The recipient of a Ph.D. in humane letters from Lebanon American University, Andy Khawaja is an award-winning tech entrepreneur who has served as CEO of Allied Wallet since 2005. Passionate about philanthropy, Andy Khawaja is a supporter of numerous nonprofits, including From the Heart Productions (FTHP).
Following significant reductions in funding for documentary filmmaking by the National Endowment for the Arts, Carole Dean created the Roy W. Dean Grant and soon after established FTHP, which offers other grants and funding services to filmmakers creating unique and important documentaries. The first Roy W. Dean Grant was awarded to T. Bart Hawkins, who required funding for "Hopilavi," which focused on the Hopi Indians and their fight to preserve their language. She was made aware of the film after she noticed her father, who worked with her at Studio Film & Tape, give away film to Hawkins.
Today, there are three Roy W. Dean Grants available per year. Each recipient receives at least $3,000 in cash from FTHP as well as a host of services and products offered by film industry companies either free or at a discounted rate. The winner of the 2019 Spring Grant, for instance, received a Glyph StudioRaid 6TB hard drive, $1,000 worth of voice over services from Claire Papin, $600 in closed captioning services, and a 40 percent reduction in sound, editing, color, and production services offered by Pro Media. Prospective grant recipients must be making a documentary, feature film, short film, or web series that has a budget of less than $500,000.
Following significant reductions in funding for documentary filmmaking by the National Endowment for the Arts, Carole Dean created the Roy W. Dean Grant and soon after established FTHP, which offers other grants and funding services to filmmakers creating unique and important documentaries. The first Roy W. Dean Grant was awarded to T. Bart Hawkins, who required funding for "Hopilavi," which focused on the Hopi Indians and their fight to preserve their language. She was made aware of the film after she noticed her father, who worked with her at Studio Film & Tape, give away film to Hawkins.
Today, there are three Roy W. Dean Grants available per year. Each recipient receives at least $3,000 in cash from FTHP as well as a host of services and products offered by film industry companies either free or at a discounted rate. The winner of the 2019 Spring Grant, for instance, received a Glyph StudioRaid 6TB hard drive, $1,000 worth of voice over services from Claire Papin, $600 in closed captioning services, and a 40 percent reduction in sound, editing, color, and production services offered by Pro Media. Prospective grant recipients must be making a documentary, feature film, short film, or web series that has a budget of less than $500,000.