Meet the New NYWIFT Member: Rima Das
Welcome to NYWIFT, Rima Das! Rima Das is an Indian filmmaker whose distinctive cinematic voice blurs the line between fiction and lived experience. A member of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences and a Brand Ambassador for the Toronto International Film Festival’s Share Her Journey initiative, she has written, directed, shot, produced, and edited acclaimed independent films including Village Rockstars (2017), Bulbul Can Sing (2018), Tora’s Husband (2022), Village Rockstars 2 (2024), and Not a Hero (2026). Her films have premiered at Toronto, Berlin, and Busan, screened at more than 150 international film festivals, and received over 75 awards. Village Rockstars won India’s National Film Award for Best Feature Film and was India’s official submission to the Academy Awards. In our interview, Rima discusses her leap into storytelling, her journey in filmmaking, and how her Northeast Indian roots motivate her creative work.
READ MOREMeet the New NYWIFT Member: Jennia Iordanou
Welcome to NYWIFT, Jennia Iordanou! Jennia is a New York-based entertainment attorney with a passion for storytelling and the film/TV business. Over the past several years, she’s represented actors, writers, and other creative professionals, helping them navigate talent agreements, development deals and intellectual property matters. While she’s loved advocating for creatives, her experiences have inspired her to pursue a more hands-on role in the filmmaking process. She is currently transitioning into producing, where she hopes to help develop meaningful stories and bring them to the screen. As a new member of NYWIFT, she’s excited to connect with fellow members and continue learning from this incredible community. In our interview, Jennia discusses her fascination with the film world, her love for collaborating, and her transition into becoming a producer.
READ MOREMeet the New NYWIFT Member: Sher Bautista
Welcome to NYWIFT, Sher Bautista! Sher Bautista grew up as a third culture kid in the Middle East and the Philippines. Her work centers on themes of identity, memory, and migration. She co-produced the award-winning feature Delia and Sammy which went on to screen at international festivals including Austin, All Lights, Ortigia, and Hanoi. She co-wrote the series The Boston: A Kitchen Musical and later directed Commune, which became a finalist at Tropfest 2015. Aside from her film projects, she is also a published author, having co-written the children’s book Tasha and Pierre. She has just completed her MFA in Film and her thesis, Tales My Father Told. In our interview, Sher discusses her leap to the film world, recent collaborations, and how her international upbringing impacted her creative work.
READ MOREMeet the New NYWIFT Member: Jo Addy
Welcome to NYWIFT, Jo Addy! Jo Addy is the Global Film Director for Soho House, overseeing a team of cinema programmers globally. From London to New York and now Los Angeles, Jo leverages long-lasting relationships within the film industry to collaborate with the world's most prominent studios and distributors. Jo is the host of “Lights, Camera, Breakfast,” an interview series at Soho House spotlighting women in film and entertainment. A passionate advocate for emerging talent, Jo founded and created Soho House Shorts, a global incubator providing members with the opportunity, mentorship, and platform to turn their scripts into films.
READ MOREMeet the New NYWIFT Member: Eleanore Pienta
Welcome to NYWIFT, Eleanore Pienta! Eleanore is an award-winning screen and stage actor, comedian, dancer, and filmmaker. Pienta has carved out a niche for herself by portraying uncompromising and complex characters in films such as Sundance Award Winner Josephine, A Different Man, Soft & Quiet, and many more. Filmmaker Magazine called her role in See You Next Tuesday: “…one of the most original, indelible, infuriating and truly felt movie characters in some time, a sister to Loden’s Wanda and Rowlands’ A Woman Under The Influence.” Pienta’s directorial debut, Ada, premiered at the New York Film Festival 2018. Her second short, Master of the House, premiered at The New/Next Film Festival 2024. In our interview, Eleanore discusses her motivations for the performing arts, her inspirations, and how her collaborations with others elevate her creative work.
READ MOREMeet the New NYWIFT Member: Shervonne Brown
Welcome to NYWIFT, Shervonne Brown! Shervonne Brown is a New York-based award-winning actress, writer-director, producer, and science-fiction creator working across science fiction, fantasy, action, and psychological drama. She wrote, directed, produced, edited, and starred in Sureiya: The Eidolon Plane, earning Best Actress at the 2026 WSO Theatre & Film Festival. Her pilot screenplay, Sureiya: Legends of Emperion, was a 2026 finalist in the London International Screenwriting Competition. Before filmmaking, Brown built an international K-pop performance career, co-founded performance groups, created award-winning music videos, appeared on television, and performed across the United States and South Korea, including the K-Pop World Festival broadcast internationally on KBS television. In our interview, Shervonne discusses her creative inspirations, artistic upbringing, and the multiple genres that motivate her work.
READ MOREMeet the New NYWIFT Member: Natalie Mahoney
Welcome to NYWIFT, Natalie Mahoney! Natalie is an award-winning photographer, writer, and filmmaker from New York. She received her B.A in TV/Film from DeSales University ’24 and recently received her M.F.A in Film Production from the City College of New York. Natalie has experience in both filmmaking and as an educator with a passion for assisting young creatives conceive, construct, and produce their own projects. Natalie wants to be able to inspire and encourage others with her work, and watch others tell their own stories through the many mediums of the arts!
