MEET OUR 2026 OFFICIAL JURY
Each year, a selection of top industry professionals come together to form the Official Jury of Breaking Through The Lens. Our Jury serve as mentors and advisors to our finalist filmmakers.
View the profiles of our 2026 BTTL Jury below.
Additional Jurors will continue to be added in the coming weeks.
HOVER OVER PHOTO TO REVEAL NAME AND BIO
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 packaging to the BTTL Jury, helping our cohort translate vision into fundable, market-ready projects.
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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.
LAUREN MELINDA | 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 awarded 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 and LGBTQ+ filmmakers to thrive.
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.
Earlier in his career, Steven served as VFX Executive Producer at France’s oldest VFX house, BUF, where he contributed to Oscar-winning blockbusters including James Cameron’s Avatar and Ang Lee’s Life of Pi, along with Thor, Green Lantern, Green Hornet, Odd Thomas, and Dark Shadows. At Digital District, he was VFX Executive Producer on The Artist and The Intouchables, both Academy Award winners.
He 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.
Bringing unmatched global reach, deep financing expertise, and a career bridging Hollywood and international cinema, Steven joins the BTTL Jury as a powerful ally for underrepresented filmmakers navigating the path from creative vision to global distribution.
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.
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.
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.
ERIN SAYDER | Filmmaker & Producer | 2025 BTTL Action Grant Winner (she/her)
Erin is a London-based Turkish-American-British filmmaker and producer whose work centers on intimate, socially engaged non-fiction storytelling. She co-produced the Sundance 2024 hit and BAFTA-winning Super/Man: The Christopher Reeve Story, a moving portrait of resilience that became one of the most talked-about documentaries of the festival, and has contributed to acclaimed projects including the BAFTA-nominated Queens of Rap and Eric Clapton: A Life in 12 Bars.
In 2025, Erin won the BTTL Action Grant for her feature documentary Sidelines (previously titled Les Hijabeuses), which follows young Muslim women in France fighting for their right to play football while wearing the hijab. The grant provided crucial support in late-stage development, helping the project build momentum and attract vital partnerships.
Erin’s filmmaking is driven by a commitment to amplifying underrepresented voices and exploring themes of identity, belonging, and cultural intersections. As both a grant recipient and an accomplished director/producer, Erin brings to the BTTL Jury a dual perspective—offering this year’s cohort invaluable insight as living proof of the transformative power of strategic support at the right moment.
RITA BAGHDADI | Filmmaker & Producer | 2025 BTTL Action Grant Winner (she/her)
Rita is an Emmy Award–winning Moroccan-American documentary filmmaker celebrated for her deeply intimate, character-driven storytelling. Her feature Sirens, executive produced by Natasha Lyonne and Maya Rudolph, premiered at Sundance (2022), won the Grand Jury Prize at Outfest, and was praised as “utterly charming,” while her film City Rising earned the Emmy for Best Social Issue Film. Her work also includes Finding the Light (Disney+, 2024), which garnered Cinema Eye Honors and Independent Spirit Award nominations, and My Country No More (Independent Lens, 2019).
In 2025, Rita was awarded the BTTL Action Grant alongside Erin Sayder for Sidelines (formerly Les Hijabeuses), a powerful documentary following young Muslim women in France battling for the right to play football in hijabs at the European Court of Human Rights. The grant has offered critical support during late-stage development, propelling the project forward toward global impact.
Her filmmaking is rooted in empathy and cultural resonance—she co-founded Lady & Bird Films (Los Angeles–London) to support ethical, underrepresented narratives, and she’s a recognized voice in the industry as a Concordia Fellow, Sundance Momentum Fellow, DOC NYC “40 under 40” honoree, Sundance Momentum Fellow, and Chicken & Egg Award recipient.
Rita brings to the BTTL Jury personal, lived understanding of the power of storytelling to shift cultural narratives, and invaluable insight into navigating the documentary pipeline from development through to impact distribution.