Breaking Through The Lens | 2026 Action Grant Application

*** EXTENDED DEADLINE: OCTOBER 7TH (5:00 PM PST) ***

Welcome to the 2026 BTTL Action Grant Application. Please read the Guidelines and Procedures carefully before proceeding. You may save a draft of your application at any time and return later, so don’t hesitate to get started.

Breaking Through The Lens (BTTL) is a global initiative supporting women and LGBTQ+ film directors at the critical financing stage. Designed to dismantle barriers and accelerate equity, BTTL offers a tailored year-long journey that includes industry mentorship, development grants, and a live investor showcase at the Cannes Film Festival in May 2026.

This year, two of our finalist filmmakers will each receive a $10,000 development grant:

• The BTTL Action Grant – helping the winning project take a crucial step toward production.
• The Simbelle Impact Award – an unrestricted grant for one finalist director, supported by Simbelle Productions.

Applicants must demonstrate how the grant funding will allow them to advance in a critical area of development – be it casting, location scouting, hiring crew, or shooting a scene – there are no limits, as long as the action taken moves the needle on your project. NOTE: We accept documentary projects who have begun production and are seeking finishing funds.

This is about finding films with strong artistic merit and a bold original vision, ready to go into production within a year. The Action Grant finalists will become apart of our 2026 BTTL Cohort, receiving additional 1:1 coaching, curated financier meetings, and travel support to attend at the Cannes Film Festival.

ALL applicants will receive FREE access to our 2025 Workshop Recordings and the option to join our new BTTL Membership Portal (launching DECEMBER 2025), which will offer peer-to-peer networking, industry roundtables, and invitations to our private cocktail parties at major festivals around the world.

We are now accepting applications for the 2026 BTTL Action Grant through to October 7th, 2025 at 5:00 p.m. PST.

• The BTTL Action Grant – $10,000 development grant helping the winning project take a crucial step toward production.
• The Simbelle Impact Award –$10,000 unrestricted grant for one finalist director, supported by Simbelle Productions.
  
  Action Grant Finalists will join our 2026 BTTL Cohort receiving 1:1 coaching, curated financier meetings, and travel support to attend at the Cannes Film Festival.

The 2026 BTTL Official Jury brings together leading voices from across the global film industry:

JEN GOYNE BLAKE | Partner, Diversity Hire Ltd | Founding Director, Sundance Episodic Lab (she/her)

Jen is a Partner at Diversity Hire Ltd., a film and television production company previously under a deal with FX Networks. Diversity Hire’s debut feature Joyland premiered at the 2022 Cannes Film Festival, where it won the Un Certain Regard Jury Prize, and went on to win the Film Independent Spirit Award for Best International Film and earn a spot on the 2023 Oscars shortlist. Their next feature, A Sad and Beautiful World, will premiere at Venice in 2025.

Jen was the Founding Director of the Sundance Institute’s Episodic Lab, where for nearly seven years she built one of the industry’s most influential pipelines for underrepresented voices, guiding more than 200 writers through over 20 labs. Before Sundance, she worked at Relativity Media and WMA, and she now serves as the Board Chair of New Market Discovery. She also leads the Episodic Writers Program at Oxbelly, expanding global networks that connect creators with decision-makers and financing opportunities.

Jen brings deep industry relationships and hard-won expertise in development, pitch strategy, and translating vision into fundable, market-ready projects.

THOMAS PIERCE | President, Pierce Capital Entertainment | Executive Producer, The Brutalist (he/him)

Thomas is the President of Pierce Capital Entertainment, a company dedicated to producing and packaging premium content for the global market. A seasoned media executive turned film producer, he has played a pivotal role in bringing acclaimed films to audiences worldwide, including the 100% rated Tu Me Manques (HBO Max) and Almost Love (Netflix). Most recently, he served as an Executive Producer on the epic The Brutalist, which earned 10 Academy Award nominations and wins, as well as The Wizard of the Kremlin. Before establishing Pierce Capital Entertainment, Thomas founded Pierce Media & Associates, a successful entertainment marketing agency in New York, where he developed expertise in integrating brands into studio films, producing high-profile promotional events, and spearheading P&A initiatives with studios such as Paramount Pictures, Warner Bros., and AMC Networks. He is also the Founding Chairman of the Children’s Oncology Support Fund (COSF), which has raised more than $8.7 million since 2023 to ensure young patients and their families have access to the arts as part of their healing journey. In addition, Thomas is a proud member of the Young Presidents’ Organization (YPO) and the Producers Guild of America (PGA).

