Julie Akeret Akeret Films
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Click to Enlarge	Personal Statement: I am dedicated to making documentary films that examine social issues and the people whose unique points of view influence how we see those issues. These people see our world as a work in progress and their job as part of that work.

Current Work As budget cuts exacerbate an already deplorable situation in our inner-city schools, the arts are among the first to go. In Springfield, Massachusetts, one woman -- educator, musician, and cultural activist Jane Sapp -- is doing all she can to stem the tide, with remarkable success. Someone Sang for Me is a portrait of this courageous and insightful woman, as she uses music to convey a sense of self-worth to at-risk youth. Her singing group, The Voices of Today, has performed to standing ovations throughout the country. Someone Sang for Me was called “a beautiful, insightful, humane film” by Filmmaker Ken Burns. I worked with writer and editor Christian McEwen on Tomboys! a film that celebrates the life and spirit of tomboys, aged 12 to 92. The film premiered at the Brattleboro Women's Film Festival in March 2004.

Short Bio Akeret is the producer-director of several documentary films. Not Just Garbage (1986), about an artist-in-residence at the New York Sanitation Department, premiered at the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs, and won Best Documentary Short in the USA Film Festival (1986) and first place in the National Educational Film Festival (1986). In Defense of Animals (1990), about Australian philosopher and animal rights activist Peter Singer, premiered at the Public Theatre in New York and won first place at the Birmingham International Film Festival (1989) and a Silver Cindy Award from the Association of Visual Communicators (1989). Looking for Common Ground (1997), about the struggle for gay and lesbian civil rights at a rural Massachusetts high school, received funding from Frameline and aired on several of PBS affiliates, including WGBH Boston, WHYY Philadelphia, and WNET New York. She was recently awarded a Massachusetts Media Fellowship by the Massachusetts Cultural Council.

Artist Location Leeds, MA

Type of artist Director, Technical

General Themes Activism/Social Justice, Education

Keywords filmmaker, director, producer, Sapp, Tomgirls

Last updated on January 21st, 2008

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