2018 Albert P. Weisman Award Recipients

Posted by Alise Wagner

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The 2018 Albert P. Weisman Award Exhibition is a showcase of advanced projects from a wide range of creative disciplines at Columbia College Chicago. Featured artists received support from The Albert P. Weisman Award, established in 1974 to encourage Columbia students to complete ambitious independent arts and media projects.

The Albert P. Weisman Award is made possible by the generosity of the Weisman family, the Weisman Committee and the many friends of Albert P. Weisman who donate their time and resources to make this award possible.
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– Zach Barnard, Hidden Moments: Behind the Purple Door

“My work is a representation of not only myself but an intimate view of family and an inherited, generational connection to place. Support from the Weisman has been integral to my work and I am very honored to be among the 2018 recipients along with so many talented artists.”

– Chelsea Darter, A Prairie Fisher King

“The Weisman Award means the support to make sure our film is submitted to film festivals – a critical step in making sure as many people as possible see the piece. American Life is an effort to inspire conversations around communities of color across America being purposely denied economic and political power. In our film, through the eyes of a 17-year old who loves boxing, and who just wants to keep his family safe, we experience how marginalization breeds violence and the harrowing impact on human lives. The Weisman Award means our film can be seen by more people, and that means the world to us.”

– Emily Harmon, Writer/Director & Calisto Ololngojine, Producer, American Life

– Lindsay Holeso, EQUILIBRIUM

“To receive this award meant I was blessed with an opportunity to do something bigger than me. With this project, I was able to break new ground as an artist. This work represents me because it was about facilitating. Seeing art as an experience, not as objects. Art as a service. People are the subject and the viewer, space is my new medium of choice. Thank you for this opportunity and thank you everyone who helped in any way shape or form. Love you all!”

– Philli Irvin, ITS FEST

“I wouldn’t have been able to make “Jack and Anna” without the Albert P. Weisman Award. The Weisman award isn’t just a financial support for my film but it’s also a significant achievement in my career as a filmmaker.

“Jack and Anna” is a story based on true events and it is a dramatic and unknown narrative that needs to be told. When I first read this story, I knew from the beginning that I wanted to make this film. I felt a strong connection to my protagonist. I know what it feels like when the whole world is against you. I could tell this story because I have a similar emotional journey with my protagonist.”

– Ksenia Ivanova, Jack and Anna

“This award means that artists matter. That we are heard and appreciated, and the work we create has societal value. In a time when the arts are consistently at risk and the first to be swept aside, the Albert P. Weisman Award brings emerging artists to the forefront making it possible to materialize works that can reach far beyond ourselves. And that means everything.”

– Kyra Peterson, slipping the chin into empty space around the face

“It’s a chance. A chance to see how far and dedicated I can be with my work. How organized and how committed can the love for this craft take me. Plus, getting to know people and understanding how I work in larger groups and what type of people I want to work with.”