Bringing industry acumen and lived perspective to the BTTL Jury, Thomas contributes a unique ability to connect bold, underrepresented filmmakers with the financing, packaging, and networks needed to launch award-worthy projects.

MIA BAYS | Director of the British Film Institute National Lottery Filmmaking Fund (she/her)

Mia is an Oscar-winning BAFTA-nominated film producer and executive producer, renowned equality agitator and distribution strategist who has worked across many areas of the independent film sector in a 34-year career. She has produced an Oscar winner (Martin McDonagh's debut, Six Shooter, winning Best Live Action Short 2005) and received two BAFTA nominations including for Best Debut for her work on cult music film Scott Walker – 30 Century Man executive produced by David Bowie and shepherded many more to critical success and box office acclaim in her other roles. She became Director of the National Lottery Filmmaking Fund at the British Film Institute in October 2021 and oversees the work of one of the highest profile and largest UK public film funds.

Mia launched a new strategy for the fund in Spring 2023 which contributes £54m of National Lottery funding to support film development and production, across short form and long form, fiction and documentary and immersive works, from 2023-26. The BFI National Lottery Filmmaking Fund under her tenure had its most decorated year ever in 2023 with the most ever nominations and wins for Lottery-funded titles with films such as Blue Jean, Kneecap, How To Have Sex, Scrapper, Rye Lane, Hoard, Bird, Santosh, Layla, In Camera, Sister Midnight and Sky Peals. The fund just received its most BAFTA nominations ever in 2025 scoring 12. The upcoming slate includes Brides by Nadia Fall and The Thing With Feathers by Dylan Southern starring Benedict Cumberbatch which played at Sundance 2025. Three fund titles premiered in Un Certain Regard at the Cannes Film Festival 2025. 

Mia also served as creative producer 2007 to 2014 on the Film London BBC Film micro-budget scheme Microwave which launched the careers of diverse talent such as Riz Ahmed and Hong Khao. She was Director-at-Large for Birds’ Eye View 2015-21, a charity that centres the female perspective in film and campaigns for gender equality in all film spaces, establishing the renowned #ReclaimTheFrame which continues to this day to bring ever-greater audiences to films by women. She was raised by a single mother on meagre means in inner city London, which gave her a life-long passion for opening the doors of the film industry to those previously excluded.

NICOLÁS CELIS| Founder, Pimienta Films | Academy Award–Winning Producer (he/him)

Nicolás is one of Mexico’s most acclaimed producers and the founder of Pimienta Films, the production company behind Alfonso Cuarón’s Roma, which won the Golden Lion at Venice and three Academy Awards including Best Director, cementing its place as a landmark in global cinema. Under his leadership, Pimienta has become a hub for bold, socially engaged filmmaking, producing a slate of award-winning films that have premiered at top international festivals such as Cannes, Venice, and Sundance. His credits include Tempestad (Berlinale), Heli (Cannes), Prayers for the Stolen (Oscar-shortlisted, Cannes Un Certain Regard), and Noche de Fuego (Netflix).

As a producer, Nicolás is recognized for championing underrepresented voices and stories that confront urgent cultural and political realities, while successfully navigating the international financing and co-production landscape. He is a member of both the Mexican Academy of Film and the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, where his work continues to influence the global recognition of Latin American cinema.

Nicolás brings to the BTTL Jury a proven ability to shepherd visionary projects from local roots to international acclaim, along with a deep commitment to amplifying diverse voices and connecting underrepresented filmmakers to financing and global distribution opportunities.

KARA DURRETT | President of Pinky Promise (she/her)

Kara is the President and Head of Film for Pinky Promise, where she oversees all film and television development and production for the company. Her recent credits include producing Scarlett Johansson's directorial debut Eleanor The Great set to release Fall 2025 with Sony Classic and TriStar, and David Craig and Brian Crano’s I Don’t Understand You, set to release in June of 2025. She also served as an executive producer on Gia Coppola’s Golden Globe and SAG Award nominated The Last Showgirl starring Pamela Anderson, and Andrea Arnold’s BAFTA nominated Bird starring Barry Keoghan.

