The American Museum of Natural History Announces 2018 Mead Filmmaker Award Winner

Director Christy Garland received the Margaret Mead Filmmaker Award at the 2018 Mead Awards Ceremony on Sunday, October 21, for her film What Walaa Wants, about how a young woman growing up in a refugee camp dreams of joining the Palestinian Security Forces. Garland was selected from among eleven contenders by a jury that included the award-winning documentary filmmaker Sarah Elder; director of the Academy Award-nominated The War Room (1993) Chris Hegedus; artist and anthropologist Toby Lee, who is also assistant professor of Cinema Studies at NYU's Tisch School of the Arts; Sam Pollard, a feature film and television video editor and documentary producer/director whose work includes August Wilson: The Ground On Which I Stand for PBS; and Heather Rae, an Academy Award-nominated producer whose work includes Frozen River, Netflix Originals Tallulah and Dude, I Believe in Unicorns, and The Dry Land.

"What we felt that was really strong about the film was the way that it is showing the kind of growth and development of a young woman who's a very complex person," said juror Toby Lee. "That it shows all of her internal contradictions that are also very much connected to the contradictions of the kind of larger historical and political context in which she lives."

"Also, we like the cinematography," said juror Sarah Elder. "The intimate nature of it and the access that the director had to THE FAMILY and to the police academy."

What Walaa Wants follows young Walaa who was raised by her siblings in the Balata Refugee Camp while her mother was in an Israeli prison. With her mother's release, Walaa focuses on her dream: joining the Palestinian Security Forces. Her strong personality and rebellious attitude land Walaa in constant trouble with her superiors, revealing the complexities of growing up female under occupation.

In addition to Garland, the 2018 eligible candidates for the Margaret Mead Filmmaker Award included Georgina Barreiro for Tara's Footprint; Maciek Bochniak for Ethiopiques-Revolt of the Soul; Jean-Simon Chartier for Playing Hard; ?ukasz Borowski for Runners; Helin Celik and Martin Klingenböck for What the Wind Took Away; Niklas Kullström and Martti Kaartinen for Eastern Memories; Marcia Mansur and Marina Thomé for The Sound of Bells; Tenzin Phuntsog and Joy Dietrich for Rituals of Resistance; Anja Reiss for Truth Detectives; and Carmen Torres for Amanecer (Dawn).

The Margaret Mead Filmmaker Award recognizes documentary filmmakers who embody the spirit, energy, and innovation demonstrated by anthropologist Margaret Mead in her research, fieldwork, films, and writings. The award is given to a filmmaker whose feature documentary offers a new perspective on a culture or community while displaying artistic excellence and originality in storytelling. Eligible filmmakers must present a U.S. premiere at the Margaret Mead Film Festival.

The Margaret Mead Film Festival-the showcase for contemporary cultural storytelling and conversation in the unique setting of the American Museum of Natural History-screened 55 outstanding films from 39 countries in 2018 and hosted special events and performances. This year's festival featured including 14 U.S. premieres and four North American premieres. It focused on the theme "Resilience in Motion," documenting stories that celebrate individuals who are breaking new ground or breaking free despite challenging circumstances. Honoring the legendary anthropologist Margaret Mead, the festival reinforces our search for deeper understanding of the limitless diversity and complexity that is human experience. The number of timely films that premiered at Mead this year sparked provocative conversations-whether they're about battling voter suppression in Cumberland County, North Carolina, or Nigerian school girls kidnapped by Boko Haram struggling to regain normalcy after their release from captivity, or transgender women in Tonga creating safe spaces for self-expression.

Support

The Margaret Mead Film Festival is made possible by the New York State Council on the Arts with the support of Governor Andrew M. Cuomo and the New York State Legislature.

Special support provided by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.

Support for the Margaret Mead Film Festival is provided, in part, by the May and Samuel Rudin Family Foundation, Inc. and THE FAMILY of Frederick H. Leonhardt.

Support also provided by

Mexican Cultural Institute New York

Dutch Culture USA

Consulate General of the Federal Republic of Germany New York

Consulate General of Israel in New York

Consulate General of Canada in New York

Quebec Délégation Générale New York

Polish Cultural Institute

Consulate General of Spain New York

Spain Arts and Culture

Consulate General of Switzerland in New York

AMERICAN MUSEUM OF NATURAL HISTORY (AMNH.ORG)

The American Museum of Natural History, founded in 1869, is one of the world's preeminent scientific, educational, and cultural institutions. The Museum encompasses 45 permanent exhibition halls, including those in the Rose Center for Earth and Space and the Hayden Planetarium, as well as galleries for temporary exhibitions. It is home to the Theodore Roosevelt Memorial, New York State's official memorial to its 33rd governor and the nation's 26th president, and a tribute to Roosevelt's enduring legacy of conservation. The Museum's five active research divisions and three cross-disciplinary centers support approximately 200 scientists, whose work draws on a world-class permanent collection of more than 34 million specimens and artifacts, as well as specialized collections for frozen tissue and genomic and astrophysical data, and one of the largest natural history libraries in the world. Through its Richard Gilder Graduate School, it is the only American museum authorized to grant the Ph.D. degree. Beginning in 2015, the Richard Gilder Graduate School also began granting the Master of Arts in Teaching (MAT) degree, the only such freestanding museum program. Annual visitation has grown to approximately 5 million, and the Museum's exhibitions and Space Shows are seen by millions more in venues on six continents. The Museum's website, mobile apps, and MOOCs (massive open online courses) extend its scientific research and collections, exhibitions, and educational programs to additional audiences around the globe. Visit amnh.org for more information.

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