Next Gen Storytellers: Meet the 2025 Sundance Ignite x Adobe Fellows Shaping the Future of Film
Courtesy of Sundance Institute
In a powerful celebration of its 10th anniversary, the Sundance Institute has unveiled the 2025 cohort of its Ignite x Adobe Fellowship — spotlighting ten bold, visionary filmmakers under 25 who are redefining the future of independent storytelling.
Selected from over 1,000 global applicants, these emerging creatives will kick off their fellowship with a weeklong Ignite Lab residency at MASS MoCA (June 23–27), designed to foster artistic growth, community, and collaboration. Fellows receive a $3,000 artist grant, a one-year Adobe Creative Cloud membership, and year-round access to industry mentorship, workshops, and networking opportunities — including a curated experience at the 2026 Sundance Film Festival.
From poetic spiritual explorations to surf-inspired visual storytelling, this year's cohort brings fresh, diverse perspectives from around the world — including filmmakers from India, Ireland, Costa Rica, Macedonia, and across the U.S.
Notable past fellows have gone on to win major awards at Sundance, Cannes, SXSW, and the Academy Awards, making this program one of the most impactful springboards for rising talent in film today.
As Toby Brooks, Assistant Director of Sundance Ignite, puts it:
"Bespoke support for early-career storytellers is more crucial now than it ever has been… finding a community to grow within is really special."