READ MOREMeet the New NYWIFT Member: Laura Pribanić
Welcome to NYWIFT, Laura Pribanić! Laura is a Croatian film and television producer currently based in New York City. She holds a Master’s degree in Film and TV Production from the Academy of Dramatic Arts in Zagreb. Throughout her career, Laura has worked on feature films, television productions, commercials, and international projects, specializing in production coordination, logistics and on-set management. Passionate about storytelling, human connections, and cross-cultural collaboration, Laura is particularly drawn to stories that explore universal emotions while remaining rooted in authentic local experiences. Through her work, she aims to bridge cultures and bring compelling stories from Croatia and the Balkans to a wider international audience. As she continues building her career in New York, Laura is focused on collaborating with inspiring filmmakers, contributing to ambitious productions and growing within the global film industry.
READ MOREMeet the New NYWIFT Member: Zineb Oukach
Welcome to NYWIFT, Zineb Oukach! Zineb is a Moroccan actress, writer, and filmmaker. She began her acting career in Morocco before moving to Paris to study theater at Le Cours Florent. She later relocated to New York City, where she has worked across film and television, including the feature film Rendition alongside Reese Witherspoon, Jake Gyllenhaal, Meryl Streep and Alan Arkin. In recent years, Zineb has expanded into writing and directing. Her short films Interruption and Fresh Kills both earned Oscar qualifications in 2023 and 2025. After watching Interruption, Sigourney Weaver praised Zineb’s work as a filmmaker. Zineb is currently writing a period drama TV series. She later relocated to New York City, where she has worked across film and television, including the feature film Rendition alongside Reese Witherspoon, Jake Gyllenhaal, Meryl Streep and Alan Arkin. In recent years, Zineb has expanded into writing and directing. Her short films Interruption and Fresh Kills both earned Oscar qualifications in 2023 and 2025. After watching Interruption, Sigourney Weaver praised Zineb’s work as a filmmaker. Zineb is currently writing a period drama TV series.
READ MOREMeet the New NYWIFT Member: Alison Fraser
Welcome to NYWIFT, Alison Fraser! Alison is an award-winning producer and media executive with more than 20 years of experience in the North American entertainment industry. Her career spans work with major organizations including HBO, BET, Court TV, TELUS Storyhive/Originals, and Rogers. She has served as a board member for Gender Equity in Media Society Vancouver (GEMS), formerly Women in Film and Television Vancouver (WIFTV). She has also held leadership roles with Storyhive, Telefilm, Entertainment One, Shaftesbury, and as an Executive Producer at Rephrase Filmworks. Alison holds a graduate degree in Journalism from Columbia University’s Graduate School of Journalism, is a graduate of the Women in Film and Television Media Leadership Program, and recently completed an Executive MBA with a Business in the Americas specialization, which included studies at business schools in São Paulo, Mexico City, and Nashville.
READ MOREMeet the New NYWIFT Member: Linda Nieves-Powell
Welcome to NYWIFT, Linda Nieves-Powell! New York-based Puerto Rican multimedia storyteller Linda Nieves-Powell has spent nearly three decades creating culturally specific, character-driven narratives that center Latina identity. Her work spans theater, film, digital media, and the page, from off-Broadway stages to college campuses nationwide, from a Sundance Screenwriting Lab semi-finalist selection to a Simon & Schuster publication. Her Imagen Award-winning stage work YO SOY LATINA! has been produced at more than 400 colleges across the country and off-Broadway. She is currently completing a screenplay called Idalis and Selenis Go Freestyle.
READ MOREMeet the New NYWIFT Member: Ceilidh Michelle
Welcome to NYWIFT, Ceilidh Michelle! Ceilidh is the author of Butterflies, Zebras, Moonbeams, (Palimpsest Press 2019), shortlisted for the Hugh MacLennan Award for Fiction and Vagabond: Venice Beach, Slab City and Points In Between (Douglas & McIntyre 2021). Her novella, Living Waters, was shortlisted for the Malahat Review's Novella Prize and The Commonwealth Prize, she's received an honorary mention from Writers Digest, and has been shortlisted for the Eunice Williams Prize for Nonfiction. The CBC has listed her twice as an author to watch. Her work has appeared in Maclean’s Magazine, 49th shelf, Room, Saltwire, Long Reads, and others. Originally from Nova Scotia, she lives in New York.
READ MOREMeet the New NYWIFT Member: Fozhan Gharib
Welcome to NYWIFT, Fozhan Gharib! Fozhan (Fou) Gharib is a New York-based filmmaker, editor, and screenwriter who transitions seamlessly between performance and cinematic storytelling. After studying for her Master’s in Screenwriting at the University of Tehran, she relocated to the U.S. in 2023, earning a Master’s in Media Studies from The New School. Her work weaves psychological drama with a deeply poetic exploration of memory and resilience. Fou’s recent award-winning narrative short, Night of Melancholia, has screened at prestigious festivals globally and across New York City, cementing her voice as a vital new force in independent cinema. In our interview, Fozhan discussed her journey into filmmaking, the various inspirations behind her work, and her passion for building her projects from the ground up.
READ MOREMeet the New NYWIFT Member: Aayushi Shah
Welcome to NYWIFT, Aayushi Shah! Aayushi is an award-winning South Asian screenwriter/filmmaker based in New York. Her screenplays have gained recognition from Oscar-qualifying festivals across the USA, while her filmmaking work (directing/producing/assistant-directing) includes shorts and features that’ve been showcased at festivals around the world or have streamed on Netflix and other platforms. Throughout her film career, she has worked for leading organizations like Bloomberg, The Juilliard School, PVH Corp., Industrial Scripts, and the Berlinale. Recently, she served as a juror for the FOLCS International Short Film Competition. Her writing has been published online and her work has been featured in the press.
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