The Most Influential Women in International Film 2025

Let’s be honest: Gender-based lists like THR‘s Most Powerful Women in International Film should be passé by now. It is 2025, after all. But the fight for equity in the global entertainment industry is anything but over. In some places, it’s barely begun. From the backlash against DEI initiatives in the U.S. to a blistering French report exposing systemic abuse across the arts, the message is clear: Progress is under threat. Which is why spotlighting these 45 global power players feels more vital than ever. “We need to fight back with all the tools and resources we have,” says Carole Scotta, co-founder of France’s production outfit Haut et Court. Or, as Nigeria’s EbonyLife CEO Mo Abudu puts it: “Until the industry makes room for authentic voices from different cultures and backgrounds — on a systemic level — we’ll continue to miss out on powerful, transformative storytelling.” In other words, this list isn’t a pat on the back. It’s a rallying cry.

Mo Abudu

CEO, EbonyLife Media (NIGERIA)

A longtime perennial on THR‘s international power lists, Abudu isn’t just a media mogul — she’s a movement. The British-Nigerian founder of EbonyLife Media has produced everything from local box office hits (The Wedding Party, Òlòtūré) to global deals with Netflix and Sony. In 2024, she launched the $50 million Afro Film Fund and announced EbonyLife Place London, a cultural hub set to open by year’s end. “Stay focused, be authentic and find your own voice,” she advises young women. “The world doesn’t need more copies — it needs what only you can bring.”

Maren Ade and Janine Jackowski

Co-founders, Komplizen Film (GERMANY)

The duo behind Berlin’s Komplizen Film have been championing auteur cinema for 25 years — with Ade directing the Oscar-nominated Toni Erdmann and Jackowski producing an eclectic slate of German and international indies. Their recent co-productions include Spencer, Corsage and Sentimental Value in Cannes competition. “Film financing needs reliability,” Jackowski says, citing rising instability around tax incentives and public funds. Still, they’re bullish on bold cinema. “Anora and Emilia Pérez show that risk-taking storytelling can still connect with broad audiences.”

Funke Akindele

Funke Akindele Network (NIGERIA)

Actor, writer, director, producer — Akindele does pretty much everything. Her 2024 Nigerian box office smash, Everybody Loves Jenifa (the third film in the hit comedy franchise), was yet another showcase for her all-in creative approach. Her production outfit, Funke Akindele Network (FAAN), champions homegrown Nigerian stories and control over how they’re told. “It’s about owning and empowering our narrative,” she says. And judging by her string of local blockbusters, audiences love how she tells it.

Manon Ardisson

Head of Fiction, Cottonwood Media (U.K.)

Paris-based but with a sharp eye on the U.K. scene, Ardisson is quietly building a mini empire of indie cred. She produced Francis Lee’s God’s Own Country and the feminist doc Witches, co-founded the female-driven Ardimages U.K. and, in 2024, struck gold with Kneecap, the Irish rap biopic that turned director Rich Peppiatt into the most nominated debut filmmaker in BAFTA history.

Barbara Broccoli

Co-owner, Eon Productions (U.K.)

No introduction needed — Broccoli is half of the creative force behind one of the most successful franchises in filmmaking history (the other being her half-brother Michael Wilson). Sure, she just sold Bond to Amazon for a reported billion dollars, but she clearly has filmmaking interests that don’t involve shaken martinis and Aston Martins with pop-off tops. Broccoli’s Eon Productions also recently produced Till and The Accidental Getaway Driver, among other projects. All eyes are now on Bond’s new Amazonian masters, Amy Pascal and David Heyman, who definitely have a tough act to follow.

Bettina Brokemper

Founder, Heimatfilm (GERMANY)

The veteran German producer long has championed provocative auteur-driven cinema through her Cologne-based Heimatfilm. “Maintaining artistic diversity and freedom in an increasingly algorithm-driven market is the biggest challenge facing independents,” Brokemper says. “There’s a real danger that stories which don’t fit neatly into global streaming models get overlooked, even though they’re often the ones that need to be told the most.” Her credits include Lars von Trier’s Antichrist, Margarethe von Trotta’s Hannah Arendt and the upcoming LGBTQ+ period drama Miss Pirie and Miss Woods, starring Flora Nicholson and Fiona Shaw. Her advice for young female filmmakers: “Take space, speak up and surround yourself with people who value your perspective.”

