EXCLUSIVE: Emmy nominee Tessa Thompson and her Viva Maude manufacturing firm are govt producing Brittany Shyne’s Sundance Movie Pageant-winning documentary Seeds, which has been submitted for Oscar consideration this yr. Thompson joins as EP with Viva Maude’s Kishori Rajan.
The documentary, which gained Sundance’s U.S. Documentary Grand Jury Prize this yr, is a portrait of Black generational farmers within the American South, following their joys and struggles, and their significance of proudly owning land and the fragility of legacy. In 1910, Black farmers owned 16 million acres of land. Since then, over 90% of that land has been misplaced.
‘Seeds’
Strolling Productions
“Brittany Shyne’s Seeds is a quietly extraordinary work: clear-eyed and attentive to the textures of an American story too usually ignored. It reminds us that being alive means slowing down sufficient to note. At Viva Maude, we search for work that calls for presence and expands the aperture of who’s within the body. Seeds is that uncommon movie,” stated Thompson.
“We’re overjoyed to have Tessa and Viva Maude be part of the Seeds workforce. Tessa’s impassioned dedication to uplift and enlarge boundary pushing tales and distinctive views has been extremely inspiring. As we proceed to share this untold and poignant story of generational farmers within the South, we couldn’t ask for extra enthusiastic and supportive collaborators to come back on board this journey with us,” stated Shyne.
Following its world premiere at Sundance, Seeds continued on to play at over 70 festivals, successful over a dozen awards together with Grand Jury awards at Full Body Movie Pageant, SFFILM Movie Pageant, Seattle Worldwide Movie Pageant. Most not too long ago, it acquired 5 Cinema Eye Honors nominations, three IDA Award nominations, and was chosen for DOC NYC’s Winner’s Circle.
Seeds has additionally been nominated for 2 Critics Selection Awards for Greatest First Function Documentary and Greatest Cinematography, and acquired the Maysles Documentary Heart Albie Award, which acknowledges the yr’s prime contenders for the Oscars. Shyne has been chosen for this yr’s IDA Rising Filmmaker Award, to be introduced on the IDA Awards ceremony in December. This November, the movie will display at IDFA, LDNDOCS and Torino forward of its qualifying theatrical launch.
The documentary is produced by Sabrina Schmidt Gordon, Danielle Varga and Shyne. Different EPs embody Leslie Fields-Cruz and Maida Lynn.
This fall, Thompson starred within the Nia DaCosta-directed interval drama Hedda, a reimagining of Henrik Ibsen’s famend stage drama from 1891. Thompson is ready to obtain the Tribute Award on the Gotham Awards and in addition is nominated for Excellent Lead Efficiency for the Amazon MGM Studios title.
Thompson is repped by CAA, Untitled Leisure, and Jeff Bernstein at Jackoway Austen Tyerman Wertheimer Mandelbaum Morris Bernstein Trattner Auerbach Hynick Jaime LeVine Pattern & Klein. Shyne is repped by Cinetic Media.
