December 1, 2024
Alumni Spotlight on Editor Maysie Hoy (AFI DWW Class of 1977)
We had the honor of sitting down with acclaimed editor Maysie Hoy (AFI DWW Class of 1977) who will receive the ACE Eddie Career Achievement Award this January. In the 1970s, Maysie began her film career acting in Robert Altman classics, including MCCABE AND MRS. MILLER, NASHVILLE and 3 WOMEN. On set, she gained invaluable...
January 15, 2020
AFI Directing Workshop for Women Announces New Class of 2021
Congratulations to the eight new participants selected for the AFI Directing Workshop for Women Class of 2021: Michelle Krusiec, April Maxey, Mary Angélica Molina, April Moreau, Kelly Pike, Jessica Shields, Lucretia Stinnette and Em Weinstein. “We are thrilled to welcome these eight artists into the AFI family and can’t wait to see their unique stories…
October 7, 2019
Universal’s Global Talent Development & Inclusion Group Doubles Number of Filmmakers Selected For 2019 Directors Initiative
American Black Film Festival, New York Latino Film Festival and NBCUniversal Filmmasters Partner With AFI Directing Workshop for Women and Sundance Institute’s FilmTwo Fellowship Today Universal’s Global Talent Development & Inclusion group (GTDI) announced the filmmakers who will participate in the studio’s 2019 Directors Initiative, which exposes directors to the studio production process and connects…
August 6, 2019
Pippa Bianco Discusses the Evolution of Making SHARE and Directing HBO’s Hit Series EUPHORIA
It’s been a busy summer for AFI Directing Workshop for Women (DWW) alumna Pippa Bianco, the talented, rising filmmaker who adapted her Cannes-winning DWW short SHARE into her first feature film. Produced and financed by A24, the film world-premiered at Sundance, where it was quickly scooped up by HBO. In the critically celebrated, riveting and…
July 1, 2019
AFI Directing Workshop for Women Alumna Valerie Weiss Talks Being Ready to Helm a Studio Franchise and Her Unconventional Path to Hollywood
Valerie Weiss’ experience as a scientist-turned-filmmaker has served as an unconventional springboard as she sets her sights on directing within the Hollywood studio system. She discovered her passion for directing while majoring in Molecular Biology at Princeton and minoring in theater and dance. “For the first time I felt like my intellectual side and my…
December 10, 2015
The AFI Interview: UNREAL Creator Sarah Gertrude Shapiro
Sarah Gertrude Shapiro (AFI DWW, Class of 2012) continues to receive acclaim and accolades as co-creator of the Lifetime original series UNREAL, which grew from her AFI Conservatory Directing Workshop for Women (AFI DWW) short SEQUIN RAZE. AFI spoke with Shapiro about her series’ meteoric success story, and how her AFI DWW experience shaped her…
December 8, 2015
AFI and Lifetime Team Up to Employ Female Filmmakers
AFI and Lifetime will join forces next year to create and offer production jobs for each graduate of the AFI Conservatory Directing Workshop for Women (AFI DWW) throughout the A+E Networks’ portfolio of platforms starting with the Class of 2015. The alliance is part of Lifetime's Broad Focus initiative to provide women with more opportunities to write, develop,...
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