Renata Brandão

CEO, Conspiração Filmes (BRAZIL)

Brandão has her fingerprints on some of her country’s buzziest recent content. She’s helped shepherd Netflix hits like Sintonia and DNA Do Crime, as well as Vale o Escrito for Globoplay. Her strategy blends local flavor with international potential, and she’s vocal about Brazil’s growing influence in global storytelling. “Audiences are hungry for stories that reflect their reality,” she says.

Kristina Ceyton and Samantha Jennings

Co-founders, Causeway Films (AUSTRALIA)

Through their banner Causeway Films, Ceyton and Jennings have helped put Australian horror back on the global map. After breaking out with The Babadook and The Nightingale, they scored again with Talk to Me, A24’s 2023 supernatural hit. More buzzy titles are on the way: Bring Her Back, starring Sally Hawkins, and Went Up the Hill, with Vicky Krieps and Dacre Montgomery. Whether it’s unsettling genre fare or awards-bound indies, this producing duo has quietly become one of Australia’s most formidable exports.

Valérie Delpierre

CEO, Inicia Films (SPAIN)

Delpierre has carved out a niche spotlighting emerging female voices and overlooked linguistic communities. Her recent standouts include Klaudia Reynicke’s Swiss Oscar contender Reinas and Pilar Palomero’s Glimmers. “With so much content flooding the market, the challenge is reaching audiences in meaningful ways,” she says. Poor Things is the movie that she wishes she’d produced — a “bold, singular visual universe,” she calls it. Her advice for women breaking in: “Trust yourself — but constantly question your work to improve it.”

Jyoti Deshpande

President, Jio Studios (INDIA)

A veteran of India’s media industry, Deshpande has turned Jio Studios into a content colossus, backing more than 150 films and series in multiple languages. In 2023, Jio delivered nearly half of India’s Hindi box office and more than 100 awards — including best film honors at the Bollywood Oscars for Laapataa Ladies. Her proudest moment? Watching three young actresses launched by her studio win major accolades. “Pratibha Ranta and Nitanshi Goel won accolades for Laapataa Ladies and Janki Bodiwala won for her performance in Shaitaan.” A onetime Viacom18 CEO, Deshpande says the biggest challenge today is “stagnant market size” — and the rising cost of content creation. Her advice: “Believe in your talent, be outcome-oriented and remember, biggest isn’t always best.”

Jennifer Dodge

President, Spin Master Entertainment (CANADA)

Dodge has helped turn Canadian kids brands into global screen franchises — most notably PAW Patrol, now a billion-dollar behemoth spanning TV, toys and theatrical. Dodge also co-created the preschool hit Little Charmers and is overseeing a live-action adaptation of the game Bakugan. “It became an iterative process between toy designers and animation designers working together,” she’s said of bridging play and storytelling. Few execs are more fluent in the language of kids’ entertainment — or better at building entire worlds from it.

Sidonie Dumas

CEO, Gaumont (FRANCE)

As CEO of the world’s oldest film studio, Dumas has to balance history with reinvention. Under her watch, Gaumont expanded globally while doubling down on high-end TV (Narcos, Lupin) and indie features like Night Call and Dalloway. Her proudest moment? Receiving the International Emmy Directorate Award. “Financing important independent films is our biggest challenge,” she says. Her advice to the next generation: “Patience — and maintain your passion and determination.”

Priyanka Dutt

Producer, Vyjayanthi Movies (SPAIN)

Born into Telugu cinema royalty — and with UCLA film school cred — Dutt is now writing her own script at Vyjayanthi Movies. She co-produced her first feature at age 20 and helped reinvigorate the family banner alongside sister Swapna Dutt with critical and commercial juggernauts like Mahanati and the sci-fi epic Kalki 2898 AD. She’s also pushing into the streaming space, producing the Amazon series Kumari Srimathi.

Maria Ekerhovd

Founder, Mer Film (NORWAY)

Ekerhovd is one of Scandinavia’s most prolific producers. She’s behind Sentimental Value, Joachim Trier’s latest Cannes contender, and heads a program nurturing the next wave of Nordic filmmakers. Her first big break came producing Sniffer, which won the Palme d’Or for best short. She says the biggest challenge currently facing the international film industry is the “unpredictable” global situation. “In times like these, we need art more than ever,” she says, “and we need to fight to bring it to audiences. I believe in film as a collective art form that we experience together in cinemas.”

Tara Erer

Head of U.K. & Northern Europe Originals, Amazon MGM (U.K.)

