WIFVNE is a proud community partner for the White River Indie Films Festival, which recently took place February 14-18, 2024 in White River, VT.

Each year WRIF has a cohort of Emerging Filmmakers and this year, WIFVNE was pleased to sponsor the WIFVNE Spotlight Award and award it to Mae Nagusky, the filmmaker behind the short dear mom,.Mae Nagusky is a senior film student at the University of Vermont. Her films oftentimes blur the line between self and other as she navigates the messy, beautiful world she is living in. Mae also has a deep love for people-watching and eating mangoes. 

The team at WRIF tells WIFVNE:  "The nearly 70 submissions we received for the WRIF Emerging Filmmakers contest are a peek into who the next generation of North East based, independent filmmakers are and what kind of stories they are interested in telling. Our judges (local artists from diverse disciplines and backgrounds) are not asked to consider filmmakers' identities and judge on the merit of the film first and foremost. This year, 4 out of the 5 phenomenal, Emerging Filmmaker shorts they selected were by women. That really speaks to a rising tide of women filmmakers in New England and beyond who are feeling empowered to tell stories through film. Out of the highly contested shorts we moved through to the final round, Mae's was one that all our Emerging Filmmaker judges unanimously agreed needed to be shared with our audience at WRIF. "dear mom," is a touchingly personal, jarringly honest and creatively crafted documentary that resonates deeply with the current moment of independent filmmaking."