A non-profit initiative that advocates for gender equality in film by offering vital support at the financing stage. Our program is open to women and gender-expansive filmmakers, offering action grants, fiscal sponsorship, curated meetings and industry mentorship.
2025 BTTL Action Grant
€10,000 Development Funding
| Applications closed. Winner will be announced at Sundance 2025.
At Cannes Film Festival, we launched our second annual €10,000 Action Grant, open to any feature film Director who experiences marginalization due to their gender, including women, non-binary and trans filmmakers.
Applicants were asked to demonstrate how the grant funding will allow them to advance in a critical area of development – be it a location scout, hiring crew, or shooting a sizzle reel – there were no limits as long as the action taken moves the needle.
This year’s Official Jury includes renowned actress Diane Kruger (pictured left at our Cannes event), Head of Global Marketing at Campari Group Julka Villa, SVP Global Acquisitions at Universal Pictures Content Group Jasper Van Hecke, Emmy-nominated and WGA award-winning producer April Shih, President at New Horizon Pictures Alexa Jago and last year’s Action Grant winners British Director Nadia Fall and Oscar-nominated Producer Nicky Bentham.
STARSHIP TRAVEL GRANT
Presented by
In 2024, we launched our innaugural “Starship Travel Grant" presented by Space Pilot Media, awarding each of our BTTL Finalist Teams a travel grant to attend the Cannes Film Festival.
THE FILMS
APPLICATIONS ARE NOW OPEN CLOSED FOR 2025.
THE FINALISTS and winner WILL BE ANNOUNCED AT THE SUNDANCE FILM FESTIVAL.
2025
2023
2022
2021
2020
2019
Our Mission
Breaking Through The Lens (BTTL) launched at the 2018 Cannes Film Festival with a simple yet powerful vision to help women feature-film directors get their projects made. Our founders – a Director, Writer and Actor working on a film together – received an opportunity from an investor to host a pitching event in his villa, and BTTL was born.
We have since expanded to world renowned festivals such as Venice, Toronto and Berlin, hosting dynamic panels and events. We believe that by providing secure avenues to finance by way of grants, curated investor meetings and industry mentorship, we can systemically change the landscape and improve gender representation at the top levels of cinema.
Now set up as a 501(c)3 registered non-profit in the U.S., our program is open to any filmmaker who experiences marginalization due to their gender, including women, non-binary and trans directors. Our mission is to be a results-driven resource, one that promotes passionate storytelling, smart business and equal representation.
“
In an industry that has favored
the male voice for so long…
Breaking Through The Lens
is changing that dynamic.
Liza Foreman, Front Page Cannes Market News
Get Involved
We are planning to expand Breaking Through The Lens to other major festivals around the world and to create a supportive network for women through every stage of making their feature films. Find out how you can join us on this journey.
ATTEND our EVENTs
Our events are strictly invite only. However, we will evaluate individual requests on a case by case basis. Please include your company affiliation.
STAY INFORMED
Applications for our next BTTL Action Grant are now closed. The shortlist will be announced November 1st.
JOIN THE MOVEMENT
Whether you are a sponsor, filmmaker, industry or volunteer, we would love to hear from you. We are always looking for new collaborators to grow our initiative.