Emily Drummer, a filmmaker pursuing her MFA in cinematic arts at the University of Iowa, received a Princess Grace Foundation Film Honorarium for 2017.

The Princess Grace (Kelly) Awards is a national program dedicated to identifying and assisting emerging theater, dance, and film artists who are at the outset of their careers or early stages of professional development. 

“Emily's is one of only 10 awards or honoraria in film that were given by the Princess Grace Foundation this year, from a pool of roughly 120 eligible universities across the country,” says Mike Gibisser, assistant professor in cinematic arts. “It is a clear recognition of Emily's tremendous filmmaking talent, her dedication to her craft, and the ambition evident in her ongoing practice. 

“Through her films and her organizing, Emily has been an exceptional presence, both in the department and in the broader Iowa City film community. This recognition and support of her work is incredibly well deserved.”

Drummer’s work investigates hidden ecological networks of communication in the American Midwest. Her films have screened at venues such as Antimatter [media art], Other Cinema, Experiments in Cinema, Alchemy Film Festival, Milwaukee Underground Film Festival, and Haverhill Experimental Film Festival. In addition to filmmaking, the San Francisco native teaches and programs films at the UI, and serves as the festival director of the Iowa City International Documentary Film Festival. She also co-founded the Iowa City-based Vertical Cinema and has taught workshops for the cinema arts non-profit Mono No Aware in New York.

Princess Grace Award and Honoraria winners were selected by a panel of experts in film.