May 22nd, 2025

Press Materials Available Here

 

Tribeca Festival 2025 Announces Jury of Acclaimed Filmmakers, Performers and Artists

 

Jurors Include Art Linson, Kyle MacLachlan, Mira Sorvino, Ahmed Ahmed, Matthew Broderick, Jennifer Beals, Ilana Glazer, Kareem Rahma, and More

 

Tribeca Membership and Festival Passes Available at TribecaFilm.com

 

Single Tickets on Sale Now

 

New York, NY, May 22, 2025 – The Tribeca Festival, presented by OKX, today unveiled its star-studded 2025 jury lineup responsible for selecting this year’s top projects across film, games, and audio storytelling sections. The prestigious panel will award coveted honors across 15 competition categories at the festival, taking place June 4 – 15 in New York City.

 

This year's jury brings together a prolific collection of creative forces—from international stars and Oscar winners to cult icons and comedy trail blazers. Notable names include Jennifer Beals, Matthew Broderick, Ilana Glazer, Art Linson, Kyle MacLachlan, Mira Sorvino, alongside other visionaries tasked with discovering tomorrow's breakthrough talents. In addition, the Nora Ephron Award will honor an exceptional female filmmaker who represents the spirit and vision of the legendary filmmaker and writer.

 

“We’re proud to welcome an eclectic group of jurors to this year’s Tribeca Festival,” said Nancy Lefkowitz, EVP at Tribeca Enterprises. “Their breadth of expertise across genres will be instrumental in recognizing standout storytellers and honoring bold new voices from around the world.”

 

More than 30 industry luminaries were selected to honor feature-length and short film categories, composed of narrative and documentary films. Additional juries have also been established to honor the best work in Tribeca’s games, as well as submissions in the audio storytelling category. The winning films, projects, filmmakers, storytellers, and actors in each category will be announced at the Tribeca Festival ceremony on June 12.

 

Learn more about the Tribeca Festival programming team at TribecaFilm.com.

 

For more updates on programming follow Twitter, Instagram, Facebook, LinkedIn, and YouTube. A Tribeca Membership or 2025 Tribeca Festival passes and ticket packages can be purchased at tribecafilm.com.

 

The following is a list of the 2025 Festival Jurors and their respective categories.

 

About the Tribeca Festival
The Tribeca Festival, presented by OKX, brings artists and diverse audiences together to celebrate storytelling in all its forms, including film, TV, music, audio storytelling, games, and immersive. With strong roots in independent film, Tribeca is synonymous with creative expression and entertainment. 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.

 

The Festival was founded by Robert De Niro, Jane Rosenthal, and Craig Hatkoff in 2001 to spur the economic and cultural revitalization of lower Manhattan following the attacks on the World Trade Center. The annual Tribeca Festival will celebrate its 24th year from June 4–15, 2025 in New York City.

 

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 the 2025 Tribeca Festival Partners
The 2025 Tribeca Festival is presented by OKX and with the support of our partners: AT&T, Audible, Bulleit Frontier Whiskey, Canva, CHANEL, City National Bank, DIRECTV, Don Julio Tequila, FIJI Water, Indeed, KLM Royal Dutch Airlines, NBC4 and Telemundo 47, NYC Mayor's Office of Media and Entertainment, National CineMedia, New York Magazine, Purina, Spring Studios New York, The Wall Street Journal, Variety, Vulture, and Whalar.

 

Press Contacts
Tribeca
Nicole Elice | nelice@tribecafilm.com
Rogers & Cowan PMK | tribecafestival2025@rcpmk.com

 

FEATURE FILM COMPETITION CATEGORIES

 

Jurors for the 2025 U.S. Narrative Feature Competition are:

Nia DaCosta
Acclaimed filmmaker Nia DaCosta is one of Hollywood's most sought-after voices. Currently in post-production on 28 Years Later: The Bone Temple, she recently wrote, directed, and produced Hedda starring Tessa Thompson. In 2023, DaCosta made history as the first Black woman and youngest director to helm a Marvel Studios film with The Marvels. Her 2021 reimagining of Candyman debuted at #1 at the box office to critical acclaim. Her Tribeca Festival 2018 debut feature Little Woods earned a 96% Rotten Tomatoes rating. Her television work includes Netflix's Top Boy and HBO's Industry.

 

Art Linson
Award-winning producer Art Linson has created landmark films across five decades, including Fight Club, Heat, The Untouchables, Fast Times at Ridgemont High, Into the Wild, and two-time Oscar® winner Melvin and Howard. With partner John Linson, he executive produces cable television's most popular scripted series Yellowstone and its hit prequels 1883 and 1923. Linson authored A Pound of Flesh and What Just Happened?, the latter adapted into a film starring Robert De Niro.

 

Joshua Marston
Joshua Marston is a Brooklyn-based independent filmmaker and television director. His first film, Maria Full of Grace, won the Audience Award at the 2004 Sundance Film Festival and went on to receive an Academy Award nomination for Best Actress. His second film, The Forgiveness of Blood (available on the Criterion Collection), premiered at the 2011 Berlin International Film Festival, where it was awarded the Silver Bear for Best Screenplay. His most recent film, Come Sunday (starring Chiwetel Ejiofor, Martin Sheen, Jason Segel and Danny Glover) became available on Netflix after having its premiere at the Sundance Film Festival. Marston wrote and directed the Coney Island section of New York, I Love You, starring Cloris Leachman and Eli Wallach, and has directed episodes of Tulsa King, Billions, Ray Donovan, The Newsroom, Six Feet Under and In Treatment. He is a recipient of the Guggenheim Fellowship and earned an MA in Political Science from the University of Chicago as well as an MFA in filmmaking from New York University.

 

Kent Sanderson
Kent Sanderson is the head of indie film studio Bleecker Street founded by Andrew Karpen, which he joined at its 2014 inception. He oversees the company's acclaimed film slate which includes Tribeca-selected Relay with Riz Ahmed, period-parody Fackham Hall, horror entry The Third Parent, this summer's re-release of This Is Spinal Tap, and its sequel Spinal Tap II (September). Recent highlights include The Wedding Banquet with Bowen Yang and Lily Gladstone, One Life with Anthony Hopkins, Tribeca-selected Waitress: The Musical, and Oscar-nominated Golda. His previous experience includes roles at GoDigital, Focus Features, and William Morris Agency.

