Residency Honoring the Legacy of Social Justice Leader Michael Latt Selects Eight Fellows for Virtual Program
Sundance Collab is pleased to announce the first group of fellows selected for our new Cultural Impact Residency. Created in honor of social justice advocate Michael Latt's legacy, the six-month online residency program (through August 2025) will uplift early-career underrepresented storytellers with a focus on creative, social, and cultural impact and galvanize them with opportunities, hope, creative support, and inspiration. Sundance Collab is Sundance Institute's year-round digital space for global artists to learn, create, build community, and champion independent filmmaking.
Eight fellows were selected across three tracks: writing-directing in fiction, nonfiction, and episodic. Each fellow will receive dedicated meetings with Sundance Institute advisors to receive feedback on their projects; bimonthly cohort meetings to check in and share work; a meeting with Michelle Satter, Founding Senior Director, Artist Programs at Sundance Institute; and a meeting with applicable Sundance Institute Artist Program staff. Each participant will also receive a Sundance Collab Library Pass to access the extensive Sundance Collab Video Library, which includes Master Classes and recordings of previous Collab events, and two On Demand courses of their choosing.
Advisors for the 2025 Sundance Institute Cultural Impact Residency include: Rita Baghdadi (Sirens), Patricia Cardoso (Real Women Have Curves), David France (How to Survive a Plague), Claudia Lloso (The Milk of Sorrow), Reinaldo Marcus Green (King Richard), LaToya Morgan (Duster), Rodrigo Reyes (Sans n And Me), Jessica Sharzer (A Simple Favor), and Justin Simien (Dear White People).
Michael Latt was a passionate social justice leader whose purpose-driven work impacted countless communities. As an award-winning entertainment marketer by training, he harnessed the power of art, creativity, and storytelling to create numerous nationwide impact initiatives, most recently as founder and CEO of Lead with Love. In his life, Michael made it his mission and purpose to transform society into one of love, equity, compassion, and true justice. In his public work, he fought tirelessly for change through art, narrative, and policy.
The 2025 Sundance Institute Cultural Impact Residency participants are:
Documentary Filmmaking Fellows:
Caron Creighton is an award-winning journalist and filmmaker. Much of her work is focused on displacement within the African diaspora, as informed by her identity. She has been a 2023/24 SFFilm FilmHouse resident, a 2024 Big Sky Pitch participant, and a 2024 BAVC MediaMaker fellow.
Wood Street
Chosen brothers John and LaMont grapple with addiction, displacement, and city bureaucracy as they try to save their long-term community from eviction.
Fueled by unrelenting curiosity, Jennifer Huang is rethinking conventional practices of ethics, consent, and protecting vulnerable protagonists. She's worked on productions for PBS, Anonymous Content, and Lucasfilm, and she co-founded Hyphen magazine. The Long Rescue is her first feature-length film.
The Long Rescue
Filipina teen sex trafficking survivors dream of safety, family, and romance in a secret shelter - but, once home, they confront the poverty, pimps, and predators of their pasts. Over nine years, their coming-of-age journeys are a lens into the struggles and strengths of survivors everywhere.
Kristal Sotomayor is an award-winning filmmaker, journalist, and curator. Their films Expanding Sanctuary (BlackStar Philadelphia Filmmaker Award, OTV/New Day Films) and Don't Cry For Me All You Drag Queens have screened across the globe. They've been supported by BlackStar, Outfest, If/Then, and NeXt Doc.
Untitled PARS Project
Untitled PARS Project unravels the technological infrastructure behind immigrant surveillance, revealing how advanced data-sharing systems fuel deportations and investigating the Philadelphia police's Preliminary Arraignment Reporting System (PARS) and other government databases.
Writing-Directing Fellows:
Born and raised in Puerto Rico, Alejandra L pez's short The Blue Cape screened at 10 Oscar-qualifying festivals. She was staffed on Sony Crackle's Startup. L pez became the first Latina to direct for Marvel Entertainment. She's been selected in programs at Warner Bros. Discovery, Starz, and more.
Salmon Run
A desperate Puerto Rican mother joins a salmon factory in remote Alaska, but when her best friend disappears under mysterious circumstances, she discovers something far more nefarious happening in the workplace that threatens her life and the lives of others.
