Judges revealed for Tribeca Festival's $1 million pitch event

AT&T claims this is the largest film production prize in the world given to a single filmmaker at any festival and the only program that guarantees full production of a feature film with a major festival premiere.

• Last year's winning film, "Honeyjoon" (written and directed by Lilian T. Mehrel), will world premiere June 7 at the SVA Theatre in New York City.

Zoom in: While several companies have softened or retreated from diversity, equity and inclusion programs, AT&T and Tribeca Festival are leaning in.

• Untold Stories provides rising, historically underrepresented filmmakers with resources and support to bring their stories to the screen.

How it works: Five finalists will compete for $1 million, a yearlong mentorship and the opportunity to premiere their feature film at the 2026 Tribeca Festival.

• Rodriguez, Hsu and Jean-Baptiste will join 2023 winner David Fortune ("Color Book") on the judges panel, along with director Andrew Ahn ("The Wedding Banquet") and AT&T chief marketing and growth officer Kellyn Kenny.

What they're saying: "As a judge, I'm going to be focused on the heartbeat of your story. If it moves me, then I know that it's going to move a wide spread of audiences around the world," Fortune tells Axios.

What's next: The pitch event takes place on June 5 at Spring Studios. A limited number of free tickets will be available. Sign up