By Gregg McQueen
Carlos Deschamps has always been fond of storytelling.
As a young child, the Washington Heights native would conjure up narratives in his imagination and bring them to life using his toy collection.
“I always played with a bag of toys from McDonald’s or Burger King. I would spend hours creating stories in my head and act it out with the toys,” Deschamps said. “It’s always been something I’m drawn to.”
Deschamps has transformed his love of storytelling into filmmaking. His latest venture, a short film titled The Night of Their Breakup, is one of four film projects to receive a grant through the 2021 Inwood Film Festival (IFF) Filmmaker Fund.
Conducted by Inwood Art Works, the annual program issues monetary grants to local filmmakers to help bring their projects to fruition.
“People can see that there’s untapped potential right in the neighborhood,” said Deschamps. “I think there should be more Latinx representation in filmmaking and this helps support that.”
This year, the IFF Filmmaker Fund will bestow four filmmakers with grants of up to $5,000 to be used for film project expenses.
It marks the third time that Inwood Art Works, a nonprofit that sponsors the annual Inwood Film Festival, the outdoor movie series Film Works Alfresco and other local performing arts events, has issued the grants.
Read more: New grants focus on local indie filmmakers | Manhattan Times
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