Past films include Caddo Lake, produced alongside M. Night Shyamalan released by Max, The Starling Girl, If You Were The Last, Honk For Jesus. Save Your Soul., Topside, Save Yourselves!, AYAR, and many others.

Kara aims to elevate underrepresented filmmakers who have a clear vision and distinct storytelling voice. She has been awarded the Sundance Film Festival’s Producers Fiction Award and the Janet Pierson SXSW Producing Award, and she was recognized as one of Variety’s 2024 New Leaders. She was also a Sundance Producing Lab Fellow, and received a nomination for the Independent Spirit Piaget Award. A Texas native, she currently resides between Los Angeles and New York.

AMY GARDNER | Founder and Executive Producer, Finite Films & TV (she/her)

Amy is a British filmmaker, producer, writer, and the founder of Finite Films & TV, established in 2007. Since then, her company has built a prolific and acclaimed body of work spanning shorts, documentaries, features, television series, animation, plays, and digital productions—fueling emerging talent and creative innovation across the UK and beyond.

As a Producer and Executive Producer, Amy develops diverse and boundary-pushing storytelling. Her recent festival credits include BTTL Action Grant Winning film Brides (Sundance 2025), Dreamers (Berlinale 2025), The End (Telluride 2024), and The Settlers (Cannes 2023). Amy recently oversaw the launch of Finite Films & TV’s new base in Belfast, Northern Ireland, aligning with the country’s booming film ecosystem and supporting projects including The End and Dreamers.

Throughout it all, Amy remains a powerful champion for new writers and directors—from giving life to daring shorts and theatrical productions to supporting access for bold creative voices to progress through development.

Amy brings to the BTTL Jury deep experience in nurturing early-career talent, steering independent projects across the festival circuit, and building infrastructures for underrepresented voices.

STEVEN ADAMS | Founding Partner, Alta Global Media (he/him)

Steven is a Peabody Award–winning manager, producer, and Founding Partner of Alta Global Media, with a distinguished career developing and producing film and TV with international talent. He has recently brokered a three-picture deal with Netflix for South African director Mandla Dube, launched Heart of the Hunter at #1 worldwide on Netflix, and closed a six-picture slate financing deal with South Africa’s IDC, providing nearly half of all production finance.

Steven’s producing credits include the Netflix Original Rodney King and the Peabody Award–winning A Huey P. Newton Story, both directed by Academy Award winner Spike Lee. His independent feature work spans global box office successes such as India’s record-breaking The Goat Life (Netflix) as well as Rise, Die Like a Man, Redemption Day, Zero, The Ninth Cloud, and Burning Shadows.

Steven is also the founder of the Alta Global Media Summit, now in its 4th edition, and previously served as President of FilmPro Finance, advising film finance leaders including Bloomberg/Cite, Atlas Film & TV Finance Summit, and global film commissions and festivals. A recognized public speaker and host, he has appeared at the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, Cannes, Sundance, Toronto, Durban FilmMart, and more, and co-created the web series Show Me The F$#!ing Money: How to Invest, Raise Finance, and Recoup Money in the Film Business, featuring interviews with over 150 industry leaders in film finance.

Steven is a member of BAFTA, the Producers Guild of America, and the Television Academy, and sits on advisory boards for BFI America, Content London, the Durban FilmMart, and the Oscar and BAFTA-qualifying HollyShorts Film Festival, where he serves as Chief Strategist.

LAUREN MELINDA | Sponsor, SIMBELLE IMPACT AWARD | Founder, Simbelle Productions (she/her)

Lauren is the founder and CEO of Simbelle Productions, the nonprofit production company behind our new $10,000 Simbelle Impact Award, which will be granted to a 2026 BTTL finalist. Simbelle is dedicated to empowering women through film. Simbelle nurtures and elevates emerging filmmakers by providing essential resources, platforms, mentorship, and opportunities to tackle societal challenges through creative expression.

An award-winning filmmaker and artist herself, Lauren’s short films have screened at 52 festivals worldwide and earned six top prizes. Her latest, Before You, created in collaboration with Planned Parenthood, is currently on the festival circuit. As a mixed-media artist, her video installations have been commissioned by galleries and museums across North America and the Middle East, and her photographs are held in major private collections. She is now developing her first feature, Echoes, and a television series inspired by her Ukrainian great-grandmother.

Lauren brings to the BTTL Jury a deep commitment to socially engaged storytelling and a proven passion for creating meaningful pathways for women filmmakers to thrive.