"A Concerto is a Conversation" Nominated for Best Documentary (Short Subject)
CHICAGO, IL -- CMP is proud to announce an exclusive initiative with The New York Times Op-Docs platform. This morning, the inaugural film co-presented by this partnership, “A Concerto is a Conversation,” was nominated for Best Documentary (Short Subject) by the 93rd Academy Awards. Alongside CMP and The New York Times, prominent American filmmaker Ava DuVernay also serves as Executive Producer on the film.
This exclusive partnership between CMP and The New York Times supports short form documentaries by emerging filmmakers and BIPOC directors. CMP funds these shorts in part by facilitating grants to film projects that will premiere on the Op-Docs digital platform. Working to curate innovative ways to get much-needed funds into the hands of filmmakers that are working to make an impact and move the dial on important issues, CMP is proud to be in partnership with The New York Times in a way that so closely fits the organization’s broader mission.
“This initiative will provide meaningful support to emerging filmmakers & filmmakers of color, who often have difficulty securing early support for their work,” said Paula Froehle, CEO & Co-Founder of CMP.
Steve Cohen, Co-Founder of CMP, said of the organization’s commitment: “We are devoted to opening access for a wider array of voices in the documentary space and this initiative does it in dramatic and significant ways.”
“A Concerto is a Conversation” features virtuoso jazz pianist and film composer Kris Bowers, as he tracks his family’s lineage through his 91-year-old grandfather, from Jim Crow Florida to the Walt Disney Concert Hall. The film is the first collaboration under this partnership, with each film being a co-presentation of both CMP and The New York Times.
"We are thrilled that CMP came in to support 'A Concerto is a Conversation,’ a flagship work of documentary storytelling that takes a music story and turns it into an American story," said Lindsay Crouse, who produced the film for Op-Docs.
Projects supported by this collaboration can be found at www.nytimes.com/video/op-docs. More information about CMP can be found at www.wearecmp.org. The 93rd Academy Awards airs Sunday, April 25, 2021.