Submissions Now Open For The 2025 Women In The Arts And Media Coalition Collaboration Awards

Women in the Arts & Media Coalition is calling for submissions for the 2025 Collaboration Awards. Established in 2006, the $1,000 award and other honors are designed to encourage professional women from different arts and media disciplines to work together on the creation of a new artistic work. Artistic disciplines include but are not limited to playwrights, directors, composers, choreographers, filmmakers, actors, singers, and dancers.

The Coalition, which was founded in 1989, focuses on addressing issues of concern to women in our industry, connecting individuals and entire organizations to share information, sponsor events, and nurture the voices and visions of women. Co-President Shellen Lubin shared her thoughts on the awards, "Historically, if there's been a woman on the team of creatives, it's been just one. Women have not gotten enough opportunities to collaborate with other women. This award is to encourage and honor those creative collaborations."

This will be the first Collaboration Award submissions process, awards, and event since the pandemic, and the Coalition is eager to see the creative work that has been created by women in collaboration with each other since 2021. Co-President Alvis Boone stated, "It's always exciting to see all the wonderful collaborations that come from our talented community."

Collaborative teams must be led by female members of the various Coalition arts & media associations, unions, guilds, affiliates, (full list below) or be individual members. While team participants may be of any gender, the two people submitting for the award must both identify as women and be from two different disciplines.

Eligible teams may suggest any form of creative collaboration on a new work created since 2021 and which has had a public performance. Public performances may include, but are not limited to, a production, a workshop, a staged reading, a gallery show, a concert, etc. Public performances may be in person and/or virtual. Submissions will be judged on the basis of artistic excellence, diversity, and clarity. All topics and subjects will be considered. Special attention shall be given to projects that reflect the goals of the Coalition: to advance the voice and vision of women (women's work and women's issues).

There is also a Student Award for students of our Academic Affiliate, SVA BFA Film Department, and Student Members of the Coalition.

The winning team and the honorable mentions will be invited to an award ceremony in New York in Autumn, 2025. Also honored at this event will be an Acclaimed Collaboration Award winning project.

At the last Collaboration Award event in 2019, the honored projects were:

Acclaimed Collaboration Award

EGG (written by Risa Mickenberg, directed by Marianna Palka, produced by Alysia Reiner, David Alan Basche, and Michele Ganeless. Featuring Gbenga Akkinagbe, David Alan Basche, Anna Camp, Christina Hendricks, and Alysia Reiner.

Collaboration Award Winner

Preservation written by Deborah Yarchun (DG) and directed by Jess Chayes (SDC & LPTW)

Honored Finalists

Courage written by Melissa Bell (DG) and directed by Tannis Kowalchuk (TRU).

Click written by Jacqueline Goldfinger (DG) and directed by Katherine Carter (SDC & LPTW).

United Flight 232, Vanessa Stalling served as the director and adapted the piece from Laurence Gonzales' Flight 232: A Story of Disaster and Survival (SDC), performed by Brenda Barrie (AEA).

Special Mentions

Scars written and performed by Ophira Eisenberg (SAG-AFTRA), directed by Maggie Cino (DG).

The Uncivil Ones music by composer Ayumi Okada (composer/802, DG) and additional book by Charissa Bertels (AEA SAG-AFTRA).

Student Collaboration Award Winners

Bread Machine, Shelby Hougui & Julia De Santis (SVA), co-founders of JuJu Films.

Other past winners include: playwright T.D. Mitchell and director Sheryl Kaller for the play Queens for a Year (2015), actor Jane Edith Wilson and director Grace Lee for their mockumentary, Janeane from Des Moines (2013), and playwright Stefanie Zadravec and director Daniella Topol for their collaboration on the play The Electric Baby (2011).

Teams outside of New York unable to attend the ceremony may send a designee to speak about their project and accept the award.

TO APPLY: Submissions from two women working together on the creative project may apply for the 2025 Collaboration Award on the Women in the Arts & Media Coalition website at www.womenartsmedia.org. Deadline for Submissions is December 31, 2024. Winners will be notified by July 1, 2025. The awards ceremony will take place Autumn of 2025, in New York City.

Women in the Arts & Media Coalition (Co-Presidents Avis Boone, Yvonne Curry, and Shellen Lubin) is a non-profit organization which represents more than 200,000 arts and media professionals in the performing arts and media through its member organizations and affiliate and individual members. The Coalition focuses the power of its member organizations and their memberships together and uses the combined strength to address issues of concern to women in our industry, connecting individuals and entire organizations to share information, sponsor events, and nurture the voices and visions of women.

Applicants must be members in good standing of a member organization, and/or an individual member of the Women in the Arts & Media Coalition. Member organizations are: Actors' Equity Association (AEA), Associated Musicians of New York Local 802 AFM (802), Dramatists Guild (DG), League of Professional Theatre Women (LPTW), New York Women in Communications (WICI), New York Women in Film & Television (NYWIFT), Screen Actors Guild-American Federation of Television & Radio Artists (SAG-AFTRA), Stage Directors and Choreographers Society (SDC), and the Writers Guild of America, East (WGAE). See website for more information: www.womenartsmedia.org

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