Forming Strategic Brand Partnerships with Festival Darling COOKIE QUEENS
About this Live Online Event
Are you a filmmaker curious how you can create partnerships for impact and audience engagement? Wondering how brands choose to support creatives and what they are looking for?
Join us for a case study on the captivating film Cookie Queens, which was produced independently, premiered at the 2026 Sundance Film Festival to glowing reviews, and won the Festival Favorite Audience Award at SXSW prior to a successful U.S. theatrical release. The filmmaker of this delightful and incisive documentary was able to build several impact partnerships after the premiere through existing relationships, previous grants, and positive reactions to the premiere and the trailer.
In this interactive one-hour session, you’ll hear from a panel of experts on making smart brand partnerships without losing creative control. We’ll be joined by Alysa Nahmias, Director and Producer of Cookie Queens and founder of the production company AJNA Films, Brian Newman, Producer and Founder of Sub-Genre, and Hannah Habuzaineh, Director of Sustainability and Social Impact at Free People.
You’ll learn the different models for working with brands on independent films — from completely independent with brand marketing support to fully brand funded projects. Regardless of where you are with your film or your career, this session will help you gain valuable knowledge and confidence to pursue brand partnerships in a way that works for you.
Check out the trailer for Cookie Queens and find out where to watch the film here: https://www.cookiequeensfilm.com.
Topics include:
- Knowing how to approach brands and who to contact
- Thinking about what appeals to brands
- Working with brands for marketing and impact support
- Understanding ethical and creative concerns
- Developing a group of brand relationships that work well together
- Forming partnerships once the film is done
- Non-profits as “brands” and the value of grants
- How brands can support filmmakers in the short term
- Learning about longer-term, artist-centered support
If you would benefit from an accommodation to fully participate in this event, please either submit a request here, contact us at (435) 776-7790, or email us at accessibility@sundance.org to discuss your specific requests. Every effort will be made to accommodate advance requests; however, requests made within 5 days of the event may not be guaranteed.
A recording of this session will be posted to Sundance Collab's Event Recording Library within two business days of the live event. All registered attendees will receive an email with a link to view the recording at no cost for two business days after it is posted. After that, on-demand access to the recording can be purchased for $10.
Live Online EventPeople
Alysa Nahmias
Alysa Nahmias is a filmmaker and founder of the Los Angeles-based production company AJNA. Alysa recently directed and produced Cookie Queens, which premiered at the 2026 Sundance Film Festival, won the SXSW Festival Favorite Audience Award, and is distributed by Roadside Attractions. Alysa's directing credits also include the Emmy Award-winning Art & Krimes By Krimes (2021), The New Bauhaus (Chicago, 2019), and Unfinished Spaces (LA Film Fest, 2011), which won a Film Independent Spirit Award and is in the permanent collection of the Museum of Modern Art, New York.
As a producer, Alysa's work includes the Emmy-winning documentary Wildcat (Telluride, 2022) for Amazon Studios, the Oscar-shortlisted Unrest (Sundance, 2017) released by Netflix and PBS, and Amber Sealey's No Light And No Land Anywhere (LA Film Fest, 2016). She executive produced Reid Davenport's Sundance-winning I Didn't See You There (Sundance, 2021), Michael Premo's Homegrown (Venice, 2024) and Cynthia Lowen and Jon Cohrs' Kids Like Me (Tribeca, 2026). Alysa is a co-founder of Fwd-Doc, a nonprofit led by disabled filmmakers, and she is a member of the Television Academy and the Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences. She recently received the 2026 Changemaker Award from Film Independent.
Brian Newman
Brian Newman, founder of Sub-Genre, consults on content strategy, development, distribution and marketing for some of the top brands in the world. Current and former clients include: The Climate Pledge (Amazon), GoDaddy, IBM, Keen, Mud\Wtr, New York Times, Oatly, Patagonia, Purina, REI, Shopify Studios , Sonos, Stripe, Sundance, Tazo, Unilever, Yeti Coolers, and Zero Point Zero.
Brian is also an independent film producer. Projects include: IF YOU SEE SOMETHING (narrative, in post); THE OUTSIDE STORY (narrative, Tribeca Film Festival 2021 premiere, theatrical distribution by Samuel Goldwyn Films, 2021) LOVE & TAXES (narrative, 2017 theatrical release); and executive producer of SHORED UP, THE INVISIBLE WORLD (docs) and REMITTANCE (narrative).
Brian has served as CEO of the Tribeca Film Institute, president of Renew Media (known for the Rockefeller Fellowships) and executive director of IMAGE Film & Video (producers of the Atlanta Film Festival & Out On Film).
Brian is the founder of the Brand/Foundation Alliance, and serves on the advisory board of the Camden International Film Festival. He has served on the boards of Grantmakers in Film & Electronic Media (GFEM, now Media Impact Funders, as Vice Chair and Treasurer); Muse Film & Television, Rooftop Films (Chair) and IndieCollect (Co-Founding Board Member).
Brian is a frequent keynote speaker on branded content and the future of film and new media, and writes a popular weekly newsletter on these subjects. He was born in North Carolina and has an MA in Film Studies from Emory University.
Hannah Abuzaineh
Hannah Choe Abuzaineh leads Social Impact & Sustainability at Free People, where she supports the brand’s approach to environmental responsibility, community investment, and purpose-driven storytelling—including the brand's partnership with the Sundance Institute’s Documentary Film Program. Previously, she led social impact at The North Face, overseeing the Explore Fund and supporting the brand’s noncommercial documentary film program for independent filmmakers.
Hannah began her career as a writer, producer, and host in South Korea and later worked with the Emmy-nominated PBS series Roadtrip Nation. Across her career, she has explored the role brands can play as platforms for impact, supporting culture, creativity, and communities in meaningful ways. She also serves on the board of The Redford Center, supporting environmental storytelling and independent filmmakers.
Erica Elson
Moderator | Digital Course & Event Producer
Erica Elson is a Producer, Writer and Educator based in the mountains outside Los Angeles. Her short film, WING NIGHT, premiered at Method Fest in Los Angeles. She is the co-author of the book THE AWKWARD HUMAN SURVIVAL GUIDE and co-hosted a podcast by the same name on the 5by5 network for five years. Elson's articles have been published by HuffPost, Lifehacker, and Reader's Digest. Prior to working in education, she worked in television development and writers’ rooms such as VH1’s HINDSIGHT, where she had the chance to write for the spinoff web series PLANET SEBASTIAN.
Elson joined the Sundance Collab team in October 2021 and produces courses, Master Classes, and events in the areas of screenwriting, television writing, directing, producing, and documentary filmmaking. She has moderated conversations with Sofia Coppola, Richard Linklater, Alexander Payne, and Susannah Grant, among others.
Prior to Sundance, Elson was the Thesis Production Supervisor at the American Film Institute for five years. She oversaw several award-winning graduate thesis films, notably the 2021 BAFTA student film winner APART, TOGETHER and the 2023 Sundance Film Festival short WE WERE MEANT TO. While at AFI, Elson developed a passion for sustainable production and created the Green Film School Alliance, which includes forty schools on four continents. She holds a BA in Communication and Film Studies from Concordia University and an MFA in Screenwriting from the American Film Institute.