Since taking over as head of her department in 2023, Erer has built a young audience from the ground up. Her slate spans breakout unscripted series (Molly-Mae, Clarkson’s Farm) to buzzy features (My Fault London), and she’s behind the £10 million ($13.3 million) Prime Video Pathway to upskill and diversify Britain’s production base. Her advice? “Be open to ideas you never thought of — you never know what you’re missing.”

Cécile Gaget

CEO, Carrousel Studios (FRANCE)

With stints at Wild Bunch, Gaumont and Anton Capital, Gaget is no stranger to cross-border deals — she’s worked on everything from Olivier Nakache’s quadriplegic drama The Intouchables to Gerard Butler’s disaster flick Greenland. Now CEO of Carrousel Studios, the new Euro-indie outfit launched by Omar Sy, Louis Leterrier and Thomas Benski, she’s aiming to flip the Hollywood production model on its head by giving creatives real IP ownership. Gaget’s deep equity ties and market fluency make her one of Europe’s most connected film financiers. “Talent is just the starting point,” she says. “What really moves the needle is showing up every day, putting in the effort and staying committed even when the spotlight isn’t on you.”

Dyveke Bjorkly Graver

Co-founder, Eye Eye Pictures (NORWAY)

After producing Joachim Trier’s Oscar-nominated The Worst Person in the World, Graver launched Eye Eye Pictures to focus on daring first-time filmmakers. Her latest releases: Armand, which took the Camera d’Or in Cannes, and A Prayer for the Dying, a Western starring John C. Reilly. She’s also co-producing Ruben Östlund’s The Entertainment System Is Down. “Be well prepared and follow your gut,” she advises. “If problems hit when the foundation is wobbly, it’s probably not a journey worth taking.”

Karen Harnisch

Co-president, Film Forge (CANADA)

Harnisch has quietly become one of Canada’s most trusted indie producers, with credits including Sleeping Giant, White Lie and Brandon Cronenberg’s Infinity Pool. This year, she premiered Shook at TIFF — a “sexy, funny, poignant warm hug of an indie,” she says. An assistant professor at Toronto Metropolitan University, Harnisch sees the biggest challenge today as the crumbling path to financing. “You are enough as you are,” she tells young women. “Find mentors who see that in you.”

Pippa Harris

Co-founder, Neal Street Productions (U.K.)

The Oscar, BAFTA and Golden Globe winner doesn’t just co-run Neal Street Productions with director Sam Mendes — she’s helping shape British cinema from the top down. From 1917 to Call the Midwife, she’s moved between prestige film and hit TV without breaking stride. Her proudest moment? Landing The Beatles’ approval for those four upcoming moptop biopics Mendes will be shooting. “Start in the world you want to stay in,” she advises. “Breaking into art house is just as hard as daytime TV — so don’t start in the wrong place.”

Rozita Hendijanian

Producer (IRAN)

Hendijanian helped bring Mohammad Rasoulof’s Cannes contender The Seed of the Sacred Fig to the screen — and to an Oscar nomination, “an incredibly emotional and proud moment” — under near impossible conditions. The film, a blistering political allegory, is the latest in her long collaboration with Rasoulof (Goodbye, A Man of Integrity). “The journey was long and full of risks,” she recalls. “It truly felt like a miracle that we completed it.”

Jay Hunt

Chair, BFI (U.K.)

Before she was shaping global programming at Apple TV+ and chairing the British Film Institute, Hunt was the gatekeeper of British television’s golden age. As controller of BBC One, she commissioned Sherlock and Luther, two of Britain’s biggest hits of the past two decades. Later, at Channel 4, she greenlit Derry Girls and First Dates and brought Formula 1 to the airwaves. Nowadays, at Apple, she oversees acclaimed titles like Bad Sisters and Slow Horses.

Rocío Jadue

Head of Films, Fabula (CHILE)

As head of Spanish-language features at Chile’s Fabula, Jadue has produced some of the region’s most acclaimed films, including the Oscar-winning A Fantastic Woman. Her 2024 slate was just as formidable, with Pablo Larraín’s El Conde and Maite Alberdi’s The Eternal Memory both earning Academy nods. She also wrapped Chile’s first musical — a passion project five years in the making with Sebastián Lelio. “Learn every part of the process,” she advises, “and don’t rely only on passion — build real knowledge.”

Sophie Jordan

Co-CEO, Wild Bunch (FRANCE)

The Wild Bunch co-CEO has helped steer the French indie giant through pandemic-era turbulence with nimble pan-European maneuvering. Under her watch, the company distributed such festival firepower as The Boy and the Heron and Memoir of a Snail. Undoubtedly like a lot of people on this list, the one film she wishes she’d produced was the best picture winner Anora, which “feels completely in sync with our DNA — bold, distinctive and emotionally resonant.” The former Canal+ exec sees her job as a balancing act: staying agile while facing “constant market shifts.”

