“Miss Juneteenth” filmmaker Channing Godfrey Peoples is getting support to develop her second feature film as part of a month-long residency from Neon and filmmaker support organization UFO.
Peoples is the inaugural recipient of the Neon x UFO Second Feature Development Residency, in which she will spend a month in a living and work space developing her next feature. During her time in residence, Peoples will continue developing the script and participate in curated meetings with industry professionals facilitated by Neon and UFO. The program also includes a screening of “Miss Juneteenth,” Peoples’ debut feature that premiered at Sundance in 2020, followed by a conversation with Peoples as moderated by UFO.
Peoples was “selected for her exceptional vision and storytelling,” per the press statement.
Peoples is already set to direct the upcoming Otis Redding film, “Otis & Zelma,” starring John Boyega and Danielle Deadwyler, but the residency will go towards the development of her next film as a screenwriter, which will be just her second original screenplay.
Designed with an emphasis on supporting underrepresented filmmakers and stories, the Neon x UFO Second Feature Development Residency centers on filmmakers who have yet to direct a second feature in the years following the release of their promising independent feature debut. Filmmakers are selected through an invite-only application process.
In collaboration with Neon, UFO identified filmmakers whose first feature films “reflected Neon and UFO’s shared investment in boundary-pushing, creative risk-taking, and bold cinema across a spectrum of genres and approaches,” the description reads.
The bespoke month-long residency experience provides dedicated time and live/work space at the Silver Sun Residence and culminates with a week in New York City.
“Recognizing the particular challenges independent filmmakers face in financing and producing original second feature projects, this residency allows filmmakers to jumpstart projects that may otherwise struggle to find momentum,” per the press statement.
UFO co-director Martha Gregory said, “All of UFO’s filmmaker support programs are made possible through meaningful partnerships, and we are proud to be partnering with Neon. Neon’s extensive industry expertise and their unparalleled eye for bold artistic promise in both films and filmmakers has been an invaluable asset in developing this program. We love Channing’s work and we are delighted to welcome her to New York for this residency.”
Peoples previously was honored by the National Board of Review with the Best Directorial Debut Award, and “Miss Juneteenth” was nominated for both Independent Spirit and Gotham Awards. Lead star Nicole Beharie won the Best Actress prize from the Gotham Awards. Peoples has directed the pilot for Season 4 of the Emmy-winning “Genius” series and Apple TV+’s anthology series “Roar.”
UFO is a donor-supported nonprofit organization that gives time, space, and money to filmmakers at under-resourced career stages. Through filmmaker support programs that emphasize in-person, inclusive community-building, UFO creates opportunities for filmmakers from wide-ranging, intersectional backgrounds to develop and produce films.
