As part of its commitment to providing ongoing support for its numerous film grantees, the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation, in partnership with Film Independent, hosts the Sloan Film Summit in Los Angeles every three years. Uniting filmmakers, scientists, and representatives from the many film schools and organizations Sloan partners with year-round, the Summit includes screenings, talks, case studies, and networking opportunities. As Sloan's pioneering film program continues to flourish and grow, Museum of the Moving Image launched the Sloan Virtual Film Summit in 2023 to bridge the gap between in-person summits and further support the community of Sloan-support filmmakers that we track on Sloan Science & Film.
Last week, recipients of Sloan film grants were welcomed to the third Sloan Virtual Film Summit. Following remarks from the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation’s Vice President and Program Director Doron Weber and Museum of the Moving Image’s Curator of Science and Technology Sonia Epstein, attendees heard from Athena Film Festival, the Black List, Film Independent, SFFILM, Sundance Institute, and Toronto International Film Festival about upcoming grant opportunities before hearing from one another.
Each year, the Summit includes a filmmaker spotlight, celebrating the talent and determination of a grantee who has harnessed Sloan’s pipeline of support from development to distribution. This year, attendees heard from Noam Argov, whose film VERSE earned a Sloan Production Award at NYU in 2024 and will make its world premiere in competition at the 2026 Tribeca Festival on June 6. The short film tells the story of Adam, a seventeen year old forced to confront where his virtual persona ends and his real self begins when he decides to finally meet his VR girlfriend in real life.
VERSE isn’t the only Sloan success story on the horizon. After hearing from Argov, nearly 30 filmmakers elected to share news of their projects’ progress, from talent attachments to festival premieres. Watch this space for more details on these inspiring developments as they move from confidential to public information.
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