The Big Tell Showcase | Central Valley Community Foundation

Congratulations to this year’s 2021 The Big Tell Winners!

A Movement Known Around the World by Jeremy Miller
The global popping dance movement originated in west Fresno. Meet popping pioneer Boogaloo Sam and discover the dance’s impact on the local hip hop community.

Good Fire by Erica Tom
For thousands of years the North Fork Mono Tribe has used fire to restore Central Valley land. A look at this practice amidst a time of drought, megafires, and climate change.

Hope in a Basket by Chad Saecheo
Asian strawberry farmers in Visalia share the roots of their business and what it takes to own one of the busiest strawberry stands in town.

Kaweah Kweens by Zach Green Films
From the foothills to Capitol Hill—middle school girls help pass national legislation combating climate change.

Little Big Gym by Rigoberto Moran
A small gym in Farmersville is a free outlet for kids to play and learn—and a source of inspiration for the community.

Mammoths in Madera?! by Eddie Garcia
A paleontologist uncovers Madera’s Ice Age history after an intact mammoth tusk led to the discovery of a trove of fossils in a Madera landfill.

Mi Elotero (My Corn Man) by Carolina De La Torre
Community support is imperative as Latino street vendors face a rise in violence against them.

Not Just any Restaurant by Matt Mealer
A mother and daughter draw on 130 years of Central Valley heritage as they breathe new life into an iconic Basque restaurant in Los Banos.

Reclaiming Medicine by Jennifer Robin
A look at the Southern Sierra Miwuk Nation’s traditional basket making and medicine gathering. Elder basket weavers share why cultivating medicine is important to the tribe.

Stan Bitters: Ceramics Wizard by Ed Goto
A documentary focusing on the impact this local internationally-known ceramics artist had on the 1960’s Organic Modernist Craft Movement.

Click here for a one-page printable version.

The Big Tell is a CENTRAL VALLEY ONLY film contest where local filmmakers vie for the chance to win a grant to produce a 5-minute mini-documentary. We are looking to tell UNDISCOVERED stories from California’s great Central Valley.

The Central Valley Community Foundation will award ten grants of $5,000 each for the creation of short films about the amazing people, places, and activities that make this region so remarkable and unique.

Each year, the contest attracts over 75 applications from 6 counties in the Central Valley. The 10 finalists will have 3 months to create their films. They will receive one-on-one mentorship from Emmy-nominated documentarian Sascha Rice and a one-year membership to CMAC.

The completed films premiere together at The Big Tell Showcase in the fall. This year, the Showcase will be televised on Nexstar partner stations in early November.

The Big Tell is presented by the James B. McClatchy Foundation with support from Community Media Access Collaborative.

Recently two 2020 The Big Tell films received National Hometown Media awards. Read the story here.