PARK CITY, UTAH, July 11, 2025 - The nonprofit Sundance Institute announced today the 11 producers chosen for its annual Producers Labs, returning to Ucross Foundation in Wyoming from July 14-19 for fiction producers and July 21-26 for nonfiction producers. The Sundance Institute Producers Program champions independent producers across career stages, empowering them to refine their craft in recognition of their pivotal role in the storytelling ecosystem. The Producers Lab is the focal point of the program and kicks off a yearlong fellowship, creating a community for fiction and nonfiction film producers as they network and participate in professional development opportunities while working on a feature-length project.Emerging independent producers selected for the Producers Lab build community while receiving project-specific support in one-on-one meetings and small group sessions with established producers and industry advisors. Fellows sharpen their leadership and problem-solving skills while cultivating creative thinking. They develop strategies for pitching, securing funding, managing production, navigating the marketplace, and achieving sustainability. The 2025 cohort includes six fiction film producers and five nonfiction film producers.
Following the lab, fellows receive ongoing support through a yearlong mentorship from a dedicated advisor, industry networking opportunities, regular cohort gatherings, Sundance Collab benefits, and participation in ELEVATE, Sundance Institute's professional development track.
Fellows in the Feature Film Producers Lab include Ryan Bobkin with People You Follow, April S. Chang and Vicki Syal with Dying is Fine, Karen Madar with Little Phnom Penh, Steven Snyder with Tell Me a Secret, and Daniel Tantalean with Birthright. Fellows in the Documentary Producers Lab include Loi Ameera Almeron with Becoming Us, Wendy P. Espinal with Anna Borges do Sacramento, Crystal Isaac with Basketball Heaven, Elijah Stevens with Untitled Science Project, and Nicole Tsien with Spirited.
The 2025 Feature Film Producers Lab advisors are Anne Carey (Nightbitch), Sylvia Desrochers (MPRM Communications), Poppy Hanks (One of Them Days), Kimberly Parker Zox (The Last Black Man in San Francisco), Josh Peters (D di ( )), and Eugene Pikulin (Bruns Brennan Berry Pikulin & Jacobs PC). The 2025 Documentary Producers Lab advisors are Jamie Gon alves (Caballerango), R mi Grellety (Soundtrack to a Coup d'Etat), Lance Kramer (Holding Liat), Andrea Meditch (Fathom), and Diane Quon (Minding the Gap).
We're energized by the singular storytelling in this year's projects and the creativity and vision of the producers bringing them to life, said Kristin Feeley, Director of Documentary and Artist Programs, and Shira Rockowitz, Director of Producing and Artist Support for the Feature Film Program. Our team is excited to support these dynamic artists - from development through release - alongside the trailblazing group of producers and industry advisors whose wisdom and generosity play a vital role in their journeys.
Launched in 2008, the Sundance Institute Producers Program boasts 174 fiction and nonfiction producer alumni, including Pierre Coleman (Ricky), Deidre Backs (Fancy Dance), Dan Janvey and Josh Penn (Beasts of the Southern Wild), Keith Wilson (I Didn't See You There), and Kellen Quinn (Midnight Family). Program alumni have also garnered 8 Academy Award nominations overall for Nomadland, Moonlight, Beasts of the Southern Wild, Navalny, Time, All the Beauty and the Bloodshed, Minding the Gap, and Sugarcane. Fiction program alumni have been nominated 16 times for the Independent Spirit Producers Award and taken home 10 of those prizes.
PROJECTS AND FELLOWS SELECTED FOR THE 2025 SUNDANCE INSTITUTE PRODUCERS LAB:
Feature Film Program
Ryan Bobkin with People You Follow (Canada, U.S.A.): Based on the memoir of the same name, People You Follow centers on Ellie, a young songwriter from Winnipeg, as she navigates the toxic labyrinth of the Los Angeles music scene, mistaking self-destruction for freedom and manipulation for love, until she is forced to confront herself to survive.
Ryan Bobkin is a Canadian producer focused on auteur-driven work, international co-production, and films with social impact. An experienced associate and co-producer of films that have screened at the Sundance Film Festival, the Berlinale, and TIFF, he is in post-production on Sophy Romvari's debut feature, Blue Heron.
April S. Chang and Vicki Syal with Dying is Fine (U.S.A.): The worries of a suicidal woman disappear when she gets a piece of good news: brain cancer.
April S. Chang is a Los Angeles-based producer from Atlanta. Her experience spans indie and studio projects, through which she champions auteur filmmakers. Her work has been recognized by Sundance Institute, SXSW Sydney, and LAAPFF. She served as associate producer on The Bikeriders, released theatrically in 2024.
Vicki Syal is a Brazilian Indian filmmaker and producer whose work has premiered at the Sundance Film Festival, Tribeca Festival, and LALIFF and on HBO and PBS. A 2024 AT&T Untold Stories top 5 finalist and returning member of Rideback RISE, she fosters collaborative sanctuaries where stories flourish.
Karen Madar with Little Phnom Penh (Cambodia, U.S.A.): Spanning two sweeping decades and two continents, from post-Khmer Rouge Phnom Penh to early 2000s California, a Cambodian woman searches for family, home, and belonging as her first love continues to resurface over time.
Karen Madar, 2025 Mark Silverman Honoree, is a French producer and NYU alum based in New York City and Paris. Through NoMad Productions, she's produced 15+ shorts, including Grandma Nai Who Played Favorites (2025 Sundance Film Festival Short Film Jury Award: International Fiction). She is the PGA's 2024 Debra Hill Fellow.
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