AT&T Presents: Untold Stories’ to Award $1 Million to Diverse and Deserving Filmmaker Ahead of 2019 Tribeca Film Festival
5 Filmmakers Compete for Top Prize During Live-Streamed Pitch Event April 22
2018 Program Winner, ‘Lucky Grandma,’ to Premiere at Festival on April 28
For the third consecutive year AT&T* and Tribeca will bring one filmmaker’s boundary-pushing story to life through AT&T Presents: Untold Stories. AT&T funds the $1 million prize, and Tribeca provides mentorship from seasoned industry professionals for the deserving filmmaker to develop the pitch into a feature-length film.
To determine the winner, AT&T, Tribeca and the year-round nonprofit Tribeca Film Institute, will host a live pitch event (available via live stream) in New York City on April 22 – a few days before the 2019 Tribeca Film Festival begins. For the 6th straight year, AT&T is the presenting sponsor of the Festival, which runs April 24 – May 5.
Each year, the Tribeca Film Institute chooses 5 talented and diverse filmmakers to present their story ideas and film scripts to a Greenlight Committee. For the first time in the program’s history, the five finalists are all women. Here are the five finalists and the films they’ll pitch this year:
Aslihan Unaldi – “Afloat”
Kaliya Warren – “Expatriates”
Kate Tsang – “Marvelous and the Black Hole”
Maria Victoria Ponce – “Washing Elena”
Ellie Foumbi – “Zenith”
“Our collaboration with Tribeca is a living example of what two brands can do when they come together with purpose to make a difference – in this case, for under-represented filmmakers who might not otherwise see their story brought to life on the big screen,” said Fiona Carter, AT&T Communications Chief Brand Officer. “We are proud to shine a light on brilliant creators like Sasie Sealy and Angela Cheng, whose 2018 winning film ‘Lucky Grandma,’ premieres at this year’s Festival.”
“AT&T and Tribeca have made it possible to fully support underrepresented filmmakers with Untold Stories through funding, mentorship, and distribution,” said Jane Rosenthal, co-founder and CEO of the Tribeca Film Festival and co-founder and co-chair of the Tribeca Film Institute. “This should be the norm not the exception for our industry and Untold Stories is one example of how to lead the way
“At TFI, we provide filmmakers from diverse backgrounds with the essential tools they need to take their projects to the next level: funding, mentorship, and industry exposure,” said Amy Hobby, Executive Director of the Tribeca Film Institute. “AT&T Presents: Untold Stories awards those tools to the winning team. Programs like this shift the paradigm in independent film by helping to launch the careers of artists from underrepresented communities.”
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