As we gear up for the 2022 cohort of the OTV Fellowship program, we wanted to check in on some of our brilliant favs from 2019-21.

Check back in for reports on each year and see what they’re up to now!

Apply to be an OTV Fellow here.

What project were you working on during your fellows program?

"Wannabe" tells the story of young Black cheerleaders, whose conflicting anxieties about their approaching adulthood surface when they lose their way in the woods and meet a mysterious girl, guarding a fountain she claims is magical. This is the pilot episode of "Chickweed Magik", an urban fantasy anthology series!

How has the fellowship impacted your career?

OTV's fellowship has gifted me the opportunity to begin manifesting my life's work. In this journey, I've received their genuine and insightful guidance which has sharpened me as a creative capable of executing ideas - and feeling confident about it. Through trying moments and triumphs, this experience has exposed me to what it takes to not only realize a dream but evolve it and become wiser, myself, in the process.

What's one thing you've learned from OTV that's helped you in your career?

A standout lesson I've learned from OTV is the importance of community in filmmaking. Having committed collaborators and mentors that are sincere and steadfast in their supportive efforts, greatly contributes to the quality and success of a project as well as the experience creating it.

Please list any significant career accomplishments or credits since your fellowship.

Nothing yet!

Adia Ivey - 2021

MANIFOLD

What project were you working on during your fellows program?

MANIFOLD - This experimental anthology docuseries shares the various stories of artists, organizers and everyday people across Chicago while exploring Black and Queer identity.

How has the fellowship impacted your career?

In addition to the funding helping us complete post production, OTV offers a platform to share our project when it's done and guidance in community outreach for local screenings. The fellowship also provided artistic mentorship in defining who I am as an artist and challenging me in reflecting on the stories I want to share. Overall, I'm really grateful for a sense of community and the bridge OTV offers in connecting and collaborating with other independent artists.

What's one thing you've learned from OTV that's helped you in your career?

I felt like the study halls were really helpful for me, with crowdfunding especially. I didn't realize how much of creating a crowdfunding campaign goes into about two months of strategizing and individual outreach before even going live and months of follow up when the campaign is over. There were a lot of moving gears throughout our campaign that I was able to prepare for ahead of time with the help of my team, but we wouldn't have known how to prepare had it not been for the study halls we attended.

Please list any significant career accomplishments or credits since your fellowship.

Assistant Director - Chrysalis,
Assistant Director - The Funnel,
Co-Producer - In Transit,
Assistant Director / Co-Director - Brown Paper Bags and The Eternal

Grace Tran - 2020

FAN GIRL

What project were you working on during your fellows program?

FAN GIRL: A queer, fat 30-something Asian American chef and former fan dancer returns to Chicago to open a restaurant in her gentrifying Vietnamese neighborhood, while navigating tensions around sexuality, success, and independence.

How has the fellowship impacted your career?

The OTV Fellowship was priceless in the wisdom and community it built for me - and in the confidence it instilled in me as a writer and creator.

What's one thing you've learned from OTV that's helped you in your career?

OTV has given me the practical tools and skills to navigate a vast & intimidating industry, as well as the support to move ahead.

Please list any significant career accomplishments or credits since your fellowship.

I don't want to jinx it, so I'll wait to answer this one!

Vincent Martell - 2019

Damaged Goods

What project were you working on during your fellows program?

Damaged Goods

How has the fellowship impacted your career?

The OTV fellows program allowed me the space and time to develop my brand as a filmmaker. Many of the relationships established in the program have strengthened over the years, opening many fruitful opportunities and friendships. This program allowed me the privilege to create with a group of revolutionary cohorts eager to change the industry. I'm forever grateful for this fellowship.

What's one thing you've learned from OTV that's helped you in your career?

I learned the power of being an interdisciplinary artist through working with OTV.

Please list any significant career accomplishments or credits since your fellowship.

Represented by 3 Arts for TV & Film, currently directing in television.

Checking in on the OTV Fellows - Part 3