 

Colson Whitehead
Colson Whitehead is the author of: The Intuitionist, John Henry Days, The Colossus of New York, Apex Hides the Hurt, Sag Harbor, Zone One and The Noble Hustle. His novel, The Underground Railroad, was an international and #1 New York Times Bestseller and won the Pulitzer Prize, the National Book Award, the Carnegie Medal for Fiction, the 2017 Hurston/Wright Award for Fiction, the Arthur C. Clarke Award for Science Fiction Literature. He was featured on the cover of Time Magazine, and included in the list of the “100 Most Influential People” compiled by Time. His novel The Nickel Boys won the Kirkus Prize, The Orwell Prize for Political Fiction, was a finalist for the 2020 Southern Book Prize, and was longlisted for the National Book Award, the Carnegie Medal for Excellence in Fiction, and the Aspen Words Literary Prize. It was a long-running New York Times bestseller and winner of the Pulitzer Prize 2020 making him a two-time winner of the award. His novel, Harlem Shuffle, was published in 2021 and won the UN Thriller of the Year. The sequel, Crook Manifesto, was published in 2023 and has been nominated for an Edgar Award. The final title in the trilogy will be published in 2025 (all Doubleday). President Biden awarded him with a National Endowment for the Humanities Medal in 2023.

 

Jurors for the 2025 U.S. International Narrative Feature Competition are:

 

Dagmara Dominczyk
Polish-born actress Dagmara Dominczyk, a graduate of Carnegie Mellon University and LaGuardia High School of Performing Arts, has established herself across film, television, and theater. Early film appearances in The Count of Monte Cristo and Running with Scissors paved the way for recent acclaimed roles in the Oscar-nominated The Lost Daughter (directed by Maggie Gyllenhaal) and as Ann Beaulieu in Sofia Coppola's Priscilla. Television audiences recognize her as the "stealth MVP" Karolina Novotney in HBO's Succession and as "dogged and restrained" FBI agent Erika Jensen in the miniseries We Own This City. Her extensive TV credits include The Deuce, Boardwalk Empire, and Law & Order: SVU. Upcoming, she stars in Netflix's Black Rabbit alongside Jason Bateman and Jude Law. Beyond acting, Dominczyk authored the novel The Lullaby of Polish Girls (Random House, 2013), inspired by her childhood.

 

Valeria Golino
Italian actress, director, producer, and screenwriter Valeria Golino was discovered by Lina Wertmüller for Piccoli Fuochi (1985). She has won two Volpi Cups at Venice Film Festival for Storia d'amore and Per amor vostro. Her international work includes Rain Man, Hot Shots!, and Apple TV+'s The Morning Show. Notable Italian credits include collaborations with acclaimed directors Salvatores, Virzì, and Soldini, plus roles in Céline Sciamma's Portrait of a Lady on Fire and Costa-Gavras' Adults in the Room. As director, her debut Miele received Special Mention at Cannes, followed by Euphoria (Cannes Un Certain Regard). Recent work includes Netflix's The Lying Life of Adults, Ginevra Elkann's Te l'avevo detto, and her latest directorial effort L'arte della gioia, which earned 14 David di Donatello nominations. She currently stars in Mario Martone's Fuori, in competition at the 78th Cannes Film Festival.

 

Toby Jones
Award winning actor known for roles on stage and screen. Recently starred in Mr Burton and led the critically acclaimed, BAFTA award winning Mr Bates vs. The Post Office, earning him a nomination for Best Actor. Upcoming projects include ITV's The Hack with David Tennant, Apple TV+'s Hijack (series 2), Duke Johnson's The Actor, and Bharat Nalluri’s Flavia. Toby will also be making a return to stage this October in Othello at Theatre Royal Haymarket in London. Notable screen credits include Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy, Frost/Nixon, The Hunger Games, Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny, and Detectorists. Stage work includes his Olivier Award winning debut in The Play What I Wrote and an Olivier-nominated performance in the titular role of Uncle Vanya at the Harold Pinter Theatre.

 

David Laub
David Laub leads Metrograph Pictures, an independent film distributor born from the iconic downtown New York cinema. Since February 2024, he's acquired 10 films including India Donaldson's Good One, Sandhya Suri's Academy-shortlisted Santosh, and Venice prize winner April. Previously, in his nine-year tenure at A24, he shepherded acclaimed titles including Aftersun, Close, First Cow, First Reformed, and Stop Making Sense, while contributing to campaigns for Oscar winners Everything Everywhere All At Once and Moonlight. As Co-President of Oscilloscope Laboratories, he oversaw releases like We Need to Talk About Kevin and Exit Through the Gift Shop. His career began at THINKFilm, where he helped acquire Half Nelson and Oscar-winning documentary Taxi to the Dark Side.

 

Kyle MacLachlan
With a career spanning over four decades, Kyle MacLachlan is a star of the silver screen, television screen, and now the phone screen. His breakthrough came through David Lynch collaborations in Dune, Blue Velvet, and Twin Peaks, where his portrayal of FBI Special Agent Dale Cooper earned him two Emmy nominations and a Golden Globe. His diverse filmography includes The Doors, Showgirls, Inside Out franchise, and Blink Twice, while his television work spans Sex and The City, Desperate Housewives, Portlandia, Fallout, and the upcoming comedy Overcompensating. Beyond acting, MacLachlan has expanded into producing across multiple platforms with his award-winning Varnamtown podcast and several forthcoming projects. In 2024, he reinvented himself as a social media phenomenon, creating viral content that connected him with stars like Charli XCX and Lorde. Off-screen, he channels his creativity as proprietor of his Washington state wine label, Pursued by Bear.

 

Jurors for the 2025 Documentary Feature Competition are:

 

Sara Bernstein
Sara Bernstein is an award-winning producer and President of Imagine Documentaries, leading the development and production of premium documentary feature films and series. Recent credits include the five-time Emmy Award-winning Best Documentary Jim Henson Idea Man (Disney+), Frida (Prime Video), Music by John Williams (Disney+), The Super Models (Apple TV+), The Dynasty: New England Patriots (Apple TV+), The Volcano: Rescue from Whakaari (Netflix), Fight for Glory: 2024 World Series (Apple TV+), David Blaine: Do Not Attempt (Nat Geo), Pets (Disney+), Earnhardt (Prime Video), and the upcoming Barbara Walters Tell Me Everything (Hulu). Prior to joining Imagine, Bernstein was SVP, HBO Documentary Films, where she oversaw award-winning nonfiction programming for the network. Bernstein’s films and series have garnered multiple EMMY, Peabody and Academy Awards. In 2024, she was featured on Variety’s New York Women’s Impact List.

