September 3rd, 2025

(Press Assets Available Here; Video Here)

THROUGH HER LENS: THE TRIBECA CHANEL WOMEN’S FILMMAKER PROGRAM CELEBRATES 10 YEARS OF SHAPING THE FUTURE OF FILM

 

Annual Three-Day Workshop Empowers Women and Non-Binary Filmmakers with Industry Mentorship, Funding, and Career-Launching Opportunities

 

Tribeca and CHANEL Announce 2025 Jury Featuring Kaitlyn Dever, Meghann Fahy, Allison Janney, Payal Kapadia, Issa Rae, and Jenny Slate

 

Esteemed Mentors Include Riva Marker, Sarah Paulson, Frida Perez, Constance Tsang, and Odessa Young

 

Conversation Leaders: Pamela Abdy, Colleen Atwood, Laura Karpman, Lucy Liu, and A.V. Rockwell

 

Lucy Liu, Tessa Thompson, and Olivia Wilde Join Prestigious Advisory Committee

 

 

NEW YORK, NY (September 3, 2025) – Tribeca and CHANEL announce the 10th edition of THROUGH HER LENS: The Tribeca CHANEL Women’s Filmmaker Program, taking place September 16–18 in New York City. Now celebrating a milestone year, the signature artist development initiative marks a decade of cultivating a creative community that has expanded opportunity, opened doors, and empowered women filmmakers to shape the future of the industry.

 

Launched in 2015, THROUGH HER LENS champions U.S.-based women and non-binary filmmakers by providing funding, creative support, and hands-on development opportunities. Each year, the initiative brings together emerging filmmakers, a distinguished jury, and leading industry voices for three days of workshops, conversations, mentorship, and community-building. Participants take part in intimate mentor-led sessions spanning script development, directing, music composition, and costume design, and then refine their projects before delivering a live pitch to an expert jury. One team is awarded full financing to produce their short film with support from Tribeca Studios, while four additional teams receive development grants.

 

The program’s Advisory Committee, established in 2023, shapes its future by bringing on new collaborators and supporting participating filmmakers. This year, the committee welcomes three new members—Lucy Liu, Tessa Thompson, and Olivia Wilde—who join returning members Jane Fonda, Patty Jenkins, Laura Karpman, A.V. Rockwell, and Kerry Washington.

 

“Through Her Lens isn’t just a program — it’s a community Tribeca and CHANEL have built with purpose,” said Jane Rosenthal, Co-Founder and CEO of Tribeca Enterprises. “Throughout these ten years, we’ve created a space where women filmmakers champion each other’s work, alumni open doors for one another, and belonging to this network truly means something in our industry. In partnership with CHANEL, we’ve been steadfast in our commitment to amplify voices that have always been here but too often go unheard. Through Her Lens is about consistency, perseverance, and meaningful change — the kind that shifts the very fabric of our culture at a moment when it’s needed most.”

 

Over the past decade, THROUGH HER LENS has made a significant impact on the industry. 45 short films have been developed through the workshop, with nine fully-funded winning films. Films have premiered at major festivals like Sundance and TIFF and have secured distribution through platforms such as Max, Searchlight, and Criterion. Eight of the nine winning filmmakers are women of color, and over 70 percent of all participants are women or non-binary people of color. Alumni of the program have gone on to direct critically acclaimed projects, including A.V. Rockwell’s A THOUSAND AND ONE, Numa Perrier’s THE PERFECT FIND, and Nikyatu Jusu’s NANNY.

 

2025 Industry Leaders:

 

JURORS:
Emmy®-nominated actress Kaitlyn Dever (THE LAST OF US; DOPESICK; UNBELIEVABLE); Emmy-nominated actress Meghann Fahy (THE WHITE LOTUS; THE BOLD TYPE); Academy Award® and Emmy Award–winning actress Allison Janney (I, TONYA; MOM; THE WEST WING); filmmaker and Cannes Grand Prix winner Payal Kapadia (A NIGHT OF KNOWING NOTHING; ALL WE IMAGINE AS LIGHT); Emmy-nominated actress, writer, and producer Issa Rae (INSECURE; RAP SH!T; BARBIE); Emmy-nominated actress and comedian Jenny Slate (OBVIOUS CHILD; EVERYTHING EVERYWHERE ALL AT ONCE).

 

MENTORS:
Producer Riva Marker (REALITY; BEASTS OF NO NATION); Emmy and Golden Globe®–winning actress and producer Sarah Paulson (AMERICAN HORROR STORY; RATCHED; CAROL); producer Frida Perez (THE STUDIO; AN AMERICAN PICKLE; GOOD BOYS); filmmaker Constance Tsang (BLUE SUN PALACE); actress Odessa Young (THE STAIRCASE; SHIRLEY; MOTHERING SUNDAY).

 

CONVERSATION LEADERS:
Film executive Pamela Abdy (AIR; HOUSE OF GUCCI; JOKER); Academy Award–winning costume designer Colleen Atwood (FANTASTIC BEASTS; CHICAGO; MEMOIRS OF A GEISHA); Academy Award–nominated and Emmy–winning composer Laura Karpman (AMERICAN FICTION; CAPTAIN AMERICA: BRAVE NEW WORLD); Emmy–nominated and Screen Actors Guild Award®–winning actress, advocate, director, and producer Lucy Liu (KILL BILL; CHARLIE’S ANGELS; ROSEMEAD); director, writer, and producer A.V. Rockwell (A THOUSAND AND ONE).

