NYWIFT member Heidi Philipsen in The Better Angels, starring Diane Kruger, Brit Marling, and Wes Bentley (Photo courtesy of Hickory Pictures, LLC)
What a whirlwind! Though temps in New York matched the biting Park City cold, nothing could beat the heat at the festival. This year, New York Women in Film and Television (NYWIFT) caught up with veterans and fresh faces alike to celebrate the Sundance Film Festival’s 30th anniversary.
Known for its ability to stimulate important conversations within the industry, this year’s program did not disappoint. We counted over 50 directorial debuts, more than 200 films, many projects with women leadership (though less on the director front), and even new and expanded programs to increase awareness about gender disparity in film.
Some highlights:
- The wonderful events and panels at the NY Lounge, which included marketing, distribution, and tax resources for filmmakers in NYC, as well as Women in Film and Television International’s Women in the Director’s Chair breakfast
- Rory Kennedy et al’s cutting honesty at the 8th Women in Film panel, where the six participating directors and producers all pointed to “entrenched industry sexism”
- Updated research and expanded programming from the Women in Film Initiative, which is a joint collaboration between the Sundance Institute and our sister chapter Women in Film Los Angeles
- Anna Kendrick, who had three films premiere at Sundance, looking glamorous at the Women at Sundance Brunch
- Kate Barker-Froyland’s Song One, featuring Oscar winner/producer Anne Hathaway as a PhD candidate in Morocco
- Rose McGowan’s first film as director, the color-punchy Dawn
- The timely Fed Up, a Katie Couric–produced documentary about obesity
- A cinematographer’s conversation about the ongoing film vs. digital debate in a world where even Scorsese has gone digital
- A handful of women-directed films sold at the festival, including Land Ho!, which was picked up by Sony Pictures Classics
And of course, a big congratulations to the NYWIFT members who had projects at the festival:
- Susan Lazarus, Post Production Supervisor, Only Lovers Left Alive (dir. Jim Jarmusch)
- Wendy Blackstone, Composer, Whitey: United States of America v. James J. Bulger (dir. Joe Berlinger)
- Heidi Philipsen, Actress and Production Coordinator, The Better Angels (dir. A.J. Edwards); Actress, Cold in July (dir. Jim Mickle)
— JOYCE CHOI LI
nywift
Related Posts
Meet the New NYWIFT Member: Khrystyna Komarovska
Welcome to NYWIFT, Khrystyna Komarovska! Khrystyna is a New-York based filmmaker, actress, and digital strategy leader, where her work touches on the intersection of storytelling, audience growth, and social impact. Her projects explore human connection, contemporary relationships, and mental health through narrative film and digital projects. Alongside her creative work, she leads digital strategy for brands and founders, informing how projects are positioned, distributed, and scaled. Khrystyna is the creator of the short series Nina’s Files, which has received festival recognition and media attention. She is also currently developing new narrative work focused on Gen Z audiences and intentional storytelling. In our interview, Khrystyna discusses her background, recent projects, and what she has learned from working in the media industry.
READ MOREMeet the New NYWIFT Member: Belén Vilarrasa-Corriero
Welcome to NYWIFT, Belén Vilarrasa-Corriero! Belén is a Spanish-American documentary filmmaker making her directorial debut with Entre Las Paredes (Within the Walls), an intimate, feature-length project in development that follows her Abuela’s final days. Born and raised in New York City in a bilingual household, Belén brings a deeply personal lens to her work, believing that some of the most powerful stories live within our own families. Alongside her own projects, Belén works as an assistant director across narrative and commercial productions, where her focus, adaptability, and collaborative spirit help keep sets running smoothly. A graduate of the School of Visual Arts, she continues to grow her craft through diverse filmmaking experiences, driven by a dedication to emotionally resonant, visually compelling storytelling. In our interview, Belén reflects on documenting her family’s history, navigating grief and memory through film, and the projects she’s most excited to explore next.
READ MOREMeet the New NYWIFT Member: Delfine Paolini
Welcome to NYWIFT, Delfine Paolini! Delfine is a multifaceted filmmaker whose critically recognized work explores themes of life and loss. Her unique and powerful visions draw from an intimate familiarity of cinematic storytelling, philosophy, and a deeply thoughtful reflection of self. Her feature debut, A Wonderful Way with Dragons, has won numerous international awards. Its distinct style and emotional evocations are reflective of Delfine’s creative journey. Coming from a background of photography, she is highly attuned to expressive visuals. Community and mentorship have remained essential values to Delfine, who has faced both hurdles and victories on her directorial path. Delfine’s resolve and creative momentum have led to the development of multiple exciting projects. She is a director to watch; her upcoming films Le Rouge Originel, Reds Hearten, and Sky, Zyprexa, Night will continue to push boundaries and explore the profound power of the film medium. In our interview, Delfine discusses her background and inspirations.
READ MOREMeet the New NYWIFT Member: Sophia Baldassari
Let’s welcome screenwriter, script supervisor, and playwright Sophia Baldassari to NYWIFT! She was most recently an Associate Producer on the Radio Silence thriller LOSER, directed by Colleen McGuinness. Her plays and pilots have been developed/produced at Luna Stage, George Street Playhouse, the McCarter Theatre Center, Haddonfield Plays and Players, and Manhattan Repertory Theatre, and have received accolades from the O’Neill Center Young Playwrights, Theatremania Young Playwrights, Beardance International Playwriting Festival, the Neil LaBute New Theatre Festival, the Austin Film Festival, among others. She’s studied Writing at Sarah Lawrence and Egyptology at the University of Oxford, an experience she used to write a buddy comedy about the mummy of a Pharaoh’s 29th Favorite wife. She is a member of the Writers Guild of America East, The New York Script Supervisors Network, and IATSE Local 111. In our interview, we discussed uniting accessible and female driven stories with comedy and surrealism, the structural switches between playwriting and screenwriting, and the unexpected comedy of life in ancient Egypt. Let’s dive in!
READ MORE