 

Ben Proudfoot
A two-time Academy Award®-winning director and entrepreneur, Ben Proudfoot is the creative force behind Breakwater Studios. A landmark partnership with The New York Times produced 16 collaborations with over 10 million views, including The Queen of Basketball, which won the Oscar for Best Documentary Short in 2022. On March 10, 2024, Proudfoot won a second Academy Award®, this time for The Last Repair Shop. Proudfoot views real-world impact as a film’s highest achievement, advocating for The Queen of Basketball’s Lusia Harris’ legacy as a unsung basketball pioneer, and inspiring a $15M capital campaign for the repair facility in The Last Repair Shop. Today, Proudfoot leads a full-time filmmaking staff of twenty-five across Breakwater Studios’ multiple Los Feliz facilities, producing both original and commissioned documentaries with partners like Google, UNICEF, and L’Oréal Paris. Proudfoot was named one of Forbes "30 Under 30" for innovation in the brand-funded documentary space. He hails from Halifax, Nova Scotia, and graduated from USC's School of Cinematic Arts. Proudfoot is also an accomplished sleight-of-hand magician and has performed at The Magic Castle in Los Angeles.

 

Mira Sorvino
Mira Sorvino's acclaimed career includes an Academy Award, Golden Globe, Critics' Choice Award, and New York Film Critics Circle honor for Mighty Aphrodite. She earned additional Golden Globe nominations for Human Trafficking and her Emmy-nominated portrayal of Marilyn Monroe in HBO's Norma Jean and Marilyn. Her diverse filmography features collaborations with renowned directors in Summer of Sam, Mimic, Quiz Show, cult favorite Romy and Michele's High School Reunion, Beautiful Girls, and Reservation Road. Recent television work includes Shining Vale with Courteney Cox and Ryan Murphy's Hollywood and Impeachment: American Crime Story. Beyond acting, Sorvino serves as a UN Goodwill Ambassador, dedicating herself to the global fight against human trafficking.

 

Jurors for the 2025 Best New Narrative Director Competition are:

 

Matthew Broderick
Two-time Tony award-winning actor Matthew Broderick was most recently seen starring in Netflix’s Opioid Drama Painkiller, opposite Uzo Aduba, and Sony’s Coming-of-Age Comedy No Hard Feelings opposite Jennifer Lawrence and Laura Benanti. Additionally, he starred in the hit World Premiere of Joe DiPietro’s new play, Babbitt at La Jolla Playhouse, as well as the Broadway revival of Neil Simon’s Plaza Suite alongside his wife, Sarah Jessica Parker, which they most recently performed in the West End. Additional credits include: Manchester By The Sea, directed by Kenneth Lonergan, Margaret, Election, The Producers and fan favorite Ferris Bueller’s Day Off, among many others.

 

Sejin Croninger
Sejin Croninger serves as EVP of Worldwide Acquisitions at Paramount Pictures and GM of Republic Pictures, where she establishes strategy and distribution for all acquisitions. Her team sources content for both theatrical release and the Republic Pictures label, overseeing projects including Academy and Golden Globe-nominated September 5, Sundance Grand Jury Audience winner Twinless, and upcoming films Bad Apples starring Saoirse Ronan and Savage House with Richard E. Grant and Claire Foy. Previously, she held senior leadership positions at Universal Pictures' Content Group, Entertainment One, and New Line Cinema. An Adjunct Professor in Producing at the American Film Institute Conservatory, Croninger studied in UCLA's Film-Critical Studies Master's Program and holds a BS in Political Science from UCI.

 

Eliza Hittman
Eliza Hittman is an award-winning filmmaker, born/based in Brooklyn, NY. Her latest film, Never Rarely Sometimes Always, was released by Focus Features in 2020 after premiering at the Berlin Film Festival, winning the Silver Bear Grand Jury Award. The film’s US premiere was at Sundance and won a special jury prize. The film also won the National Society of Film Critics Awards for Best Screenplay. Eliza’s second feature, Beach Rats, was released by NEON in 2017. Hittman was awarded the Directing Award at Sundance that year. Her debut feature It Felt Like Love premiered at Sundance in 2013 in NEXT and was a New York Times’ Critics Pick. Most recently, Eliza directed and executive produced the pilot and episode 103 of Peacock’s original limited series, A Friend of the Family, which premiered on October 6th, 2022. In January 2023, Eliza participated as a member of the jury for US Dramatic Competition for the 2023 Sundance Film Festival. In February 2024, she participated as a member of the jury for the 74th Annual Berlinale Film Festival.

 

Jurors for the 2025 Best New Documentary Director Competition are:

Kristine Stolakis
Emmy nominated director Kristine Stolakis creates films about mental health and coming-of-age. Her feature debut PRAY AWAY (Netflix 2021), chronicling the "pray the gay away movement," received Emmy, Critics Choice, and GLAAD Media Award nominations. Executive produced by Blumhouse and Ryan Murphy, produced by Multitude Films, with support from Tribeca Film Institute and Sundance Institute, it was hailed as "one of the most important films of the year." Currently, she's completing her sophomore feature alive!, an animated documentary following young women rebuilding after nearly fatal eating disorders. Stolakis is also writing her fiction feature debut with NYT Magazine writer Jaeah Lee, and developing a short documentary on birth trauma with Insignia Films. She teaches film production at Hunter College and holds an MFA from Stanford University.

 

Sean Stuart
Sean Stuart is founder and president of Sutter Road Picture Company, producing the Emmy and PGA Award-winning What's My Name: Muhammad Ali (2020) and Grammy Award-winning Jazz Fest: A New Orleans Story (2023). Recent projects include Road Diary: Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band (Toronto, 2024), Diane von Furstenberg: Woman in Charge (Tribeca 2024), and The Blue Angels (Amazon/IMAX). In 2024, he produced HBO Max documentaries Charlie Hustle & The Matter of Pete Rose and Cannes/Tribeca selection Elizabeth Taylor: The Lost Tapes. His 2024 Emmy-nominated works include Chowchilla (CNN) and Sundance selection Willie Nelson & Family (Paramount+). As founding partner of Company Name with Colin Hanks, Stuart is producing an untitled John Candy documentary with Maximum Effort, following previous collaborations Say Hey, Willie Mays! with LeBron James and Thriller 40 for Paramount+.

 

Jamila Wignot
Jamila Wignot is an award-winning Brooklyn-based filmmaker who explores the intersections of history, culture, and identity through innovative storytelling. Her body of work includes the Peabody Award-winning series Stax: Soulsville USA (SXSW ‘24), Ailey (Sundance '21); the Peabody, Emmy, and duPont-Columbia award-winning The African Americans: Many Rivers to Cross; Town Hall a feature-length co-production with ITVS about the Tea Party movement; and for American Experience the Peabody Award-winning "Triangle Fire" and Emmy-nominated "Walt Whitman". Wignot’s producing credits include Sierra Pettengill’s Riotsville, USA (Sundance '22); “Hands On,” for The New York Times FX/Hulu series The Weekly; W. Kamau Bell’s directorial debut Bring the Pain: The Documentary. She most recently directed the series Girls Gone Wild: The Untold Story now streaming on Peacock.

