative contribution African despair.

Born into a mixed Mexican-American family, her work explores memory, loss and identity. With a focus on the sonic possibilities of film, she is interested in tangible, embodied film.

Pedacito de Carne by Akilah ‘Ak’ Walker and Diana Gonzalez-Moret

Logline: Sandra finds herself in a new role as a caregiver for her mother with frontotemporal dementia. Burned out from the nonsense that is community service, the relentless accumulation of care demands and the grief of slowly losing parts of her mother, Sandra risks everything and takes a night off.

Creative staff since 2015, acting, inventing theatre, writing and most recently producing our short film, Ivar Tunnel: Shake, written and directed by Walker and produced by Gonzalez-Moret. For the film, they raised $25,000 (in two weeks), secured financial sponsorship from Film Independent, assembled a 90 percent BIPOC cast and crew, and filmed during Covid. The film won several awards, including Best American Short at the San Francisco Indie Short Film Festival and Best First Time Director (Female) at the Independent Short Awards.

In 2020, the couple co-founded Good Mother Films.

Mirage by Jhanvi Motla

Logline: Recently widowed Nitya Mehra leaves Mumbai to work at her distant cousin’s motel in the California desert. But within days of her arrival, she discovers that the motel’s survival depends on dark forces outside, and her willingness to risk this second chance at life is put to the test.

Motla is an LA-based filmmaker born and raised in Mumbai, India. She has written, directed and produced short films that premiered at various film festivals. Additionally, Motla has produced music videos for Mateo Arias, Jaden Smith, Theo Crocker and India Shawn.

In the fall of 2021, she will produce her first feature film All the colors of darkness in association with Beacon Pictures, starring Miranda Otto, Noah Wyle, Vanessa Benavente and Ezekiel Pacheco.

Detoxified by Frida Perez

Logline: A 20-year-old girl vows to fast for a day.

Perez is a Dominican-American filmmaker based in LA who began her career as an assistant at UTA’s independent film department. She then moved to Seth Rogen’s production company, Point Gray Pictures, where she worked under senior staff.

In 2019, she became a Sundance Ignite Fellow for her short film white noise. Your screenplay for feature films only childrenwas a finalist for the SFFILM Westridge Grant 2020. Her second short film bottle bomb premiered at the Chicago Latino Film Festival and is currently showing at festivals.

Perez EP is the podcast Stories with Seth Rogen featured on several year-end “best of” lists. Frida was nominated for Best Screenplay at the Ambie Awards for her work.