A. D. Smith is a writer, director, and composer from Memphis, Tennessee. He loves to create worlds grounded in reality, with accents of the fantastical, all told from a Black perspective. His work has been supported by Indie Memphis, Austin Film Festival, and Sundance Institute.
r.e.g.g.i.n
Bearing the appearance of a young Black man, a domesticated android experiences life in the segregated south of the '50s. Will the people of this time welcome his phenomenal abilities, or will the color of his outer shell skew their perception?
Wendi Tang is a Chinese writer-director and a graduate of NYU Tisch. Her films have screened at 50+ festivals worldwide. Fishtank, a proof-of-concept short supported by Tribeca and Chanel, won awards at SXSW Sydney and HollyShorts Film Festival. She's currently developing her first feature film.
Fishtank
A young woman vomits living goldfish whenever she's triggered. She must unravel a monstrous truth behind her bizarre condition while teetering between nightmare and reality.
Writing Fellows:
From Massachusetts, Caitlin McCarthy is of documented M tis descent. Her stories tackle political and so
North America Stories
08/05/2025
A sinister fairy infiltrates a desperate family in Kenneth Dagatan's In My Mother's Skin, which premiered at the 2023 Sundance Film Festival. Photo co...
08/05/2025
For skyward-bound operators, training focuses on the unique aspects of flying ISR missions, including the management of onboard surveillance equipment and the e...
08/05/2025
The cable industry has told the Federal Communications Commission it supports the National Association of Broadcasters' proposal to allow broadcasters to us...
08/05/2025
WASHINGTON The Consumer Technology Association has continued its opposition to mandates requiring that NextGen TV/ATSC 3.0 tuners be included in new TV sets, sa...
08/05/2025
TAG Video Systems, the leader in software-based IP end-to-end workflow monitoring, deep probing, and real time visualization, has named Paul Maroni as Vice Pres...
08/05/2025
This year's UK Pavilion in hall 5, once again managed by Tradefair, will provide visitors with the unique opportunity to discuss and be involved in cutting ...
08/05/2025
Rohde & Schwarz will showcase its latest energy-efficient transmitters and 5G Broadcast technologies, designed to support network operators and content provider...
08/05/2025
IRVING, Texas Nexstar Media Group has tapped Bill Nardi as vice president of station operations, responsible for overseeing the day-to-day broadcast operations ...
08/05/2025
SEATTLE LumaTouch is partnering with CNN Academy to improve mobile storytelling techniques and support training across all of CNN Academy's training simulat...
08/05/2025
WASHINGTON The Society of Broadcast Engineers has filed comments with the Federal Communications Commission that support a proposal by the National Association ...
08/05/2025
Senior adviser to the United States Agency for Global Media Kari Lake has announced that One America News Network (OAN) will provide newsfeed services for fre...
08/05/2025
EdMon Expands as AI-Driven Post Production Workflows Gains Traction in Sweden an...
08/05/2025
Using Luma Mattes in Adobe Premiere Pro
Graham Quince May 7, 2025
0 Comments
This very quick tutorial shows you how to take an RGB clip and apply its ...
08/05/2025
OpenDrives Unveils Free Your Data' Initiative with New Astraeus Cloud-Nativ...
08/05/2025
Student Spotlight: Grigori Balasanyan The Armenian composer, who was named Boston Conservatory at Berklees 2025 student commencement speaker, talks about his ...
08/05/2025
May 8th, 2025 Press Materials Available Here
Tribeca Festival 2025 Unveils New Premieres Spanning Film and Music
Slick Rick's Victory with Idris Elba a...
08/05/2025
May 8th, 2025 Press Materials Available Here
Tribeca Festival 2025 Announces Lineup for Inaugural Storytelling Summit
11-Day Industry Event Launches with Tal...
08/05/2025
SVG Sit-Down: Vizrt's Nicholas Jameson on AI in Workflows, Pushing Boundarie...
08/05/2025
Creating Alternative Brand Experiences: Live Sports in the Age of Fortnite, Meta...
08/05/2025
PGA TOUR's David Piccolo: Advanced Graphics and Virtual Production Tools are...
08/05/2025
Tech Focus: Advancing Immersion in Sports Broadcasting with AR and Virtual Produ...
08/05/2025
Back to All News
Now in Production: Comedy Action Film Husbands in Action'...