 

Jurors for the 2025 Nora Ephron Award are:

 

Caroline Aaron
Caroline Aaron currently stars Off-Broadway in Conversations with Mother opposite Matt Doyle. She recently concluded her run as Shirley Maisel in Amazon's The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel while recurring on CBS's Ghosts. Other television highlights include Transparent, Curb Your Enthusiasm, Showtime's Episodes, plus appearances on Modern Family and the Law & Order franchise. Her extensive Broadway credits include Come Back to the Five and Dime, Jimmy Dean, Jimmy Dean, The Iceman Cometh, and Relatively Speaking, while recent stage work features Madwomen of the West (London/LA/NY) and Bye Bye Birdie at the Kennedy Center. With over 100 film appearances, Aaron stars in recent indie hits Theatre Camp and Between The Temples, the upcoming Bookends with F. Murray Abraham, plus classics like Crimes and Misdemeanors, Edward Scissorhands, and Primary Colors.

 

Aijah Keith
Aijah Keith is the Head of Indie Film Licensing at Hulu, where she spearheads negotiations and strategy across the company’s independent film portfolio. She manages Hulu’s extensive licensing slate, securing deals for over 300 films annually, and oversees exclusive output partnerships with leading distributors such as NEON, Roadside Attractions, and AMC Networks’ IFC Films and RLJ Entertainment. Her efforts have brought critically acclaimed and culturally impactful titles to the platform—including Academy Award Best Picture winner Anora, Longlegs, Blackberry and The Order—cementing Hulu’s reputation as a premier destination for distinguished independent cinema. Prior to joining Hulu, Aijah served as Director of Acquisitions at IFC Films, where she led acquisitions on some of the most critically acclaimed independent films in the marketplace. She was named to MPN’s 40 Under 40 in the Class of 2023.

 

Annie Murphy
Emmy® Award-winning actress Annie Murphy gained fame as 'Alexis Rose' in Schitt's Creek, which swept nine Emmy® Awards, a Golden Globe for Best Musical or Comedy Series, and a SAG Award for Best Ensemble in its final season. She will next appear in Season 2 of Nine Perfect Strangers alongside Nicole Kidman (Hulu, May 21, 2025) and voice a character in Tubi's animated comedy Breaking Bear. Recent credits include Netflix's Black Mirror, Dreamworks' Ruby Gillman: Teenage Kraken, and voicing the lead in Freeform's Praise Petey. She previously starred in AMC's dark comedy Kevin Can F**k Himself and appeared in Netflix's Russian Doll. Murphy has voiced characters for Robot Chicken, American Dad, and Family Guy, and created the CBC web series The Plateaus featuring Elisha Cuthbert and Jay Baruchel. The Ontario native is a graduate of the Canadian Film Centre Actors' Conservatory and Concordia University's Theatre Performance Program.

 

Jurors for the 2025 Viewpoints Competition are:

Brian Jordan Alvarez
Multihyphenate Brian Jordan Alvarez, named one of The New York Times' “Breakout Stars of 2023” and Variety's "10 Comics to Watch" in 2017, currently stars in, showruns, executive produces, writes and directs FX's acclaimed comedy English Teacher. The series has been recognized with four Independent Spirit Award nominations, including Best New Scripted Series & Best Lead Performance; three Critics Choice nominations, including Best Actor and Best Comedy Series; two Writers Guild of America Award nominations, and two Gotham TV Award nominations. He first gained recognition creating IndieWire's "Best Web Series of 2016," The Gay and Wondrous Life of Caleb Gallo, which earned a Gotham Award nomination and a Lionsgate development deal. This summer, he returns as 'Cole' in Universal's anticipated horror sequel M3GAN 2.0. The Colombian American creator, fluent in Spanish, frequently draws from his Latin American heritage and Southern upbringing in Tennessee throughout his work.

 

Jennifer Beals
Jennifer Beals is a Golden Globe-nominated actress, producer, and creative force, known for her captivating performances across film and television. Over her legendary four-decade career, she has delivered unforgettable performances, from her NAACP Award-winning debut in Flashdance to her portrayal of Bette Porter in The L Word, a groundbreaking character who remains a beloved role model to queer women around the world. The portrayal won her the GLAAD Golden Gate Award, as well as two NAACP Image Award nominations and a Satellite Award nomination. Jennifer has also starred in Netflix's global hit Luckiest Girl Alive, and the Disney+ Star Wars spin off The Book of Boba Fett, lead by Jon Favreau. Additionally, Beals has made her mark as a visionary producer, published author, acclaimed & prolific photographer, and even an inventor. Her advocacy work has been equally impactful: Beals received the Human Rights Campaign’s Ally for Equality Award in 2012 for her steadfast support of the LGBTQ+ community and was honored with GLSEN’s Champion Award in 2020 for her dedication to LGBTQ+ youth. With her talent, intellect, and passion for meaningful storytelling, Beals continues to inspire and enthrall audiences, cementing her legacy as a true trailblazer in the entertainment world.

 

Raul Castillo
Raúl Castillo recently starred in Paramount's much anticipated sequel Smile 2, and just wrapped The Hand That Rocks the Cradle alongside Mary Elizabeth Winstead and Maika Monroe, as well as The Casket Girls with Gabrielle Union and Mike Colter. He will be seen next in HBO’s upcoming series Task from Brad Ingelsby, and leads the thriller Push from directors David Charobier and Justin Powell, as well as Cold Wallet which premiered at SXSW. Other films include A24’s The Inspection, which earned him a Gotham Award nomination for Outstanding Supporting Performance, Barron’s Cove, which premiered Hamptons International Film Festival, Prime Video's Cassandro, Miguel Wants to Fight from Hulu, Netflix’s Hustle with Adam Sandler, Cha Cha Real Smooth, and Mother/Android. He was a fan favorite on Looking, Class of ’09, on Netflix’s original series Atypical and Seven Seconds.

 

Alex Karpovsky
Alex is an actor, writer, and director best known for his starring role as ‘Ray’ in the Golden Globe-winning HBO comedy Girls. Acting credits include The Coen Brothers films Inside Llewyn Davis and Hail, Caesar!, the television series Homecoming opposite Julia Roberts, and Angelyne opposite Emmy Rossum. He will next be seen in Netflix’s Nobody Wants This. A multi-hyphenate, Alex wrote, directed, and starred in the dark comedy Red Flag and the thriller Rubberneck. His award-winning debut feature The Hole Story earned him a spot on Filmmaker Magazine’s 25 New Faces of Independent Film. He is currently in post-production on his sixth feature.

