By Katie Chambers
As summer winds down, New York Women in Film & Television gears up for the start of our new year – and with it, new faces join our leadership team!
A 501(c)3 non-profit, NYWIFT is governed by an 18 member Board of Directors, elected by the membership in late Spring. This diverse, accomplished group of women are at the top of their game in TV, film and digital media. They steer NYWIFT in advocating for equality, providing unique professional development opportunities, funding women filmmakers, and celebrating women’s achievements.
Next up: meet Alex Cirillo, producer, director and co-founder of Big Vision Empty Wallet!

Alex Cirillo (photo credit: Deneka Peniston)
How did you first get involved with NYWIFT?
When I graduated college my first job was at Washington Square Arts and Films, and the Executive Producer there, Anna Gerb, was on the NYWIFT Board of Directors at the time. She encouraged me to join as a Next Wave number and tasked me with getting items for the Muse Awards gift bags. I dove right in and never looked back!
Years later I started Big Vision Empty Wallet with Dani Faith Leonard and we were honored to add Terry Lawler (then NYWIFT Executive Director) and Alysia Reiner (NYWIFT member) to our advisory board. My connection to the NYWIFT community has continued to grow throughout the years.
Why do you love NYWIFT?
What’s not to love about a bunch of badass women supporting each other and fighting to create change?!

Traveling with family in Greece (L-R: Steve Cascio, Jesse Cirillo, Ray Cirillo, Andrea Cirillo, Alex Cirillo, Anthony Ferreiras)
Tell us about what you do outside of NYWIFT.
I am a producer, director and the Co-Founder of Big Vision Empty Wallet, an inclusion-focused incubator that produces content that keeps you at the edge of your seat. I am also on the Advisory Board for the WGA’s Made in NY Writers Room Fellowship and the Advisory Board for Catalyst Content Festival. So I’m usually working with an amazing group of diverse creators to develop, produce and release their films, but I also make the time to travel with my family and explore the city’s food and art scene with my fiancé, Anthony.

With Geena Davis at the Bentonville Film Festival (L-R: Alex Cirillo, Geena Davis, Dani Faith Leonard)
What is your fondest memory of working in the entertainment industry?
I remember at the beginning of my career when I was just an 18 year old intern for the PR firm that planned Kanye West’s birthday party, shortly after the height of Jay-Z and Nas’ feud, I was tasked with getting Jay-Z out of the venue before Nas arrived. No one can make Jay-Z do anything, certainly not a totally green teenager, but eventually he agreed to head out and as we were making our way to the door I could see Nas coming in. I tried to re-route Jay-Z to avoid the confrontation but he just brushed me off, smiled and kept walking toward Nas. At this point I am beyond panicking, assuming I was about to be fired and never work in the industry again if I even survived the impending brawl. But they just walked right up to each other, shook hands discreetly, and kept it moving.
I realized in that moment that the entertainment industry is just that – entertainment – not everything the public is led to believe to be true is true. And from that point on I knew I always wanted to be an industry insider.

Big Vision Incubator Pitch Day at Catalyst Content Festival (L-R [bottom]: Scott Gabriel, Lorena Russi, Skinner Meyer, Kate Imel, Eden Perry L-R [top]: Sofi Marshall, Dani Faith Leonard, Alex Cirillo)
Inequality in film, television and digital media has been a hot topic in the media in these last few years especially, and righting that imbalance has always been a big part of NYWIFT’s mission. What are your thoughts on the problem? And how should it be solved?
This is obviously a huge question and if it had an easy solve it would have been handled years ago by the incredible women (and men) who have been fighting for equality since long before I was born. I assume it will take the right combination of transparency, education, tenacity, visibility, alliances, patience and support from public figures. What I know for sure is now is an incredibly exciting time to be a part of such a powerful organization that continues to be instrumental in the forward progress for women and I’m honored to join the Board of Directors to continue doing my part!

