The Last Witch's Fundraiser
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THE LAST WITCH follows efforts to exonerate Elizabeth Johnson Jr, the last person convicted of witchcraft during the 1692 Salem Witch Trials as a schoolteacher, her students, and a state senator work to clear her name 330 years later. What starts out as an interesting and unique school project quickly delves into an emotional investigation into the modern implications of historical wounds that are left unattended. THE LAST WITCH shows how the children and their allies not only set Elizabeth's wrongful conviction right, but that by making amends with the past, Elizabeth provides all of us with an opportunity and the inspiration to create a better future.
THE LAST WITCH is a documentary about how middle school teacher Carrie LaPierre and her students changed the world with their efforts leading to the exoneration of Elizabeth Johnson Jr and the end of the Salem Witch Trials on July 28, 2022 but not without cause for concern that similar events could happen today. We are in the midst of climate change, overturning women's rights, rising mental health concerns, religious and spiritual factions and confusion, not to mention a pandemic, to start, that all see us in the middle of turbulence and a crisis of identity and community that is not too dissimilar from 1692. Yet there is hope, as THE LAST WITCH explores the impact that one person can have to change history and our own individual responsibility and agency to follow in her footsteps.
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* Our documentary THE LAST WITCH is fiscally sponsored by Creative Visions, a 501c3 nonprofit organization that supports creative activists, those that use the arts and media to ignite social change. All contributions made to THE LAST WITCH through Creative Visions (this page). Creative Visions will send automatic tax receipts to donors.
THE TEAM
Writer/Director Annika Hylmö, Ph.D is an award-winning filmmaker and documentarian whose films have screened at CameraImage, Tribeca Film Festival, as well as smaller specialty festivals. She co-produced IMAGE MAKERS: THE STORY OF AMERICA'S PIONEER CINEMATOGRAPHERS for TCM and her narrative short film DR. PENELOPE is winning awards and hearts around the world. Annika is also a producer of Women in Media's renowned CAMERAderie Initiative, creating powerful films empowering female filmmakers to reach new career heights above and below the line.
Producer Giovanni Alabiso is a producer/actor/writer/comedian, having done a variety of roles in the entertainment industry in front of and behind the camera. He has a keen interest in productions related to the 1692 Salem Witchcraft Trials and provides tours in Salem, Massachusetts. He has done lectures and presentations in the Greater Boston area on the subject. He is considered to be an expert on the 1692 Salem Witchcraft trials.
DIRECTOR OF PHOTOGRAPHY Petr Cikhart received his MFA in Cinematography from the American Film Institute. His thesis film FIRST IN FLIGHT was nominated for the ASC Harris Savides Heritage Award. He has worked in over 120 countries, lensing films such as FARMINGVILLE (Special Jury Prize, 2004 Sundance Film Festival) and BLINDSIGHT (Audience Awards, 2006 AFI Film Festival & 2007 Berlin Film Festival). Recently Petr served as a cinematographer on National Geographic’s series Restaurants At The End Of The World and Paramount’s series De La Calle. In 2007 Petr won his first Prime Time Emmy Award for Outstanding Cinematography. He has been nominated a total of ten times.
EDITOR Jeremy Lerman Originally from Omaha, NE, Jeremy is an LA-based, bi-coastal editor (Pacific Ocean and Missouri River). Jeremy’s editing work has screened on Netflix, AMC, PBS, and at such festivals as Telluride, Tribeca, AFI Fest and the Emerging Filmmakers Showcase at Cannes. He mentored at Ghetto Film School; AFI Young Women in Film; ReelWorks NYC; and The CineStory Foundation. Jeremy holds an MFA in Editing from the AFI Conservatory and a BA in Communications from the University of Pennsylvania. In his spare time Jeremy enjoys DIY house-renovations. He is currently at the Home Depot returns desk.