 

Mickey Sumner
Upcoming, Mickey Sumner co-stars in Brad Ingelsby’s HBO limited series Task opposite Mark Ruffalo and Tom Pelphrey, and in Cary Fukunaga’s film Blood on Snow opposite Benedict Cumberbatch and Aaron Taylor Johnson. Sumner starred in Christine Jeff’s feature film A Mistake opposite Elizabeth Banks. The film premiered at the 2024 Tribeca Film Festival to critical acclaim and was released theatrically in September 2024. Sumner starred as a series regular alongside Daveed Diggs and Jennifer Connelly in all four seasons of the dystopian-thriller drama series Snowpiercer based on the Bong Joon-ho-directed feature. She gave a stand-out performance opposite Greta Gerwig in Noah Baumbach’s Frances Ha. She starred in Tim Blake Nelson's Anesthesia, John Magary’s The Mend, James Ponsoldt's The End of the Tour, and the comedy This Is Happening. She had a cameo role as Patti Smith in CBGB and played the lead role in Martin Snyder’s Missed Connections, also appearing in Girl Most Likely, American Made, Battle of the Sexes and Marriage Story. Sumner directed I’m Listening in the With/In: Volume 2 anthology which was released in 2021. Her television credits include recurring roles in AMC's Low Winter Sun, The Borgias, and Caring. Sumner made her Off-Broadway and Atlantic Theater Company debut in Craig Lucas's world premiere The Lying Lesson. Her other theater credits include the 24 Hour Plays on Broadway, and Tomorrow Morning. Born and raised in England, she currently lives in New York, having graduated with a B.F.A. from Parsons School of Design.

 

Short Film Competition Categories

 

Jurors for the 2025 Narrative & Animated Shorts Competition are:

Ilana Glazer
Ilana Glazer is an Emmy Award winner and co-creator, writer, director, executive producer and star, first known for the critically acclaimed show Broad City. Most recently, Glazer made their Broadway debut alongside George Clooney in Good Night, and Good Luck. Glazer released their sophomore stand-up special, Human Magic, on Hulu. Glazer co-wrote and starred in the film Babes (Neon), which premiered in 2024 at SXSW to rave reviews.

 

Asher Grodman
Asher Grodman is an actor, director, writer and producer who has worked across all mediums. Asher can currently be seen starring as fan-favorite character Trevor on the critically acclaimed CBS comedy Ghosts, for which he earned a Critics Choice Nomination for Best Supporting Actor in a Comedy. The series is currently on its fourth season and has been renewed for two additional seasons. Grodman’s other recent television appearances include Succession (HBO), Chicago Med (NBC), House of Cards (Netflix), Elementary (CBS) and Law & Order: Special Victims Unit (NBC). Grodman recently directed, wrote, produced, and starred in the Jacksonville Jaguars’ 2023 schedule release video. The schedule release video received 3 nominations at the 2024 Webby Awards in the following categories: Scripted Entertainment, Short Form Branded Entertainment, and Sports Video Entertainment. It also won a 2024 Bronze Lion at Cannes Lion and won at Tribeca X Festival. Grodman is also the writer/director/producer of the award-winning short film The Train starring Academy Award Winner Eli Wallach. The Train was featured in over 25 festivals and won numerous honors including recognitions for Best Film at the Cleveland International Film Festival and the Sedona International Film Festival.

 

Sheila Nevins
Sheila Nevins is the former president of HBO Documentary Films and Family Programming and former Executive Producer for MTV Documentary Films making her responsible for the development and production of more than 1500 programs. She has received 32 Primetime Emmy® Awards, 35 News and Documentary Emmys and 42 George Foster Peabody Awards. A New York Times best-selling author, Nevins has been honored with numerous prestigious career achievement awards and inducted into Broadcasting & Cable’s Hall of Fame. She has garnered an IDA Career Achievement Award and the New York Women in Film & Television Muse Award for Outstanding Vision & Achievement. Most recently, she was Executive Producer on the 2025 Academy Award nominated film, I Am Ready Warden.

 

Pamela Ribon
Pamela Ribon is the Academy Award®-nominated creator, performer, and writer of My Year of Dicks, an adaptation of her critically-acclaimed comedic memoir Notes to Boys (And Other Things I Shouldn't Share in Public), which was nominated for Best Animated Short Film for the 95th Academy Awards. Her screenwriting work includes Moana, Nimona, Ralph Breaks the Internet, and Bears, and has written for television and VR. She's written several comic books and is a best-selling novelist (My Boyfriend is a Bear, Slam!, Why Girls Are Weird). She co-hosts the podcast Listen To Sassy, a weekly deep-dive through every issue of the beloved 90's teen Magazine. She is currently writing Emily the Strange for Warner Bros. Animation and Bad Robot and is hard at work on her first documentary. @pamelaribon she/her

 

Moon Zappa
Moon Unit Zappa is a writer, artist, tea merchant, and podcaster. Her Moon Unit® Tea is currently only available on her website moonunit.com=. Her latest book, Earth to Moon-A Memoir, published by Harper Collins/Dey Street Books can be found in hardcover and will soon be released as a trade paperback.

 

Jurors for the 2025 Short Documentary, Music Video, and Student Visionary Competition are:

 

Ahmed Ahmed
Actor, comedian, producer, and director known for breaking barriers as the sole Arab-American actor in a non-stereotypical role as "Ahmed" on TBS' comedy series Sullivan & Son. TV and film credits include The Tonight Show, Weeds, Iron Man, You Don't Mess With The Zohan, and Swingers. Recipient of the inaugural Richard Pryor Award for Ethnic Comedy at the Edinburgh Comedy Festival. Co-founder of the historic Axis of Evil Comedy Tour and creator of the first-ever Middle Eastern stand-up comedy special on Comedy Central. Tours nationally and internationally, recently headlining at Netflix Is A Joke Festival with a new comedy special coming from Comedy Dynamics this fall.

 

Weyes Blood
Natalie Mering, known professionally by her artist name Weyes Blood, is an American singer songwriter with a penchant for the cinematic. Transcendent and sometimes wistful, her folk-pop experimentalism explores everything that drives us, divides us, and destroys us. Mering grew up singing in gospel and madrigal choirs, before prodigiously picking up guitar at age 8. That — mingled with her love of jazz, filmmaker Alejandro Jodorowsky, and scholar Joseph Campbell — has shaped her music, which tells stories of both ancient and modern myths.