Gauri Khan

Co-founder, Red Chillies Entertainment (INDIA)

As co-founder of Red Chillies Entertainment alongside international global superstar Shah Rukh Khan (aka her husband), Gauri Khan helped turn Bollywood fame into a business empire. She has produced major hits like Om Shanti Om, Chennai Express and Happy New Year — all starring her husband — and expanded the banner into VFX, distribution and streaming partnerships with Netflix. Her behind-the-scenes savvy has helped transform Red Chillies into one of India’s most globally recognized film companies.

Minyoung Kim

VP Content, APAC (Excluding India), Netflix (SOUTH KOREA)

As Netflix’s vp content across Asia (excluding India), Kim is the force behind Squid Game and its record-breaking sequel — plus a booming K-content pipeline that now reaches over 80 percent of Netflix’s global audience. “We’re seeing huge demand for local stories with global themes,” she says, pointing to hits like Kill Boksoon and Culinary Class Wars. Kim also is helping build the next generation of talent through training and workshops. Her advice: “Make choices that make you proud to be you.”

Iris Knobloch

President, Cannes Film Festival (FRANCE)

When Knobloch became the Cannes Film Festival’s first female president in 2023, it felt overdue. Her Warner Bros. tenure gave her the chops, and she’s since helped Cannes ride a critical and commercial hot streak: Anora won both the Palme d’Or and Oscar, while The Substance netted a rare best director nom for a woman. “Cinema never retreats,” she says. “It evolves with its time.” Her one line of advice for women in the business? “Trust your instinct.”

Anne-Laure Labadie

Co-founder, Le Pacte (FRANCE)

Labadie’s distribution company has had a banner year with Sean Baker’s Anora, which won both the Palme d’Or and the Oscar for best picture. “Moving, funny, clever — and unlike anything else,” she says of the film. Her biggest concern at the moment? Cultural protectionism. “The Trump administration represents a great danger for European independent film,” she warns, citing ongoing tensions around trade and streaming regulation. Her advice to young women in film: Embrace the grind. “It’s a true industry, with real challenges,” she notes. “But it’s also filled with rewards.”

Miky Lee

Vice Chairwoman, CJ Entertainment (SOUTH KOREA)

Often called Asia’s most powerful media mogul, Lee helped put Korean cinema on the world map — and onto the Oscar stage. As vice chair of CJ ENM, she backed Parasite, invested $100 million in Skydance and bought majority control of Fifth Season. Now she’s focused on making theatrical releases feel special again. “Film thrives on openness,” she says, pushing for global stories told at scale. Her advice: “Be proactive, build real connections and lift others as you rise.”

Jia Ling

Founder, Big Bowl Entertainment (CHINA)

After becoming the highest-grossing female filmmaker in the world with 2021’s time-travel comedy Hi, Mom, one of the biggest hits in Chinese cinematic history ($822 million), the comedian turned director did it again in 2024, or at least came close, with her female boxer comedy Yolo ($484.5 million). Her blend of heart and humor, often rooted in personal transformation, has struck a nerve with Chinese audiences and made every Jia release a national event. Not bad for someone who started in xiangsheng, China’s version of stand-up.

Anna Marsh

CEO, StudioCanal (NEW ZEALAND)

In 2024, Marsh delivered the company’s biggest box office year ever, with Back to Black, We Live in Time and Paddington in Peru (yes, that one made money, especially overseas). Then came the promotion: chief content officer of parent company Canal+ Group. With Canal+ now publicly traded, Marsh is steering a high-stakes expansion push, including investments in MultiChoice (Africa) and Viu (Asia), plus an ambitious genre label, Sixth Dimension. Few execs are playing at her level — or on as many continents.

Nicole Morganti

Head of Local Originals, Southern Europe, Amazon MGM (ITALY)

Amazon’s top content exec in Southern Europe, Morganti oversees originals across Italy, France and Spain. Her biggest recent success: Culpa Tuya, the teen romance sequel that became Amazon’s most watched international original film ever. Her roots are in unscripted — she helped launch X Factor and MasterChef in Italy — but her current slate includes genre thrillers and action comedies. “There’s always space to learn more and become better,” she says. Her career high point? In 2024, when she watched 6,000 fans at the Palacio Vistalegre Arena cheering for the premiere screening of the second chapter of Amazon’s teen romance franchise Culpa Tuya like it was a rock concert.

