ALBUQUERQUE JOURNAL

Santa Fe Film Institute awarded $15K NEA grant

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The Santa Fe Film Institute received a $15,000 Art Works grant from the National Endowment for the Arts on Wednesday.

The money will go to support the Santa Fe Independent Film Festival for its event on Oct. 14-18.

“We are honored that the National Endowment for the Arts has recognized Santa Fe Film Institute and the Santa Fe Independent Film Festival for our contribution to the arts. The Santa Fe Film Institute is extremely grateful for the support of the NEA for our project,” said SFiFF Executive Director Liesette Paisner Bailey. “We are excited that these funds will help us to continue to raise the artistic excellence of film by providing outstanding public programming, artist travel, filmmaker awards, and honoraria for artists in film who define our understanding of life in the 21st century.”

This is the first time Santa Fe Film Institute has received funding from the NEA.

Overall, the NEA has approved 1,187 grants totaling $27.3 million in the first round of fiscal year 2020 funding to support arts projects in every state in the nation, as well as the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico.

The Art Works funding category supports projects that focus on public engagement with, and access to, various forms of excellent art across the nation; the creation of art that meets the highest standards of excellence; learning in the arts at all stages of life; and the integration of the arts into the fabric of community life.

“The arts are at the heart of our communities, connecting people through shared experiences and artistic expression,” said Arts Endowment chairman Mary Anne Carter. “The National Endowment for the Arts is proud to support projects like the Santa Fe Independent Film Festival.”

Jacques Paisner, SFIFF artistic director, said receiving the NEA grant is a boost to its contribution to the arts.

“I am really proud of our team of young professionals that took this on and how it shows that SFIFF is a leader in the arts on a national scale,” Paisner said.

By Adrian Gomez