 

Havana Rose Liu
Havana Rose Liu recently wrapped shooting the independent feature Tuner, for Oscar-winning filmmaker Daniel Roher, starring opposite Leo Woodall and Dustin Hoffman. She can next be seen in the indie feature Lurker for writer and director Alex Russell and executive producer Chris Storer, opposite Archie Madwekwe and in Cooper Raiff’s highly anticipated independent series Hall & Harper, opposite Raiff, Mark Ruffalo, and Lili Reinhart. Both projects premiered at Sundance 2025. Following this, she will be seen in John Carney’s feature film Power Ballad, opposite Paul Rudd and Nick Jonas, as well as Michael Showalter’s feature film Oh What Fun for Amazon, opposite Michelle Pfieffer and Dominic Sessa. Havana broke out in 2023 for her role in Emma Selgiman’s satirical comedy feature Bottoms, opposite Rachel Sennott and Ayo Edebiri, which premiered at South by Southwest, to stellar reviews. Past credits include the Hulu Original No Exit, as well as A24’S The Sky Is Everywhere. On the theater side, Havana just made her Off-Broadway debut in the world premiere of All Nighter, opposite Kristine Froseth, Julia Lester, and Kathryn Gallagher.

 

Kim Magnusson
Kim Magnusson is a Danish film producer. Since he founded M&M productions, with his father Tivi Magnusson in 1995, he has produced or EP’d over 160 films. He won two Academy Awards for the short live action films Election Night (1998) and Helium (2014), and was nominated five more times. Kim held a producer title on six more Oscar nominated films, with three wins, including this year’s winner I’m Not a Robot. Kim was the CEO of Nordisk Film Production (2003 – 2009). Kim has been the longest-serving chairman of the Danish Producers Association (9 years), as well as 20 year-long chairman of the Danish Film Academy. In 2010 he launched Dansk Film Kompagni to develop and produce high-end, commercial-driven film for the international market. He was also part of forming Scandinavian Film Funds, and served as CCO to the Pan--Nordic, Scandinavian Film Distribution. Kim is a voting member of AMPAS® and the PGA as well as The Independent Spirits Awards, The Danish and The European Film Academy.

 

Kareem Rahma Three-time Webby-nominated writer, producer, comedian and musician. Creator and host of viral digital series Keep The Meter Running and SubwayTakes, with hundreds of millions of views across platforms. Wrote, produced and starred in Or Something (The Downtown Festival, 2024) and Out Of Order (Tribeca, 2022). Executive Producer of Caterpillar (SXSW, 2023), Ferguson Rises (Tribeca, 2021) and Miracle Fishing (Tribeca, 2020). Published poet (We Were Promised Flying Cars, 2020) and performs with his band Tiny Gun at iconic New York venues. Featured as one of "7 People Who Made New York City a Better Place in 2024" by the New York Times. Recipient of the Above The Fold Award from The University of Minnesota and named to CairoScene's "18 of 2018" influential Egyptians. Has been profiled in major publications including The New York Times, Interview Magazine, Vanity Fair, GQ, and VICE.

 

2025 AT&T Untold Stories Greenlight Committee:

 

Andrew Ahn Andrew Ahn is a queer Korean--American filmmaker based in Los Angeles. Ahn's latest film THE WEDDING BANQUET (Bleecker Street) starring Lily Gladstone, Bowen Yang, and Kelly Marie Tran premiered at the 2025 Sundance Film Festival. His previous film FIRE ISLAND (Searchlight Pictures) was nominated for two Emmy Awards and won the Ensemble Tribute at the 2023 Gotham Awards and a GLAAD Award for Outstanding Film Streaming/TV. Ahn's sophomore feature DRIVEWAYS premiered at the 2019 Berlinale and was nominated for two Independent Spirit Awards. Ahn's first film SPA NIGHT premiered at the 2016 Sundance Film Festival and won a Special Jury Award for Breakthrough Performance. The film went on to win the 2017 John Cassavetes Film Independent Spirit Award. Ahn has directed both fiction and documentary television, including shows "Bridgerton" and "Generation." He has promoted diversity in the arts by mentoring youth filmmakers through programs like Pacific Arts Movement’s Reel Voices, Outfest’s OutSet, and the Sundance Institute's Native Filmmaker Lab. He graduated from Brown University and received an MFA from the California Institute of the Arts (CalArts).

 

David Fortune
David Fortune is a writer and director from Atlanta, Georgia. He was named Variety’s 10 Directors to Watch in 2025 and is a recipient of the 2023 AT&T Untold Stories Award, which provided a $1 million grant to direct his feature film, Color Book. The film premiered at the 2024 Tribeca Festival and has garnered jury and audience awards at festivals around the nation. In addition to these recognitions, David was also nominated for the 2025 NAACP Image Awards for Outstanding Breakthrough Creative. David is a proud alumnus of Morehouse College and Loyola Marymount University’s School of Film and Television. As a writer and director, he seeks to capture universal connections within marginalized communities while shedding light on the intimate human experiences.

 

Stephanie Hsu
Stephanie Hsu is an award-winning actor known for her work in the Academy Award-winning film Everything Everywhere All At Once. For her role as Joy/Jobu she was awarded the Independent Spirit Award for Best Breakthrough Performance, and nominated for an Academy Award as well as SAG Award for Best Supporting Actress. Her other work includes Mei in The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel for which she was also awarded Best Ensemble by the Screen Actors Guild. Hsu originated the roles of Karen the computer in Spongebob Squarepants: The Broadway Musical and Christine Canigula in the cult broadway hit Be More Chill. On screen she has had roles in Poker Face, Joy Ride, The Fall Guy, and American Born Chinese and more. She is currently producing and starring in the Peacock series Laid while collecting rocks and feathers mountainside.

 

Marianne Jean-Baptiste
Marianne Jean-Baptiste, acclaimed for her Oscar-nominated role in Secrets & Lies (1996), reunited with director Mike Leigh in his film Hard Truths, a tragicomic look at contemporary life. Their long-standing collaboration began with Leigh’s stage production of A Great Big Shame, and Jean-Baptiste also composed the score for his film Career Girls. Marianne’s performance in Hard Truths earned her Best Leading Performance at the British Independent Film Awards as well as the “critics’ trifecta.” She was named Best Actress by New York Film Critics Circle, National Society of Film Critics, and she made history as the first Black actress to win Best Leading Performance from the Los Angeles Film Critics Awards. A versatile talent, Jean-Baptiste is also a writer, composer, and director, having made her directorial debut with the short film Ink. She starred in CBS’s long-running series Without a Trace, Apple TV+’s Surface, BBC’s The Following Events Are Based On A Pack Of Lies, Netflix’s Soundtrack, Amazon’s Homecoming, NBC’s Blindspot, and ITV’s Broadchurch. Feature credits include Rumble Through The Dark, Boxing Day, In Fabric, Training Day, Robocop, 28 Days, The Cell, and City of Ember.

