First-time writer/director Meera Menon (Farah Goes Bang) was selected out of eight filmmakers to win the inaugural Nora Ephron Prize at the annual Women’s Filmmaker Brunch at the 2013 Tribeca Film Festival.  Menon will receive a cash prize of $25,000 for “work and talent that embody the spirit and vision of the legendary filmmaker and writer.”  The Festival runs through April 28.

Farah Goes Bang, playing in the Festival’s Viewpoints section, is Menon’s feature debut. The film follows an awkward twenty-something who hits the road with her buddies to stump for John Kerry in the 2004 presidential election, hoping the trip will also be her opportunity to finally shed the long-unwanted virginity that still clings to her despite her best—and most uncomfortable—efforts. Crisscrossing the culturally divided nation at this decisive post-9/11 moment, these multicultural girls find themselves and their politics unwelcome in many parts of the country. They take inspiration from their friendship and press on in their campaign, even as Farah’s efforts on both political and sexual fronts are continuously thwarted. 

“As a filmmaker I had always been inspired by Nora, she emblematized how to take pain and suffering and turn them into laughter and joy. Those qualities inspired me and my co-filmmakers. Receiving this incredible honor in her name means more than I could ever articulate.  Tribeca has been such a special experience and the lady love is resounding,” said Meera Menon.