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Stories x Women Stories x Women

The International Federation of Film Producers’ Associations (FIAPF) and Women in Animation (WIA) have unveiled the five delegates selected to participate in the second edition of Stories x Women.

This year’s delegates are, in alphabetical order:

Superpunk – Brazil. A project led by Mirtes Santana (with Guilherme Petreca).

Superpunk

Negocio de Brujas (Witch’s Business) – Chile. A project led by Paulina Sanhueza Meléndez (with Alejandra Jaramillo Fanta)

Witch's Business

Nerea – Dominican Republic. A project led by Fabiola Contreras Rosso (with Arima Léon)

Nerea

The Golden Pig – Malaysia. A project led by Hwei Ling Ow (with Kate Goodwin)

The Golden Pig

Papo Hapo – Türkiye/Kenya. A project led by Irmak Atabek Ndungu (with Mbithi Masya)

Papo Hapo

Stories x Women was established in 2022 to provide international opportunities to women animators who want to tell authentic stories from emerging animation communities in Africa, Asia-Pacific, and Latin America.

More than 130 artists applied to participate in this year’s program. The five selected delegates will participate in a series of mentoring sessions with animation experts and one-on-one coaching sessions where they will learn how to pitch. All five will then utilize those lessons to bring their projects to Annecy’s MIFA Pitching Sessions.

Marge Dean, WIA president, said in a release: “For 10 years, WIA has been focused on reaching 50/50 gender parity in animation by 2025. The Stories x Women program aligns perfectly with our mission of supporting and empowering people of underrepresented gender identities in animation. It’s actively removing barriers faced by women and gender non-conforming creatives and making space for them to tell their authentic stories. We can’t wait to see the growth and development of this international group of talented creators.”

Said Luis Alberto Scalella, president of FIAPF: “FIAPF is proud to bring the second edition of Stories x Women with WIA with the support of The Walt Disney Company and Sony Pictures Entertainment. Our industry, in particular its production segment, is committed to bringing new stories and new voices to our audiences across the world. Stories x Women supports the work of women animators from regions that are less visible in the international market and is an extra contribution to the collective efforts made by this industry in that field. As the global voice for producers worldwide, FIAPF promotes all forms of film genres, including animation and its universal language.”

Stories x Women is sponsored by The Walt Disney Company, with additional support from Sony Pictures Entertainment.

Stories x Women 2023