BY Liza FOREMAN
The year 2018 was a special Cannes for women filmmakers in several ways. Nina Menkes, the iconic feminist director of films like ‘Queen of Diamonds’, (restored by Martin Scorsese’s The Film Foundation), stood on stage at The Members Club to hold court about her film Brainwashed: ‘Sex-Camera-Power’ in which she puts the spotlight on how films are shot in a gendered way to empower men and objectify women.
Behind the scenes, a group of innovative female filmmakers put together the first edition of Breaking Through The Lens (BTTL), a first-of-its-kind female film-financing initiative that came together in a borrowed villa on the edge of the French Riviera town.
A few days later, some 100 women filmmakers and a slew of curious film financiers descended on the leafy villa to hear the inaugural set of pitches from women filmmakers hoping to finance their films.
BTTL founder Daphne Schmon explains the idea was launched with the simple goal of connecting female feature-filmmakers to finance. “The idea came about in a very organic way. We had an opportunity from a private equity investor, who was moving from tech to film, to host an event at his Mediterranean villa. He was curious to find quality projects while at Cannes. So, we decided to gather a group of female directors, me included, who had features in development, and have them make their pitch.” Companies such as Lionsgate, Sony, and Universal came along that first year. “Which proved the hunger for an initiative like this in the industry,” Schmon added. Since then, the grassroots organization has expanded its reach and its remit. It is now active at major film festivals including Venice, Toronto, Cannes and Berlin.
BTTL is being embraced in Berlin this week; a string of debut female directors playing at the festival and has already brought together marginalized filmmakers from far and wide who gathered at a Campari-hosted event.
Schmon said BTTL has established itself as an official 501(c)3 non-profit in the U.S.
and has expanded its scope. “It is now open to directors of all marginalized genders, including non-binary and trans filmmakers,” says Schmon who adds that BTTL has become a year-round endeavor; “It runs an ongoing program which offers development grants, workshops, panels and an annual project showcase.” Per Schmon, “It continues to attract support in high places.”
Past jury members include Georgina Rodriguez, Head of International Originals HBO Max, Deana Nassar, Head of Grow Creative MENA at Netflix, and Effie Brown, CEO of Gamechanger Films. BTTL also collaborates with leading brands such as Campari, Chopard and Pinko to run our programs.
BTTL alumni include Laura Moss – Birth/Rebirth (2023) which premiered at Sundance; Rita Baghdadi with Sirens (2022), which also premiered at Sundance; and
Nathalie Mesén with Clara Sola (2021), which premiered in the Cannes’ Directors Fortnight.
At each festival BTTL visits, it highlights the work of female and non-binary directors in competition, “To amplify their visibility,” exerts Schmon. At the Berlinale 2024, it has welcomed first-time directors Margherita Vicaro, Gloria! from Italy and Meryam Joobeur with Who Do I Belong To, from Tunisia, as well as Claire Burger Langue Étrangère from France.
Schmon expalins, “Our focus is shifting towards Action Grants intended to help our directors take action in a certain area of development, as well as Travel Grants that assist them in attending various festival markets. Ultimately, our mission is to promote gender parity throughout seeking finance, visibility, guidance and access to top level executives. The projects we take on are in late-stage development, with a director of underrepresented gender, a producer with feature-film experience and a strong finished script. These criteria are in place to ensure they are ready to move into production soon after the finance is secured. For as much as we can open a door, they must be ready to walk through it.”
BTTL has recently added results-oriented award-winning producer Liz Cardenas as its newest board member. Based in Los Angeles and her hometown of Dallas, Cardenas was a 2023 Spirit Awards Producer Award nominee and has produced a number of breakout independent films, including Augustine Frizzell’s Never Goin Back, which was nominated for a John Cassavetes Award.
“It was important from the onset that BTTL be results-driven,” adds Schmon. “We facilitate meaningful connections for our directors in order to get their projects made. Our team and jury look carefully at each project’s specific needs to set up targeted meetings. Our events are intimate, focused and diverse; always with the aim of initiating impactful conversations.”
