Sundance Institute Reveals 2025 Fellows for Directors, Screenwriters and Native Labs (EXCLUSIVE)

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For the year 2025, the Sundance Institute has announced its fellows for directors, screenwriters, and Native labs. The Native lab will take place in person from April 28 to May 3 in Santa Fe, NM, whereas the Directors lab is scheduled for its 45th anniversary from June 1 to 16 in Estes Park, CO. On the other hand, the Screenwriters lab will be conducted online from June 24 to 27. As stated in a press release, this virtual event provides filmmakers with an “Immersive setting to work on their projects and enhance their artistic style under the mentorship of established creative advisors.

For the year 2025, the fellows of the Native Lab are Jared Lank (Mi’kmaq), Isabella Dionne Madrigal (Cahuilla/Turtle Mountain Ojibwe), Alex Nystrom (Ojibwe), Jordan Waunch (Métis). Meanwhile, Sabrina Saleha (Diné) and Svetlana Romanova (Sakha/Even) are the artists-in-residence. These six filmmakers will be mentored by creative advisors like Bryson Chun (Kanaka Maoli), Sarah Friedland, Kiva Reardon, and Erica Tremblay (Seneca-Cayuga). The Native Lab is managed by Adam Piron (Kiowa and Mohawk), the director of Sundance Institute Indigenous program, along with senior program manager Ianeta Le’i.

In 2025, the fellows for the Native Lab are Jared Lank (Mi’kmaq), Isabella Dionne Madrigal (Cahuilla/Turtle Mountain Ojibwe), Alex Nystrom (Ojibwe), Jordan Waunch (Métis). The artists-in-residence for this period are Sabrina Saleha (Diné) and Svetlana Romanova (Sakha/Even). These filmmakers will be under the guidance of creative advisors such as Bryson Chun (Kanaka Maoli), Sarah Friedland, Kiva Reardon, and Erica Tremblay (Seneca-Cayuga). The Native Lab is supervised by Adam Piron (Kiowa and Mohawk), who is the director of Sundance Institute Indigenous program, as well as senior program manager Ianeta Le’i.

Each year, our team chooses a mix of daring, multifaceted Native American storytellers and dedicated advisors. It’s always enriching when we convene in Santa Fe for discussions on storytelling and development, as this process fosters trust and consistently unearths unanticipated innovations. We eagerly anticipate helping this year’s fellows grow, and witness how they encourage each other to push their boundaries, reinvent their craft, and strengthen their connection to the role of Indigenous identity in their work.

In its second year of operation at the Stanley Hotel in Estes Park, the artistic director Gyula Gazda oversees The Lab, a creative space. This season’s advisory team consists of Joan Darling, Rick Famuyiwa, Jomo Fray, Keith Gordon, Catherine Hardwicke, Ed Harris, Nicole Holofcener, Karyn Kusama, Christine Lahti, Kasi Lemmons, Jason Reitman, Estes Tarver, Joi McMillon, Nancy Richardson, and Amy Vincent.

The Screenwriters Lab will be facilitated by Artistic Director Howard Rodman, and the advisory team for the Screenwriters Lab consists of Haifaa Al Mansour, John August, Andrea Berloff, Reggie Rock Bythewood, D.V. DeVincentis, Stephen Gaghan, John Gatins, Jenny Lumet, Darnell Martin, Joan Tewkesbury, Robin Swicord, and Bill Wheeler. The Directors and Screenwriters Labs are supervised by Michelle Satter, the founding senior director of Artist Programs at Sundance Institute, and Ilyse McKimmie, the deputy director of the Feature Film Program at Sundance Institute.

Howard Rodman will lead the Screenwriting Lab, and the advisory group includes several industry professionals such as Haifaa Al Mansour, John August, Andrea Berloff, Reggie Rock Bythewood, D.V. DeVincentis, Stephen Gaghan, John Gatins, Jenny Lumet, Darnell Martin, Joan Tewkesbury, Robin Swicord, and Bill Wheeler. The labs are managed by Michelle Satter and Ilyse McKimmie from the Sundance Institute.

The 2025 Sundance Institute’s Directors and Screenwriters Lab fellows include: Leo Aguirre for “Verano,” Chheangkea for “Little Phnom Penh,” Andrea Ellsworth and Kasey Elise Walker for “The Dispute,” Roberto Fatal for “Electric Homies,” Kawennáhere Devery Jacobs for “High Steel,” Diffan Sina Norman for “Sitora,” Alexandra Qin for “Thirstygirl,” Chloe Sarbib for “Trou Normand,” Katla Sólnes for “Eruption,” and Lana Wilson for “Back Seat.” [Each fellow’s name is followed by their respective project titles.]

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2025-04-28 19:18