08/05/2025
Artificial intelligence is helping identify and treat diseases faster with better results for humankind. Natural disasters like wildfires are next.
Fires in th...
08/05/2025
Calling all wiseguys - 2K's acclaimed Mafia franchise is available to stream...
08/05/2025
As AI use cases continue to expand - from document summarization to custom software agents - developers and enthusiasts are seeking faster, more flexible ways t...
07/05/2025
Warsaw, Poland - April 28, 2025 - Nielsen, a global leader in audience measurement, data and analytics, has released its latest March All Screens Video Landscap...
07/05/2025
LONDON Movie fans hoping to save money by waiting until their favorite new films appear on streaming services will have to wait a bit longer now, according to a...
07/05/2025
MECCA, Saudi Arabia Saudi Broadcasting Authority (SBA) has selected Grass Valley to provide a major technology upgrade of its broadcast facility here....
07/05/2025
Sony and Nevion provide guidance on IP network architecture options for live pro...
07/05/2025
Media Pioneer Publishing AG Expands Editorial Capacity
Brie Clayton May 7, 2025
0 Comments
Pioneer 2 boat production environment powered by Blackmagic...
07/05/2025
LONDON Movie fans hoping to save money by waiting until their favorite new films appear on streaming services will have to wait a bit longer now, according to a...
07/05/2025
WASHINGTON The Federal Communications Commission's Media Bureau is seeking public comment on a Petition for Rulemaking from HC2 Broadcasting Holdings asking...
07/05/2025
WASHINGTON Following a decision by U.S. Department of Education to terminate its 2020-2025 Ready To Learn to the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, CPB has in...
07/05/2025
NEW YORK Fox's ad-supported streaming Tubi made a series of product and partnership announcements during IAB NewFronts in New York, including the launch of ...
07/05/2025
MOUNTAIN VIEW, Calif. Google Fiber (GFiber) has announced a redesigned app that the company said will simplify how customers set up service, manage devices, and...
07/05/2025
WASHINGTON NASAs on-demand streaming service, NASA+, has launched a FAST (Free Ad-Supported Television) channel on Prime Video....
07/05/2025
NEW YORK The WNET Group, parent company of the PBS station Thirteen, has announced the appointment of Randall T. Decker to senior director, technology, effectiv...
07/05/2025
Atomos announced an executive leadership transition as the Company continues to evolve and expand its strategic focus.
Peter Barber, currently serving as Chie...
07/05/2025
Steve Wagner, Jerry Holway and Robert Orf at the 2024 Scientific and Technical Awards at the Academy Museum of Motion Pictures on Tuesday, April 29, 2025.
The ...
07/05/2025
nxtedition, the Swedish company behind the leading integrated platform for news and program production, and TASCAM, the iconic Japanese manufacturer of professi...
07/05/2025
Signiant is bringing its Camera-Raw-to-Any-Cloud workflow to the UK for the first time at the Media Production & Technology Show 2025 (Booth# M69) with a live d...
07/05/2025
MNC Software Inc., a global leader in software and network solutions tailored to the broadcast and media industry, has appointed Gencom Technology as an officia...
07/05/2025
Rise AV, the award-winning advocacy group championing gender diversity and professional development in the AV sector, is proud to announce 31 mentor-mentee pair...
07/05/2025
Test & measurement innovator, Leader Electronics of Europe, is to bring a selection of its leading products for IP, SDI and hybrid workflow requirements to this...
07/05/2025
The Global Media and Entertainment Talent Manifesto announces that the World Skills Caf will return at IBC2025 with an expanded skills and diversity programme,...
07/05/2025
Moments Lab, a leader in AI video discovery, and LucidLink, the pioneer in real-time cloud collaboration, are proud to announce the integration of Moments Lab&#...
07/05/2025
Obvious C Broadcasts Skiing World Cup with Blackmagic Design
Brie Clayton May 6, 2025
0 Comments
Blackmagic Design cameras capture cinematic sports pr...
07/05/2025
Larry Jordan Interviews Signiant's Jon Finegold at NAB 2025
Brie Clayton May 6, 2025
0 Comments
Jon Finegold, Chief Marketing Officer at Signiant,...
07/05/2025
A new supercomputer offered by Cadence, a leading provider of technology for ele...
Residency Honoring the Legacy of Social Justice Leader Michael Latt Selects Eight Fellows for Virtual Program 
