Join us for a free & public screening of award-winning documentary short film You are Me & I am You by Melissa Kirkendall.
You are Me & I am follows Carmen Cumba, an indigenous midwife in the High Sierras of Ecuador who despite many hardships and obstacles has dedicated her life to helping the women of her community both as an Ancestral medicine practitioner and as an advocate for equality for her fellow midwives in Ecuador.
Q&A with Director Melissa Kirkendall to follow the screening.
This project is sponsored in part by the Cultural Arts Division of the City of Austin Economic Development Department.
THIS EVENT IS FREE AND OPEN TO THE PUBLIC. WITH Complimentary bites & drinks
About Melissa Kirkendall:
Melissa is a long-time successful creative entrepreneur in both the music and film communities. In her 20’s she was a maverick in the music scene in Dallas/Fort Worth, TX where she owned and operated several award-winning live music venues.
Since 2002, she has worked in TV and film productions for FOX, ABC, NBC, TOUCHSTONE, and LIFETIME as well as many independent production companies. In 2012, she released her first feature-length documentary on the 1960’s teen garage rock scene called "Teen A Go Go". It screened at music and film festivals around the world and was featured on Netflix.
In recent years she has been producing on a variety of independent scripted films, as well as documentaries, including ESPN 30 for 30 documentary series for the feature-length documentary "What Carter Lost".
She was a producer on the widely acclaimed feature film, "The Vast of Night", which was acquired by Amazon Studios and released on Amazon Prime in 2020. It became an instant critic and audience favorite, making numerous “top films of 2020” lists. During its festival run, the film screened at top festivals around the world including TIFF, Slamdance and Edinburgh. It won the Audience Award at Slamdance, the Jury Prize at Overlook, and garnered a Spirit Award nomination.
In June of 2022, Melissa wrapped post production on the anticipated dramedy "Chocolate Lizards" starring Thomas Haden Church, Rudy Pankow, Carrie-Anne Moss, and Bruce Dern.
Several of the recent films she has produced have screened at festivals such as SXSW, USA Film, DIFF and other notable festivals around the country.