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Athena Festival Awards $70K to Women Filmmakers
5 Mar
Summary
- Athena Film Festival awarded $70,000 in prizes to filmmakers.
- Cutting Through Rocks won the Jaya Award for women's leadership.
- Aquanauts writer received a $20,000 script development grant.
The 2026 Athena Film Festival has announced its honorees, distributing a total of $70,000 in awards to support new and emerging filmmakers. This initiative underscores the festival's commitment to elevating stories centered on women's leadership and achievements.
Among the recipients, the documentary "Cutting Through Rocks" by Sara Khaki and Mohammadreza Eyni was honored with the Jaya Award, including a $10,000 prize. Sarah Goher received the $25,000 Breakthrough Award for her film "Happy Birthday." Writer Tamar Feinkind was recognized with the Chinonye Chukwu Emerging Writer Award for her work on "The Syndrome."
Further support was extended to emerging talent through the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation Athena List Development Grant. Rachel Caccese, writer of "Aquanauts," received $20,000 for a script focused on a woman in STEM. The festival also continues its partnership with AMC Networks for its Future of Film initiative.