 

Gina Rodriguez
Gina Rodríguez is best known for playing the title role on the hit series Jane the Virgin, for which she won a Golden Globe for Best Actress in a Television Series Musical or Comedy. Rodriguez currently stars in Season 3 of ABC's Will Trent as Assistant District Attorney, Marion Alba. She also starred in ABC’s comedy series Not Dead Yet and co-hosted Lucky 13 for ABC. Fans can also see her in Robert Rodriguez's reboot of Spy Kids for Netflix, and rom-com Players for Netflix.

 

Kellyn Smith Kenny
Kellyn Smith Kenny is the Chief Marketing and Growth Officer at AT&T where she is responsible for deepening customer relationships, accelerating growth, and elevating AT&T’s premium position. Over the past several years, AT&T has launched groundbreaking programs with the NBA, WNBA, Tribeca Festival, #SeeHer, Cloud9 and more to underscore the importance of elevating underrepresented voices. Kellyn is passionate about the role brands play in reflecting and promoting inclusivity, and honored to help select this year’s winner of AT&T Untold Stories.

 

Jurors for the 2025 Games Competition are:

 

Meggan Scavio Meggan Scavio brings her experience in conference organization, technology, and video games to her position of President at the Academy of Interactive Arts & Sciences. Scavio was appointed to the position in August 2017 and will serve as the representative of the 35,000+ Academy members. As the AIAS President, Scavio promotes, advances, and recognizes the outstanding achievements in the interactive entertainment industry worldwide. She oversees the AIAS’ many initiatives benefiting the video games industry: the D.I.C.E. Summit – the industry’s premier gathering of creative and business leaders, the AIAS member voted D.I.C.E. Awards show, the European-centric D.I.C.E. Europe conference and the AIAS Foundation.
Scavio spent 18 years at UBM, where she most recently held the position of General Manager of the Game Developers Conference (GDC) for eight years. During her tenure as General Manager at GDC, she was responsible for overseeing all of GDC’s domestic and international conferences, including: GDC Europe, GDC China, GDC Online, & VRDC. Scavio started off her career at UBM as an Operations Manager when GDC was held at the San Jose Convention Center.

 

Harvey Smith Harvey Smith is a game designer, writer, and director with over three decades of experience in video games. Currently the Creative Director and CEO of a new, as-yet-unrevealed game studio, he most recently served as Studio Director at the award-winning Arkane Austin until May 2024. Smith is best known for his work on the Deus Ex and Dishonored game series, both of which garnered many Game of the Year awards, including the BAFTA. Covering topics related to level design, narrative, and game systems, Smith has spoken at prominent industry conferences, including the Game Developers Conference, MiGS, SxSW, E3, and QuakeCon.

 

Shuhei Yoshida
Shuhei Yoshida, a former 38-year Sony veteran and renowned software developer, was one of the initial members of the PlayStation project. He was appointed President of Worldwide Studios (current PlayStation Studios) in May 2008. Yoshida had overseen development of many global best-selling franchises, such as God of War®, Ghost of Tsushima®, Gran Turismo®, Journey™, Horizon Zero Dawn™, Ratchet & Clank®, The Last of Us®, and Uncharted. In Nov. 2019, Yoshida left his role at WWS and became Head of Indies Initiative where his focus was on nurturing external independent creators to ensure they have the tools, technology, and services to reach PlayStation’s large community of gamers successfully. He left SIE in January 2025 and now helps indie publishers and developers to succeed.

 

Jurors for the 2025 Audio Fiction Competition are:

 

Sophie Crane
Sophie Crane is the Executive Director of the Transom Story Lab, a cornerstone of the audio storytelling world. Transom.org was the first website to win a Peabody Award, and it has played a pivotal role in shaping the public radio and podcast landscape, launching the careers of many of today’s leading audio makers. Sophie leads Transom’s training programs and editorial vision, expanding access to the craft of documentary audio storytelling through workshops, fellowships, and new initiatives. She also teaches audio storytelling at Dartmouth College. Previously, she was an Executive Producer and Senior Editor at Pushkin Industries, where she worked on acclaimed shows including The Last Archive, The Loudest Girl in the World, and Broken Record. Earlier, Sophie was a Series Producer at PBS’s FRONTLINE, helping translate the legacy documentary brand into audio. Her work has won numerous awards, including the Alfred I. duPont-Awards’ highest honor, a Gold Baton.

 

James Kim
James Kim is a Los Angeles based podcast creator and founder of Overtones Media. He recently created the iHeartRadio fiction podcast You Feeling This, which made its debut at the Tribeca Film Festival and was nominated for a Webby Award. Previously, he has worked with Apple TV+, Disney, TCM, HBO, Marvel, Radiotopia, Audible, NPR, and Gimlet Media. He also made the indie fiction show, MOONFACE, which The New York Times called "cinematic" and The Wall Street Journal hailed as, "the Sundance hit of fiction podcasts."

 

Dr. Chioke l’Anson
Dr. Chioke I’Anson is the founder of RESONATE Podcast Festival and director of the VPM + ICA Community Media Center. Chioke's voice has been heard on many podcasts, including The 11th, Love + Radio, Radiolab, Everything is Alive and Our Ancestors Were Messy. On NPR, he is an underwriting voice and an occasional fill-in on Wait Wait Don’t Tell Me. Chioke’s perspectives on audio and creativity are informed by his academic study of philosophy. He supports the fresh expression of good ideas in all mediums.

 

Jurors for the 2025 Audio Independent Fiction Competition are:

 

Stephanie Kuo
Stephanie Kuo is the Vice President of Content at PRX, overseeing the organization's content strategy, broadcast/podcast acquisition and distribution as well as in-house content and production development. She was previously the Director of Training at PRX, leading education initiatives, accelerator programs and creative consultancies for podcasters and organizations around the U.S. and the world. Before PRX, Stephanie was an award-winning public radio reporter and producer. She received a bachelor's degree in journalism and design from the University of Texas at Austin and a master's in broadcast journalism from Columbia University.

