Regina King and Halle BerryDimitrios Kambouris
According to Jane Rosenthal, three words can change an aspiring filmmaker’s life. She wasn’t referring to Through Her Lens—although Tribeca and Chanel’s long-running program for women and non-binary auteurs can and does do just that. Rather, she was reminding a room full of powerful people—actors, directors, and executives—to just “read the script” when they are given an opportunity to do so.
The CEO of Tribeca, who started her career in 1975 as one of very few women in the room, recalled a formative moment when she fought hard to bring a project about domestic violence to the screen, despite numerous objections. The movie in question, based on a true story, ended up being The Burning Bed, with Farrah Fawcett playing the lead. Not only did it win awards; it prompted national conversation around the pervasive issue once it saw the light of day. “That moment taught me something very early on: It matters who is in the room. It matters even more who has the power, and who is willing to say, “Yes. Read the script. Listen to her.”
Tuesday afternoon’s luncheon marked the beginning of the annual three-day workshop, now in its 11th edition. Among those who joined Rosenthal were this year’s jury members Halle Berry, Regina King, and Autumn Durald Arkapaw, as well as mentor Celine Song, who debuted her baby bump on the red carpet outside Locanda Verde.
“I think curiosity makes me a better storyteller,” Berry told Vogue. “That’s always been within everything I do—curiosity about the character, the subject, the filmmaker, and the experience. Right now, I’m interested in stories about women in this stage of life [I am in]. There aren’t a lot out there, which makes us feel discarded. I just finished filming a movie called Fleur, in France, which I was wildly inspired by.”