 

THROUGH HER LENS ADVISORY COMMITTEE:
Academy Award–winning actor and activist Jane Fonda (KLUTE; ON GOLDEN POND; BOOK CLUB); Emmy-nominated filmmaker Patty Jenkins (WONDER WOMAN; MONSTER); Academy Award–nominated and Emmy–winning composer Laura Karpman (AMERICAN FICTION; CAPTAIN AMERICA: BRAVE NEW WORLD); Emmy–nominated and Screen Actors Guild Award®–winning actress, advocate, director, and producer Lucy Liu (KILL BILL; CHARLIE’S ANGELS; ROSEMEAD); director, writer, and producer A.V. Rockwell (A THOUSAND AND ONE); actress and producer Tessa Thompson (CREED; PASSING; WESTWORLD); Emmy–winning actress, producer, and activist Kerry Washington (SCANDAL; LITTLE FIRES EVERYWHERE; UNPRISONED); director, actress, producer, and activist Olivia Wilde (DON’T WORRY DARLING; BOOKSMART).

 

2025 Selected Projects and Filmmakers:

 

BUDDY BOY

Rachel Harrison Gordon (Director; Screenwriter); Emily Kron (Producer)
After twenty years of voicing a beloved cartoon capybara, a Black actor undergoes vocal surgery to escape the character that defines – and confines – her. But when a younger white actress is cast to replace her for the live-action reboot, she spirals through mimicry and rage, and must ask herself how she will be recognized in a world where she is no longer Buddy Boy.

 

CUQUI

Gabriela Garcia Medina (Director; Co-Screenwriter); Laura Fries (Producer)
Cuqui, a bubbly and relentlessly optimistic Uber driver, needs every tip to fund the legal fees to bring her mom and brother to the U.S. But when she picks up an uptight passenger, one wild ride through L.A. traffic threatens her perfect rating—and her family’s future.

 

SMOKED

Alice Gu (Director); Katie White (Producer)
Amid a raging wildfire, a mother's search for her son's plushie becomes a desperate fight to preserve his childhood innocence and her own dwindling sanity. A story of survival, love, and the insanity of customer service - based on the director's lived experience of the Palisades fires.

 

STRANGERS

Karishma Dev Dube (Director; Screenwriter); MG Evangelista (Producer)
Shy newlyweds Ronny and Pari are clumsily navigating intimacy in the early days of their arranged marriage when a charged subway altercation jolts them into a surprising new dynamic.

 

TARTALO

Kat Whalen (Director; Screenwriter); Ginger Kearns (Producer)
When a young Basque shepherdess finds herself suddenly alone on the Western frontier, she fights to protect her flock from violent marauding cowboys amid the looming presence of a mysterious mythical beast.

 

The world of film—from its boldest directors to its most compelling actors—has been deeply intertwined with the history of CHANEL since the House’s inception. Founder Gabrielle Chanel collaborated with leading filmmakers of her time, drawing inspiration from and supporting fellow creatives. Her legacy of championing women in the arts lives on through the brand’s ongoing commitment to uplifting female voices in film, exemplified by initiatives like THROUGH HER LENS and other longstanding industry partnerships. The partnership between CHANEL and Tribeca, which commenced in 2005, has been continually enriched over the past 20 years to help nourish women filmmakers with supportive programming year-round.

 

Tribeca Enterprises has long championed independent storytelling, with a strong focus on elevating the voices of women and non-binary filmmakers. THROUGH HER LENS: The Tribeca CHANEL Women’s Filmmaker Program—a cornerstone of Tribeca’s dedication to nurturing new artistic voices—continues to provide resources, mentorship, and funding to empower the next generation of storytellers.

 

@Tribeca

 

#ThroughHerLens

 

#CHANELinCinema

 

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About Tribeca Enterprises:
Tribeca Enterprises is a multi-platform media and entertainment company that owns and operates the Tribeca Festival, content division Tribeca Studios, film distribution label Tribeca Films, and production company m ss ng p eces. With strong roots in independent film, Tribeca is synonymous with creative expression and entertainment. Founded in 2003 by Robert De Niro, Jane Rosenthal, and Craig Hatkoff, Tribeca Enterprises brings artists and audiences together to celebrate storytelling in all its forms, including film, TV, music, audio storytelling, games, and immersive. Tribeca champions emerging and established voices, discovers award-winning talent, curates innovative experiences, and introduces new ideas through exclusive premieres, exhibitions, conversations, and live performances. In 2019, James Murdoch’s Lupa Systems bought a majority stake in Tribeca Enterprises, bringing together Rosenthal, De Niro, and Murdoch to grow the enterprise.

 

About CHANEL:
CHANEL is a private company and a world leader in creating, developing, manufacturing and distributing luxury products. Founded by Gabrielle Chanel at the beginning of the last century, CHANEL offers a broad range of high-end creations, including Ready-to-Wear, Leather Goods, Fashion Accessories, Eyewear, Fragrances, Makeup, Skincare, Jewellery and Watches. CHANEL is also renowned for its Haute Couture collections, presented twice yearly in Paris, and for having acquired a large number of specialized suppliers, collectively known as the Métiers d’Art. CHANEL is dedicated to ultimate luxury and to the highest level of craftsmanship. It is a brand whose core values remain historically grounded on exceptional creation. As such, CHANEL promotes culture, art, creativity and “savoir-faire” throughout the world, and invests significantly in people, R&D, sustainable development and innovation. At the end of 2023 CHANEL employed more than 36,500 people worldwide.

 

Press Contacts
Annie Davis, Tribeca | adavis@tribecafilm.com
Annie Buck, CHANEL | annie.buck@chanelusa.com