 

Megan Nadolski
Megan Nadolski officially began telling stories as the single staff photographer at a newspaper in Milledgeville, Georgia. From there, she went on to tell stories in every place and in every way she could—from a documentary film on women chefs in Saudi Arabia, to covering Chief Tootie Montana’s funeral in the Treme. Some of Megan’s favorite stories are told in a single photograph, and some have taken many interviews to tell. These days, she tells stories through audio, as the COO of Goat Rodeo in Washington, DC. Megan is Goat Rodeo’s driving force behind operations, creative direction, and execution. She’s built Goat Rodeo's distinct sound and process to always deliver audio you’ll want to keep an ear out for.

 

Kate Navin
As Head of Creative Development for North America at Audible, Kate Navin shapes the vision and voice of the company’s original content, developing and implementing innovative audio-first strategies with a range of talent and collaborators. Kate joined Audible in 2017 as Artistic Producer and launched Audible Theater after more than a decade working as a representative for artists. This initiative has resulted in more than 120 theater titles and awarded over 50 Emerging Playwright Commissions. Under her leadership, Audible began producing at Audible’s Minetta Lane Theatre in 2018 with productions such as Harry Clarke, starring Billy Crudup, Girls & Boys starring Carey Mulligan and original musical Dead Outlaw, which went on to transfer to Broadway and garnered seven Tony Award nominations. Kate has also been integral in creating high profile scripted entertainment projects and served as Executive Producer on projects such as The Big Lie (Jon Hamm), The Miranda Obsession (Rachel Brosnahan) and The Prophecy (Kerry Washington), as well as the audio adaptation of Colman Domingo’s play Wild with Happy (Colman Domingo, Oprah Winfrey). In 2025, Kate Navin and Audible Theater were honored with the Drama League Contribution to Theater Award.

 

Jurors for the 2025 Audio Independent Non-Fiction Competition are:

 

Gretta Cohn
Gretta Cohn is CEO of the award-winning audio network and production company Pushkin Industries. Founded in 2018, Pushkin is home to podcasts like Malcolm Gladwell’s Revisionist History, Against the Rules from Michael Lewis, Paul McCartney’s A Life in Lyrics, and The Happiness Lab with Dr. Laurie Santos, as well as award-winning audiobooks such as Malcolm Gladwell's The Bomber Mafia and Wild and Precious: A Celebration of Mary Oliver. Prior to joining Pushkin, Cohn was the founder and CEO of Transmitter Media, a Peabody-nominated creative podcast company she founded in 2017, and which Pushkin acquired in 2022. She was previously Executive Producer and Head of New Show Development at Earwolf and Midroll Media, and a longtime producer at New York Public Radio. Cohn is also a cellist and drummer, and former member of the bands Cursive and Bright Eyes.

 

Nichole Hill
Nichole Hill is an award-winning audio showrunner and creator of the podcasts The Secret Adventures of Black People and Our Ancestors Were Messy, a 2024 Official Tribeca Audio Selection. Her recent work includes showrunning for the podcasts I Am America with Tracee Ellis Ross, She Has a Name with Tonya Mosley, and Vox's Land of the Giants: Dating Games season, as well as Producing for The Qube and PRX's Second Sunday podcast. Back in the day she worked as Associate Producer (and voice actor if you can believe it) for the audio fiction podcast The Truth with Radiotopia. Her work has appeared on podcasts for Audible, NPR, PRX, Snap Judgement, and New York Magazine.

 

Ellen Horne
Ellen Horne is an Associate Professor and Director of the Podcasting and Audio Reportage program at NYU’s Arthur L. Carter Journalism Institute. A founding producer of Radiolab, Horne helped to shape the show’s pioneering sound and editorial vision for more than a decade. At Radiolab, Horne found peak creative joy directing and producing live shows like In the Dark, Apocalyptical, and Lookout...Martians!, featuring live musical performances, striking visuals, puppetry, and, on occasion, transforming the audience into a swirling galaxy of LED stars. She later served as Executive Producer for Original Content at Audible, launching audio projects across genres. She is the Editorial Director at Story Mechanics, a creative audio studio. Throughout her career, she has been dedicated to expanding the boundaries of audio journalism, fostering emerging talent, and championing new forms of storytelling to advance the craft of narrative audio.

 

Jurors for the 2025 Audio Non-Fiction Competition are:

 

Caroline Edwards
Caroline Edwards is a Podcast Agent at leading entertainment and sports agency Creative Artists Agency (CAA), where she represents many of the most successful podcast properties, creators, and production companies including Sarah Stewart Holland and Beth Silvers’ Pantsuit Politics, Ronald Young Jr. of ohitsBigRon Studios, ABF Creative, and Handsome, among others. She also works on behalf of such artists and visionaries as Jesse Tyler Ferguson, John Stamos, Alan Cumming, Tig Notaro, Elise Hu, Dr. Jen Ashton, and Reshma Saujani on their work in the podcast space. Edwards joined CAA in 2022, after serving as ICM Partners’ Director of Podcast Initiatives. She previously served as Creative Director for ICM Politics, utilizing her background as a member of Hillary Clinton’s Presidential campaign. Prior to joining ICM, Edwards was a Television Development Executive for Time Inc. and Balasco Productions. She is also a board member of the Abortion Positivity Project and Alzheimer’s Association.

 

Sam Sanders
Sam Sanders is an award-winning reporter, radio host and podcaster. He currently hosts and executive produces the The Sam Sanders Show in conjunction with KCRW. He also cohosts the chat show Vibe Check from Stitcher Podcasts with Saeed Jones and Zach Stafford. Sanders has been named podcaster of the year by both The Ambies and The iHeart Podcast Awards, and his podcast work has been placed on year-end best of lists by Vogue, Spotify, the CBC and the New York Times. His written work has appeared in The Columbia Journalism Review, The Washington Post and Politico Magazine. Sanders was previously a founding host of The NPR Politics Podcast and NPR’s It’s Been A Minute, and previously hosted the culture podcast Into It from Vulture and New York Magazine. He lives in Los Angeles with his skittish pitbull Wesley.

 

Jenna Weiss-Berman
Jenna Weiss-Berman (NONFICTION) is head of podcasts at Paper Kite Productions, and co-creator and producer of Good Hang with Amy Poehler. Prior to joining Paper Kite, Jenna co-founded Pineapple Street Studios, known for acclaimed series like Missing Richard Simmons, Wind of Change, Hysterical, and The Catch and Kill Podcast with Ronan Farrow. Jenna began her career in public radio, contributing to such shows as The Moth and Hidden Brain, before launching BuzzFeed's podcast department, where she produced hits like Another Round and Women of the Hour with Lena Dunham. Jenna serves on the board of the Moth.

###