Yale in Hollywood will host its sixth annual global virtual film festival, Yale in Hollywood Fest, from December 4–6, 2025. The three-day event will showcase a dynamic lineup of feature and short films and will be judged by an esteemed alumni jury, led by head juror and filmmaker TJ Noel-Sullivan, joined by past festival winners and filmmakers Eunice Kiang and Daniel Persitz.
Established last year by TV creator Justin Noble, the inaugural Queer Voice Award will be presented to Roshan Sethi, whose feature film A Nice Indian Boy was theatrically released to critical acclaim earlier this year.
“Now in its sixth year, Yale in Hollywood Fest—entirely volunteer-run—continues to support Yale alumni filmmakers and showcase their work to the world,” said festival director Quentin Lee. “As a 30-year veteran independent filmmaker, I practice what I preach: we cannot wait for the world to embrace us without first embracing ourselves.”
Yale in Hollywood Fest showcases features and short films that include at least one Yale student, alumnus or current staff in the starring, producing, writing or directing chair. All events, including screenings and live streams, will be available directly from Yale in Hollywood Fest’s official website.
Submissions are opening on September 8th on Filmfreeway.com and the deadline for submissions is October 17, 2025. To submit or for more information, please visit HERE
Award winners and alumnae jury of Yale in Hollywood Fest 2025 include:
ROSHAN SETHI is a Canadian-born writer, director, and physician who holds an M.D. from Harvard Medical School and practices as a palliative radiation oncologist. He is known for co-creating the Fox medical drama The Resident, co-writing the film Call Jane, and directing/co-writing the feature film 7 Days, for which he won Best First Feature at the Independent Spirit Awards. Sethi co-wrote 7 Days and his latest film, A Nice Indian Boy, with his husband, actor Karan Soni, and he also served as a writer for the show Code Black.
The head juror is TJ NOEL-SULLIVAN, a two-time Yale in Hollywood Fest winner and the writer/director of his debut feature film, Midas. Born and raised in Hartford, Connecticut, TJ has directed both narrative and commercial content, including the award-winning short films On The Whistle, Good Sam, Expectations, and Role Model. He is a graduate of Yale University and the founder of The Hartford Film Company.
DANIEL PERSITZ is a YIH Fest 2024 winner and an accomplished writer, director and producer. He wrote and directed the short film Key of Genius, which recently screened at Oscar-qualifying festivals including Cleveland, Raindance and a sold-out showing at HollyShorts. As a writer, he has sold numerous scripts to major studios and production companies such as Lionsgate, eOne, Hasbro Studios, Dark Horse and Dimension. Daniel is also an experienced producer and film executive, with credits at Robert Zemeckis’ production company and Hasbro Studios. He produced Universal’s hit thriller Ouija and worked on the Transformers and Dungeons & Dragons franchises for Paramount.
EUNICE KIANG is a YIH Fest 2024 winner, animator, and graphic artist who graduated from Yale University in 2024 with a degree in computer design.
Founded and led by Kevin Winston, Yale in Hollywood is a volunteer-run organization based in Los Angeles that connects Yale students and alumni with the entertainment industry. Quentin Lee serves as the festival director for Yale in Hollywood Fest 2025, Melissa Johnson as founding programmer, and Hannah Ruth Earl (2020-2024) as a founding member.
Yale in Hollywood Fest encourages diverse, BIPOC and LGBTQ+ submissions.
All events of Yale in Hollywood Fest 2025 are available free to the world via its official website.
