Sydney Freeland
Sydney Freeland | |
|---|---|
| Born | October 20, 1980 Gallup, New Mexico, United States |
| Education | Academy of Art University, San Francisco |
| Occupation(s) | Director Screenwriter |
| Known for | Drunktown's Finest |
Sydney Freeland (born 1980) is a Navajo filmmaker. She wrote and directed the short film Hoverboard (2012) and Drunktown's Finest (2014), which garnered numerous acclaims after premiering at Sundance.[1]
Early life
Freeland was born in Gallup, New Mexico, USA in 1980, to Navajo father and a Scottish mother. She was raised on a Navjo reservation, and her hometown, Gallup, was dubbed “Drunktown.” Freenland attended Academy of Art University in San Francisco.[2] She is a 2004 Fulbright scholar, focusing her scholarship on a field study of indigenous peoples in Ecuador. She has a Master of Fine Arts in film, and a Bachelor of Fine Arts in computer animation. Freeland is a 2007 Disney Scholarship recipient and a 2008 Disney Fellowship semifinalist. Freeland is also a 2009 Sundance Institute Native Lab fellow.[2][3]
Career
Prior to making her first feature length film, Drunktown's Finest, Freeland previously worked as a production assistant, as a writer and as a camera intern.[4] Freeland worked in a number of areas, including; The Food Network, Walt Disney, Comedy Central, and National Geographic.[5] Freehand directed a six-minute short, Hoverboard, utilizing Kickstarter to help fund the short.[6] The film was inspired by Back to the Future Part II. Drunktown's Finest is her second venture into filmmaking. The 95 minute long film[7] is a coming-of-age story about the complex issues surrounding identity and the struggles faced by Native American people.[7][8] The film's name is inspired by a controversial 20/20 segment on ABC News, which branded the town of Gallup, New Mexico as "Drunk Town, USA", after the increase of instances of alcoholism on the border of the Navajo Nation.[9] Freeland wrote, directed Drunktown's Finest as means to combat the negative stereotype of her home community.[7] Freeland, who is herself a transgender woman, is also directing a digital series about queer and trans women called Her Story. [10]
Filmography
- 2008: The Migration(Short) - director[11]
- 2012: Hoverboard(Short) - producer, writer, director
- 2014: Drunktown's Finest - screenwriter, director
Awards and nominations
| Award | Year | Project | Category | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ashland Independent Film Festivals | 2014 | Drunktown's Finest | Narrative Feature - Honorable Mention[12] | Won |
| Heartland Film Festivals | 2014 | Drunktown's Finest | Narrative Feature[13] | Won |
| L.A. Outfest | 2014 | Drunktown's Finest | Outstanding American Narrative Feature[14] | Won |
| HBO Outstanding First Narrative Feature[14] | Won | |||
| Albuquerque Film & Media Experience | 2014 | Drunktown's Finest | Best of New Mexico[15] | Won |
| American Indian Film Festival | 2014 | Drunktown's Finest | Best Film[16] | Won |
| Best Supporting Actress[16] | Won | |||
| Best Actor[17] | Nominated | |||
| Best Director[17] | Nominated | |||
| Best Actress[17] | Nominated | |||
| Best Actor[17] | Nominated |
References
- ^ Sciortino, Karley (19 February 2015). "Why You Should See Drunktown's Finest This Weekend". Vogue. Vogue. Retrieved 8 April 2015.
- ^ a b "Academy Alum Sydney Freeland Scores Sundance Film Honors". Academy of Art University. Academy of Art University. Retrieved 5 April 2015.
{{cite web}}:|first1=missing|last1=(help) - ^ Silverstein, Melissa. "Sundance Women Directors: Meet Sydney Freeland". Women and Hollywood. Indiewire. Retrieved 5 April 2015.
- ^ name ="gatewood">Gatewood, Tara. "Shifting Views with Drunktown's Finest". Native Peoples. Native Peoples Magazine. Retrieved 5 April 2015.
- ^ "Hoverboard". PBS Online Film Festival. PBS. Retrieved 5 April 2015.
{{cite web}}:|first1=missing|last1=(help) - ^ Freeland, Sydney. "Hoverboard". Kickstarter. Kickstarter. Retrieved 5 April 2015.
- ^ a b c "Shifting Views with Drunktown's Finest". nativepeoples.com.
- ^ "Director Sydney Freeland Discusses Drunktownâs Finest - Filmmaker Magazine". Filmmaker Magazine.
{{cite web}}: C1 control character in|title=at position 46 (help) - ^ Brodeur, Paul. "Combating Alcohol Abuse in Northwestern New Mexico: Gallup's Fighting Back and Healthy Nations Programs". Robert Wood Johnson Foundation.
- ^ Jusino, Teresa. "Interview: Her Story Director Sydney Freeland on Trans People Telling Trans Stories". The Mary Sue. Retrieved 6 December 2015.
- ^ "Sydney Freeland". IMDb.
- ^ "Winners announced at AIFF awards celebration". mailtribune.com.
- ^ heartlandfilm. "2014 Heartland Film Festival Announces Grand Prize Winners, Awards Over $115,000 to Independent Filmmakers". Heartland Film.
- ^ a b "2014 OUTFEST LOS ANGELES AWARDS". Outfest.
- ^ "AFME 2014 Award Winners". abqfilmx.com.
- ^ a b "'Drunktown' and 'Rhymes' Rule American Indian Film Festival Awards". Indian Country Today Media Network.com.
- ^ a b c d "American Indian Motion Picture Awards Show". aifisf.com.