RUYA (Grant Submissions Only)
When a T’boli dreamweaver goes into a coma, her anxious, insomniac daughter tries to pick up where she left off on the design of her next t’nalak (a cloth woven from dreams).
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Nicole Mairose DizonDirectorMorena
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Nicole Mairose DizonWriterMorena
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Nicole Mairose DizonProducerMorena, Dear Mama..., The Mason Ring
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Mike MaliwanagDirector of PhotographyDear Mama..., Help Me Understand, Mud
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Jay DizonProduction DesignerInheritance, Another Country
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Malcom MoralesCostume DesignerCostume PA on Dear Mama…
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Shyree MezickCasting DirectorDealing with Dad, Dear Mama..., Yes Chef
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Alex BolognaSound Mixer / Sound DesignerPlum Town, House of Brotherly Love, Endless Yesterdays
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Project Type:Short Script
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Number of Pages:7
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Country of Origin:United States
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Language:English
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First-time Screenwriter:Yes
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Student Project:No
Nicole Mairose Dizon is a first-generation Filipina-American writer/director and award-winning producer from Baldwin Park, CA. The daughter of a divorced bookkeeper and former smog technician, her thought-provoking Filipinx-centric work explores contemporary social issues. After stints at ICM and Scott Free, she rose from Writers' P.A. to Showrunner's Assistant on Amazon's Blade Runner 2099. She is a Film Independent Project Involve Fellow and a California Arts Council Fellow. As a writer/director, her short, Morena, was nominated for the Jury Award at Yale Summer Cabaret’s Summer of Love Film Festival and Best Short Film at the Yucca Valley Film Festival. In 2022, she was featured in Ava DuVernay’s ARRAY Crew for Filipino American History Month. Her work as a producer screened at SXSW and Aspen among others; it has also been recognized by the NAACP, The New Yorker and Short of the Week. Outside of work, Dizon loves hiking, music production, baseball and F1.
For more information, please visit www.nicoledizon.com.
When I think of early Filipino labor history in California, I immediately think of the manongs and Larry Itliong. It’s only recently that I became aware of the anti-miscegenation and the limited Filipina presence in the retelling of history during this period. Researching more about the labor contribution of Filipinas in the Philippines, I learned about “dream-weaving” t’nalaks (hand-woven cloths designed by T’boli women who interpret visions from the Goddess Fu Dalu in their dreams).
Within the context of America, I became fascinated with the obligation that Filipino-Americans might carry. What if it wasn’t only culture, but also a livelihood that they were responsible for sustaining beyond one’s elders? What would happen if the person inheriting that practice stood in their own way of doing it? RUYA will explore the themes of filial piety, perseverance and internal conflict through the lens of an everyday sleep disorder and a sacred art form.