Castelltort’s Coming-of-Age Short Secures Proud Voices on Screen Funding
DEGANZ member Mirene Castelltort‘s coming-of-age short Molletes is one of two projects selected for Proud Voices on Screen’s inaugural short film fund, Rainbow Shorts.
Molletes follows eight-year-old Jimena as she navigates her first Kiwi Christmas, caught between holding onto her Mexican heritage and rejecting it in an effort to fit in.
Mirene wrote and will direct the film, with Jennifer Onyeiwu producing.
As recipients of the Rainbow Shorts fund, the team will receive $40,000 in funding, along with mentorship across development, production, and post-production. Proud Voices on Screen board member Thomas Coppell will also join the project as Executive Producer.
Competition was tough, with Rainbow Shorts receiving 39 applications. Proud Voices Executive Director Eloise Verber commented:
We received such a breadth of heartfelt, funny and visually striking short film concepts. It’s an honour to read scripts that filmmakers have put so much time into and we want to thank all of the applicants for sharing their storytelling vision with us. The future of queer cinema is bright.
Congratulations to Mirene and the Molletes team on the win!
Last updated on 2 July 2026