Alex directing a spot for Loacker
What’s the best TV show/movie/web series you’ve seen recently? Why?
My first thought was Dark on Netflix, and then I thought of Brockmire on IFC, but I have to give it the The Handmaid’s Tale on Hulu. It’s poignant, riveting, gut wrenching, and brutally honest. I’m simultaneously entertained and enraged when I watch. And sadly, with our current administration, it doesn’t feel like a distant, dystopian future.
What are your plans for the summer?
Finalizing wedding plans, finishing post production on a feature film Coast, and raising the financing for Randy Wilkins’ Pray for a Little More Spring. But really my goals are to get to the beach at least once and eat lots of s’mores. And direct more. I really need to get back to directing so send your projects my way!
Connect with Alex on Instagram at @cirillireal and @bigvisionemptywallet, on Facebook, or on Twitter at @MissCirillo and @BV_EW.
Learn more about Big Vision Empty Wallet at bigvisionemptywallet.com.
Related Posts
Meet the New NYWIFT Member: Andrea Frierson
Welcome to NYWIFT, Andrea Frierson! Two-time Helen Hayes Award nominee Andrea Frierson is a Dramatists Guild Fellow, a NYSCA grant recipient, and a Library of Congress Award-winner (Ethnographic Research, American Folklife). Her plays and musicals have been produced by Lincoln Center Theater and the York Theatre Company in NYC, among others. As an actor, her Broadway productions include: The Lion King, Once on This Island, Bring in ‘Da Noise/Bring in ‘Da Funk, Eubie!, For Colored Girls, Marie Christine, and Julie Taymor’s Juan Darien: A Carnival Mass. Television appearances include: Quantico, Pose, Red Oaks, Elementary, and Harlem. Andrea was a series regular on the Nickelodeon TV series, Allegra’s Window. In our interview, Andrea discusses her experiences as a writer, actor, and singer, and her journey writing her memoir.
READ MOREMeet the New NYWIFT Member: Mari SanGiovanni
Welcome to NYWIFT, Mari SanGiovanni! Mari is an award-winning LGBTQ filmmaker, screenwriter, director, and owner of Love Is Love Productions, LLC. She is also a published author of four novels and multiple screenplays, two of which have been produced as short films: The Sibling Rule (picked up by a LGBTQ streaming service, Lesflicks) and Retreat, which will be in festivals in 2025. In our conversation, Mari discusses her roots in the film industry, her experiences as a writer, and how she advocates for the LGBTQ+ community through her work.
READ MOREMeet the New NYWIFT Member: Laci Joseph
Welcome to NYWIFT, Laci Joseph! Laci Joseph is a graduating senior at Temple University, earning her B.A. in Film and Media Arts in Spring 2025. She is passionate about production design and visual storytelling, with a focus on African American culture, history, and uplifting marginalized communities. Her creative interests include themes of love, romance, identity, and global exploration. Laci aspires to design for music videos, short films, and documentaries, while also bringing her own passion projects to life. Through her work, she aims to build immersive visual worlds that inspire connection, celebrate culture, and reflect powerful, underrepresented stories. Laci discusses what brought her to film, projects she is currently working on, and the themes she conveys through her work!
READ MORENYWIFT at Tribeca 2025: In Conversation with Victoria Hill
Victoria Hill is no stranger to creating cinematic magic, and her latest project, The Best You Can, premiering at the 2025 Tribeca Festival, is yet another example of her storytelling prowess. As lead producer of and actor in the narrative spotlight film — starring real-life couple Kevin Bacon and Kyra Sedgwick — Hill brings a deeply human story to life, exploring connection, loneliness, and unexpected friendship in midlife. NYWIFT Board Member Gretchen McGowan is one of the film’s executive producers. “When Victoria Hill and Andrew Mann brought Michael Weithorn’s script to us, I thought: we’re all ready for Kyra Sedgwick and Kevin Bacon to appear on the screen together again. This is something the world could use right about now,” McGowan said in a NYWIFT announcement of member projects at Tribeca. With a stellar career that spans producing, acting, and writing across internationally acclaimed films like First Reformed, The Chaperone, and The Secrets We Keep, Hill’s dedication to complex, character-driven stories continues to shine. In this exclusive NYWIFT interview, Hill shares insights into filming on location in NYC, collaborating with industry heavyweights, and her mission to amplify women’s voices through Fibonacci Films.
READ MORE
Comments are closed