The Festival opens with State of Firsts, a powerful story documenting Sarah McBride’s historic rise to become the first trans member of Congress
Our Centerpiece Film is Academy Award nominated documentary, Cutting Through Rocks, the true story of the first elected Councilwoman in her Iranian village fighting the patriarchy
Closing film will be Ask E. Jean, a compelling documentary that captures the life of journalist E. Jean Carroll, and her two successful legal battles with President Donald Trump
NEW YORK (February 3, 2026) – The Athena Film Festival (AFF) at Barnard College has announced its full lineup of documentary and feature films for the 2026 Athena Film Festival at Barnard College.
The 16th annual festival, a partnership between Barnard College and the initiative Women and Hollywood will take place March 6-8, 2026, on Barnard’s campus in New York City.
Each year, AFF presents a curated selection of narrative and documentary features and short films, along with engaging panels and post screening conversations featuring filmmakers, thought leaders, and other luminaries, all focused on advancing women’s leadership through storytelling.
This year’s festival will open with State of Firsts, directed by Chase Joynt. The film explores Sarah McBride’s historic run to become the first trans Member of Congress, the intense backlash that followed, and how the fight for change can be impacted by growing political extremism. Also screening will be The Inquisitor, by Angela Lynn Tucker, which details how Barbara Jordan broke barriers in 1972 when she became the first southern Black woman to serve in Congress. The closing film, Ask E. Jean, directed by Ivy Meeropol, is a gripping documentary that chronicles the life and career of advice columnist and gonzo journalist E. Jean Carroll, and her two successful legal battles with President Trump.
The festival’s Centerpiece is Cutting Through Rocks, directed by Mohammadreza Eyni and Sara Khaki, which has been nominated in the Documentary Feature Film category for the 98th Academy Awards. There is also a special screening of Steal This Story, Please! directed by Tia Lessin and Carl Deal, which follows journalist Amy Goodman and her journey to pursue truth while taking on corporate media, soldiers, and politicians.
“At this moment in our country it’s vital we showcase leadership that exemplifies the possibilities of a different world,” said Melissa Silverstein, Artistic Director and Co-Founder of the Athena Film Festival. “This work is made meaningful by the artists who create these films, the profound nature of the subjects, and the audiences who engage with them and help to expand their impact.”
“The Athena Film Festival highlights the power of film, and the artists who push boundaries around women’s leadership,” said Nikki Youngblood Giles, Vice Dean of Campus Life, Barnard College. “Barnard College is proud to host the festival to help bring these films to new audiences, and our community is excited to explore the narratives being shared. We thank the Artemis Rising Foundation and its CEO, Regina K. Scully, for her unwavering support in making this work possible.”
Documentary selections for 2026 include How to Build a Library, directed by Maia Lekow and Christopher King, where two Nairobi women work to transform a former whites-only library to a cultural hotspot; Kani Lapuerta’s hybrid documentary NIÑXS, in which two adolescents navigate their transition together; and the Maintenance Artist, directed by Toby Perl Freilich, Barnard ‘80, which focuses on the life and work of Mierle Laderman Ukeles, ‘61, the first Artist in Residence for the New York City Department of Sanitation; and Women Laughing, directed by Liza Donnelly and Kathleen Hughes, which explores the work of women cartoonists noting how far women have come in a field dominated by men.
The 2026 narrative features include Libby Ewing’s Charliebird, which explores the deep trauma of a woman navigating personal and professional challenges that changes her forever; Sarah Goher’s directorial debut Happy Birthday, a tale of two young girls from different economic backgrounds and the impact of class on their friendship; Lateshift, directed by Petra Volpe, depicts a passionate nurse who is desperately trying to care for her seriously ill patients in a health care system on the brink of failure; and Lesbian Space Princess, Emma Hough Hobbs’ and Leela Varghese’s animated film about a space princess who leaves her life behind to save a loved one from danger.
The shorts program was released in December. Passes and single tickets are now on sale. For more information, please visit AthenaFilmFestival.com.
2026 Festival Sponsors include: Founding Sponsor, The Artemis Rising Foundation and its CEO Regina K. Scully, the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation, Secret Sauce Media, Netflix, Walt Disney Studios, AMC Networks, Hanky Panky, the Dobkin Family Foundation, Illumine Service Foundation, Christine A. Schantz, Regal, The Katie McGrath & J.J. Abrams Family Foundation, and Attitude New York. The festival’s accessibility sponsor is the Loreen Arbus Foundation.
Full Film Lineup
Ask E. Jean (Closing Film)
United States
Director, Producer, Writer: Ivy Meeropol
Producers: Laura Bickford, Annabelle Dunne
Documentary
The thrilling and adventurous life of advice columnist and gonzo journalist E. Jean Carroll, and her two successful legal battles with President Trump.
Charliebird
United States
Director, Producer: Libby Ewing
Producers: Samantha Smart, Elliot Gipson
Narrative
When a music therapist develops a unique relationship with a young patient, she is confronted with her past and what it means to live.
Cutting Through Rocks (Centerpiece Film)
Iran/Netherlands/USA
Directors, Producers: Mohammadreza Eyni, Sara Khaki
Documentary
As the first elected councilwoman of her remote Iranian village, Sara Shahverdi fearlessly breaks patriarchal traditions by training teenage girls to ride motorcycles and stopping child marriages. When accusations arise questioning Sara’s intentions to empower the girls, her identity is put in turmoil.
