Patty West is a producer and educator based in California. She led the Directing Workshop for Women and the Thesis Program at the American Film Institute prior to joining the Sundance Institute. She came to Sundance Collab in December of 2019 and now serves as its Director.
West is a Chicago native and holds a B.S. from Northwestern University, an M.F.A. from the AFI Conservatory and an Executive M.B.A. from Quantic School of Business & Technology. She is a member of the Producer's Council of the Producers Guild of America.
Collab items I'm associated with:
Advisor Studio
Advisor Studio: How to Create a Pitch Deck with Jess Devaney (PRAY AWAY) and Mallory Schwartz (THE MORNING SHOW)
With: Jessica Devaney and 2 more
$10
Advisor Studio: How to Create a Pitch Deck with Jess Devaney (PRAY AWAY) and Mallory Schwartz (THE MORNING SHOW)
With: Jessica Devaney, Mallory Schwartz and Patty West
$10
Advisor Studio
Advisor Studio: Negotiating Strategies for Creators with Victoria Cook
With: Victoria Cook and Patty West
$10
Advisor Studio: Negotiating Strategies for Creators with Victoria Cook
With: Victoria Cook and Patty West
$10
Advisor Studio
Creative Producing - From Pitch to Picture with Carol Baum
With: Carol Baum and Patty West
$10
Video
Exploring AI with It Writes Itself: The AI Variety Show & Creativity Workshop
With: Mike Jacobson and 2 more
FREE
Exploring AI with It Writes Itself: The AI Variety Show & Creativity Workshop
With: Mike Jacobson, Sami Kriegstein Jacobson and Patty West
Join us for a hands-on session designed to demystify generative AI through creativity, humor, and experimentation. Whether you're AI-curious or AI-cautious, through a series of fun, surprising experiments, you'll experience first-hand how generative AI intersects with the creative process.
FREE
Video
Exploring AI with the Creators Coalition on AI (CCAI): June 2026
With: Ted Tremper and Patty West
FREE
Exploring AI with the Creators Coalition on AI (CCAI): June 2026
With: Ted Tremper and Patty West
Join us for the first in a quarterly series of updates on the Creators Coalition on AI's work at the intersection of creativity and artificial intelligence. Don't miss this opportunity to stay informed, ask questions, and engage directly with coalition leaders shaping the conversation around AI and the creative community.
FREE
Event Recording
Making Your First Feature Film - A Conversation at the 2024 Sundance Film Festival
With: Julian Brave NoiseCat and 4 more
$10
Making Your First Feature Film - A Conversation at the 2024 Sundance Film Festival
With: Julian Brave NoiseCat, Emily Kassie, Josh Margolin, Sean Wang and Patty West
For this in-person meetup during the 2024 Sundance Film Festival, Sundance Collab brings together Julian Brave NoiseCat and Emily Kassie (SUGARCANE), Josh Margolin (THELMA), and Sean Wang (DÌDI (弟弟)), for a candid conversation about the process of making their first feature film.
