Cucalorus announces 13 filmmakers awarded Filmed in NC grant ahead of annual festival

November 2, 2022

Sydney Bouchelle,

Parrish Stikeleather and crew on the set of "Long Drive to Yadkin" (Photo: Tanner Benton)

WILMINGTON, NC (WWAY) — Thirteen filmmakers from North Carolina have been selected to receive financial support from the Filmed in NC fund.

The Filmed in NC fund is supported by the NC Film Office and a gift from Artless Media in conjunction with The Magnifying Glass. This year’s initiative supports narrative, documentary, and experimental film projects at all stages of production with a focus on growing support for female and non-binary identifying, African American and Latinx filmmakers.

The program was launched in 2015 to increase independent production activity and to support the work of emerging and independent artists who may be working outside of the major studio system.

One of the recipients is Parrish Stikeleather, who is working on a film called “Long Drive to Yadkin.” Wilmington born and raised, the now 34-year-old’s first short film screened at Cucalorus when he was 17.

“It means a lot to have the support of the festival that I grew up going to ever since high school back what is my first feature film. It means a whole lot,” Stikeleather said.

The film recounts the story of a recently widowed bible salesman on a journey to reconnect with his estranged son. It is still in the pre-production phase, but the film crew was able to shoot a scene for the movie at Hughes Brothers Tires on Market Street on Sunday.

“I’ve wanted to film something there since I was like a kid. I went to Gregory Elementary School down the road and we would do walking field trips to Cape Fear Museum and I would always look at it. Even as a kid, I loved it and we got to shoot there on Sunday which was really cool,” Stikeleather said.

“Long Drive to Yadkin” will not be ready for the upcoming Cucalorus Film Festival on November 16 through 20, but it may be ready for next year’s festival. For more information on the project, visit here.

The complete list of 2022 grant recipients:

May the Lord Watch, a documentary feature by Shirlette Ammons, that recounts the rise, breakup and reunion of rap group, Little Brother
Quiet as It’s Kept, a documentary feature by Sarah Sloan, follows choreographer Kevin Lee-Y Green as he produces a dance performance in his rural hometown, capturing his experiences with Blackess, sexual trauma and southern culture.
North on Thurmond, a documentary feature by Ivan Weiss and Cagney Gentry that tells the history of a neighborhood through personal remembrances and the sights and sounds of its streets.
Bloom, a documentary feature by Elizabeth Miller-Derstine that follows four doulas and the mothers they advocate for. It questions why a country that values personal freedom limits how parents exercise it at birth.
Gabriela, a short narrative by Evelyn Lorena, that focuses on a young, undocumented Guatemalan woman that dreams of joining the country club swim team in the American South
Keepsake, a narrative feature by Tiffany Albright, is about a photographer that finds herself at the heart of a sinister ritual when hired to document a family hike for the last people to see her sister alive.
The Making of the Nuevo South, a television series by Rodrigo Dorfman that explores Southern history from the perspective of the Latino immigrant experience
The Corner Gas Station, a short narrative by Ashley Maria and Kate E. Henshaw, centers on the weekly “kid switch,” common with divorced parents.
Teflon Body Rot, an experimental film by Kate E. Henshaw, explores the human cost of an industry that poisoned the water in coastal Carolina.
What Happened to Ottie B. Graham?, a narrative feature by Aileen Lassister, is the journey to find the gaps in history in the life of the filmmaker’s great-grandmother.
Long Drive to Yadkin, a narrative feature by Parrish Stikeleather that recounts the story of a recently widowed Bible salesman on a journey to reconnect with his estranged son
Carousel by Justin Lacy is an experimental, stop-motion animation set to three original songs about a bee, a beekeeper and pollinator caught in a loop.
Fading Ink, a short narrative by Tylen Watts, is about a memorial shirt printer that comes to terms with the vulnerability of fatherhood.