Shore Scripts has announced the recipients of its Fall 2024 Short Film Fund, continuing its mission to support and elevate emerging filmmakers. The Grand Prize Production Grant of $15,000 has been awarded to screenwriter and director Nicky Rudolph Calloway for his compelling short film “I Am A Gentleman.“
Set in a society that rationalizes violence against women, “I Am A Gentleman” follows high schooler Max as he faces the harsh realities and consequences of his new hormonal compulsions after developing his first crush on a girl, following the school’s mandatory sexuality test. Having grown up as a girl and later coming out as a trans man in his early 20s, Calloway wrote the screenplay to explore his relationship with toxic masculinity and misogyny.
Calloway’s work has been recognized previously; his screenplay “The Many Deaths Of Wallace Badger” won Best Drama Feature at the 2023 Nashville Film Festival Screenwriting Competition. “I Am A Gentleman” also won the short script category at both the 2021 Slamdance Screenplay Competition and the 2021 Nashville Film Festival Screenwriting Competition.
In addition to the cash grant, Calloway will receive industry guidance from two-time Oscar-nominated producer Maria Gracia Turgeon (“FAUVE,” “Brotherhood“), camera equipment rental provided by ARRI Rental, and film festival strategy consultancy from Tribeca programmer, filmmaker, and Academy member Kimberley Browning, among other prizes.
The 2nd Place Finishing Funds Prize of $2,500 was awarded to Kiah Clingman for her short film “Her Pretty Vagina.” The film follows Kaleigh, who is plagued by the physical and emotional tolls of endometriosis and HPV, leading her to desperate measures in her relentless quest for empathy.
Shore Scripts has a history of fostering talented filmmakers. Its first Short Film Fund grant was awarded in 2016 for “Salam,” written and directed by Claire Fowler, which premiered at Tribeca in 2018 and went on to win a BAFTA Cymru in 2020.
Recent alumnus Alexandra Qin’s short “Thirstygirl” was an Official Selection at Sundance 2024, won the inaugural Shorts to Features Honor at Gotham Week, and is currently in development as a feature film of the same name. The feature is being produced by Carlos Lopez Estrada of Antigravity Academy, Valerie Bush (“Didi”), and Asher Goldstein (“Just Mercy,” “American Born Chinese”).
Founded in 2012 by filmmaker David Beazley, Shore Scripts aims to connect emerging writers with the film and television industry, providing essential support as they advance their careers. Since the inception of the Short Film Fund, Shore Scripts has greenlit 22 commissioned short films.