$10
Master Class
Master Class: Creating Branded Content with Stacy Fuller of Refinery 29
With: Stacy Fuller and 5 more
$30
Master Class: Creating Branded Content with Stacy Fuller of Refinery 29
With: Stacy Fuller, Greg James, Aiden Darné, Megan Doyle, Pamela Romanowsky and Patty West
$30
Master Class
Master Class: Film Music - Creating the Soundscape for Your Film with Peter Golub (THE GREAT DEBATERS), Adam Smalley (THE LION KING) and Carter Burwell (THE BANSHEES OF INISHERIN)
With: Peter Golub and 3 more
$30
Master Class: Film Music - Creating the Soundscape for Your Film with Peter Golub (THE GREAT DEBATERS), Adam Smalley (THE LION KING) and Carter Burwell (THE BANSHEES OF INISHERIN)
With: Peter Golub, Adam Smalley, Carter Burwell and Patty West
$30
Master Class
Master Class: Filmmaker's Legal Toolkit: From Protecting IP Through Negotiating Distribution with Janis Nelson, Cory Field, Victoria Cook, Michael Donaldson, Chris Perez, and Raymond Tambe
With: Janis Nelson and 6 more
$30
Master Class: Filmmaker's Legal Toolkit: From Protecting IP Through Negotiating Distribution with Janis Nelson, Cory Field, Victoria Cook, Michael Donaldson, Chris Perez, and Raymond Tambe
With: Janis Nelson, Corey Field, Victoria Cook, Michael Donaldson, Chris Perez, Raymond Tambe and Patty West
$30
Master Class
Master Class: Launching and Managing Your Creative Business with Financial Expert Amy Smith
With: Amy Smith and Patty West
$30
Master Class: Launching and Managing Your Creative Business with Financial Expert Amy Smith
With: Amy Smith and Patty West
$30
Master Class
Master Class: Lessons from a Life Behind the Camera with Ken Kwapis (THE OFFICE)
With: Ken Kwapis and Patty West
$30
Master Class: Lessons from a Life Behind the Camera with Ken Kwapis (THE OFFICE)
With: Ken Kwapis and Patty West
$30
Master Class
Master Class: Marketing & Distributing Your Feature Film with Russell Schwartz
With: Russell Schwartz and Patty West
$30
Master Class: Marketing & Distributing Your Feature Film with Russell Schwartz
With: Russell Schwartz and Patty West
$30
Master Class
Master Class: The Sound & Music of the Daniels’ EVERYTHING EVERYWHERE ALL AT ONCE | Presented by the Dolby Institute
With: The Daniels and 6 more
$30
Master Class: The Sound & Music of the Daniels’ EVERYTHING EVERYWHERE ALL AT ONCE | Presented by the Dolby Institute
With: The Daniels, Son Lux, Andrew Twite, Brent Kiser, Peter Golub, Glenn Kiser and Patty West
$30
Producers Diane Becker and Ted Tremper on Making THE AI DOC
With: Diane Becker, Ted Tremper and Patty West
In this conversation, we’ll dive deep into the unique production challenges of capturing a subject – AI – that changes by the hour. We’ll examine finding your creative vision, maintaining editorial independence with high-stakes documentary participants, and the ethics of AI in filmmaking.
FREE
Spotlight
Spotlight: Adapting a Podcast into a TV Series with Kim Rosenstock (DYING FOR SEX)
With: Kim Rosenstock and Patty West
$10
Spotlight: Adapting a Podcast into a TV Series with Kim Rosenstock (DYING FOR SEX)
With: Kim Rosenstock and Patty West
$10
Spotlight
Spotlight: Crafting Authentic Narratives in Documentary with Matthew Heineman
With: Matthew Heineman and Patty West
$10
Spotlight: Crafting Authentic Narratives in Documentary with Matthew Heineman
With: Matthew Heineman and Patty West
$10
Video
The Poetry of the Prompt: AI Storytelling and the Making of ANCESTRA
With: Eliza McNitt and 2 more
FREE
The Poetry of the Prompt: AI Storytelling and the Making of ANCESTRA
With: Eliza McNitt, Ben Wiley and Patty West
Emmy-nominated filmmaker Eliza McNitt unpacks the creation of ANCESTRA, her 2025 short film made in collaboration with Google’s DeepMind team. McNitt and collaborator Ben Wiley, Creative Director at the Google Creative Lab, discuss how the pair blended live action performances with generative AI visuals to tell a deeply personal story. The film, executive produced by Darren Aronofsky, premiered at the 2025 Tribeca Film Festival. A Sundance Film Festival alum, McNitt has described the project as the story of how “a mother’s love becomes a cosmic force in order to save her daughter’s life.”
FREE
Event Recording
The Sundance Institute Founder Series: Honoring Robert Redford with David Lowery
With: Patty West and David Lowery
FREE
The Sundance Institute Founder Series: Honoring Robert Redford with David Lowery
With: Patty West and David Lowery
FREE