Happy Birthday
Egypt
Director: Sarah Goher
Producers: Mohamed Diab, Ahmed El Desouky, Ahmed Abbas, Ahmed Badawy, Jamie Foxx, Datari Turner
Narrative
Eight-year-old maid Toha goes to great lengths to ensure that her best friend Nelly, the daughter of her wealthy employer, has a successful birthday party in this poignant debut feature exploring classism in modern-day Cairo.
How to Build A Library
Kenya
Directors, Producers: Maia Lekow, Christopher King
Documentary
Two intrepid Nairobi women decide to transform what used to be a whites-only library until 1958 into a vibrant cultural hub. Along the way, they must navigate local politics, raise millions for the rebuild, and confront the lingering ghosts of Kenya’s colonial past.
The Inquisitor
United States
Director: Angela Lynn Tucker
Producers: Moira Griffin, Trevite Willis, Duane Prefume
Documentary
In 1972, Barbara Jordan became the first southern Black woman to join Congress. The Inquisitor chronicles Representative Jordan’s meteoric rise offering a blueprint for uniting a divided America through a turbulent political era.
Late Shift [Heldin] (NYC Premiere)
Switzerland, Germany
Director: Petra Volpe
Producers: Reto Schärli, Lukas Hobi
Narrative
An entirely ordinary day on the beds ward of a surgical department. The nursing team is understaffed due to a shortage of personnel. Despite the hectic environment, Floria cares for her patients with expertise and full dedication. Although she gives her all, the shift gradually spirals out of control – until it eventually leads to a dramatic outburst.
Lesbian Space Princess
Australia
Directors: Emma Hough Hobbs, Leela Varghese
Narrative, Animation
A space princess is thrust out of her sheltered life and into a galactic quest to save her bounty hunter ex-girlfriend from the Straight White Maliens.
NIÑXS
Germany, Mexico
Director: Kani Lapuerta
Producer: Suleica Pineda
Documentary Hybrid
While Karla navigates her transition, Kani shapes 8 years of footage into a joyful film, as they handle the vagaries of a trans adolescence together.
Maintenance Artist
United States
Director, Producer: Toby Perl Freilich
Producer: Judith Mizrachy
Documentary
Maintenance Artist is the feature documentary about groundbreaking public artist Mierle Laderman Ukeles ‘61, the New York City Sanitation Department’s first artist-in-residence.
State of Firsts (Opening Film)
United States
Director: Chase Joynt
Producers: Jenna M. Kelly, Justin Lacob
Documentary
A portrait of Sarah McBride’s historic run to become the first trans Member of Congress, the backlash that ensues, and her fight for change amidst intensifying political extremism.
Steal This Story, Please! (Special Screening)
United States
Directors: Tia Lessin, Carl Deal
Producer: Karen Ranucci
Documentary
Amy Goodman takes on soldiers, politicians, and corporate media in a fearless pursuit of truth.
Women Laughing
United States
Director, Producer: Liza Donnelly
Director: Kathleen Hughes
Producers: Judith Mizrachy, Nathalie Seaver
Documentary
In Women Laughing, longtime New Yorker cartoonist Liza Donnelly sets out to explore her lifelong passion for women’s humor and cartooning by speaking, laughing, and drawing with a diverse group of remarkable women who create cartoons for the iconic magazine. Inspired by her acclaimed book Very Funny Ladies and Liza’s own biography, the film also looks back at the fascinating history and evolution of single panel cartoons- from the 1920s, to the present- and reveals how far women have come in a field historically dominated by men.
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ABOUT THE ATHENA FILM FESTIVAL
Founded in 2011, the Athena Film Festival is dedicated to advancing new narratives about leadership through original, thought-provoking, compelling, and diverse women-centered stories. The Athena Creative Development Program, an extension of the Athena Film Festival, is a set of strategic interventions that increase the likelihood that women-centered stories will succeed.
The Athena Film Festival is a partnership of Barnard College and Women and Hollywood. Our founding sponsor is the Artemis Rising Foundation and its CEO, Regina K. Scully.
ABOUT BARNARD COLLEGE
Barnard offers a singular educational experience, as a world-renowned women’s college focused on excellence across the arts and sciences, with all the academic resources of Columbia University and the City of New York as an extended classroom. Founded in 1889, Barnard was one of the few colleges in the nation where women could receive the same rigorous and challenging education available to men. Today, Barnard is one of the most selective academic institutions in the country and remains devoted to empowering extraordinary women to become even more exceptional. That commitment is reflected across the College, including through leadership development programs supported by the Athena Center for Leadership.
ABOUT WOMEN AND HOLLYWOOD
Women and Hollywood educates, advocates, and agitates for gender parity and inclusion across the entertainment industry. Over the past 18 years, it has grown to be one of the most respected initiatives focused on women’s issues and popular culture, and its founder, Melissa Silverstein, has become a well-respected leader on the subject.
ABOUT ARTEMIS RISING FOUNDATION
Artemis Rising Foundation is dedicated to supporting media projects that transform our culture and challenge the status quo. Led by founder and CEO Regina K. Scully, the foundation champions powerful stories about some of the most challenging social justice issues of our time — including gender bias, healing, trauma, mental health, addiction, and women’s empowerment.
MEDIA INQUIRIES:
Barnard College Office of Communications mediarelations@barnard.edu