Leontine Petit

CEO, Lemming Film (NETHERLANDS)

Petit is a champion of bold, offbeat cinema. Her surreal drama Mr. K, starring Crispin Glover, premiered in Toronto’s main competition — a career high for the Dutch producer. “Too many choices are driven by fear,” she says. “That makes films feel monotonous and interchangeable.” Petit is pushing for stories that take risks and voices that challenge the norm. Her advice: “Set ambitious goals and build a network grounded in creative respect. It’s not about speed — it’s about substance.”

Ewa Puszczynska

CEO, Extreme Emotions (POLAND)

Puszczynska’s name has become synonymous with emotionally harrowing, historically resonant cinema. She produced Ida and The Zone of Interest, both Oscar winners, and A Real Pain, Jesse Eisenberg’s Sundance hit. But her ambitions extend far beyond Holocaust narratives. Her 2024 slate includes the jazz-soaked Köln 75, the genre-bending Minotaur Rex and two debut features from women directors. “Instead of just talking about gender inequality,” she says, “we women producers should act.”

Tessa Ross

Co-CEO, House Productions (U.K.)

Ross had a monster year, with Conclave and Bird scoring BAFTA nominations and The Zone of Interest, which she exec produced, cleaning up at the Oscars. But now that she’s sitting on top of the heap, the view has obviously left her contemplative, and she has lots of questions about the future. “How do we understand the viewing habits of the next generation? How do we understand and use and not abuse AI? How do we ensure that risk-taking work continues? How do we allow a broad set of tastes to thrive in a consolidated world? How does everybody earn enough to work in film, and not some earn hugely while others don’t earn at all?”

Monika Shergill

VP Content, India, Netflix (INDIA)

Shergill has helped redefine Indian streaming, greenlighting hits like Delhi Crime and Amar Singh Chamkila. A former journalist and documentary filmmaker, Shergill says 2024 was “the year Indian stories truly broke through,” becoming cultural moments far beyond the screen. “Take Heeramandi, for instance — it’s not just a show, it became a visual and cultural moment,” she says. “It sparked a wave of creativity on social media, fan art and commentary that went far beyond just viewership.” Her advice to young women: “Trust your voice. Stay curious. Your stories can offer fresh insights.”

Valérie Schermann

Producer, Akaba (FRANCE)

Schermann’s proudest moment of 2024? Easy question. That would be watching Cannes audiences erupt for Emilia Pérez, her latest collaboration with Jacques Audiard. “People were so happy. The film was so beautiful,” she says. A longtime champion of visionary auteurs, Schermann stresses the importance of resilience — especially for women in the industry. “We have to be twice as strong to be heard, which is tiring. So don’t give up.” Her greatest fear? A world where authors are silenced. “Freedom of expression is the single most important thing.”

Carole Scotta

CEO, Haut et Court (FRANCE)

From Ma Vie en Rose to The Class to Santosh, Scotta has built Haut et Court into a powerhouse of high-art, high-emotion cinema. She co-founded The Creatives, a pan-European alliance for indies, and recently started production on Sukkwan Island, a decade-in-the-making co-pro. Her mantra: “Less is more.” Scotta warns of rising threats to Europe’s film ecosystem — from Trump-era protectionism to a market obsessed with performance. “Robustness over box office,” she insists. “That’s the only way to stay sustainable.”

Nansun Shi

Co-founder of China’s Distribution Workshop (HONG KONG/CHINA)

A legend in Chinese cinema, Shi co-founded Film Workshop in 1984 and produced genre-defining classics like A Better Tomorrow and Once Upon a Time in China. She later launched Distribution Workshop to bring Chinese titles to the world. Still active as a producer, Shi received a lifetime achievement award at the 2024 Hong Kong Film Awards.

Katrine Vogelsang

CEO, Nordisk Film (DENMARK)

Vogelsang had a career high with The Girl With the Needle, which earned Oscar and Cannes buzz in 2024 (“an unforgettable moment”). She began as an intern at Lars von Trier’s production company Zentropa (“an unpaid position”) before rising through Denmark’s public broadcaster DR, where she worked on early hits like Taxa. “The cinema model is under pressure,” she says. “We need new ways forward — and compelling storytelling to help us emotionally make sense of the times.” Her advice for young filmmakers: “Be the voice of your generation — and tell me how I can help make the industry ready for you to take over, because you will!”

Cassandre Warnauts

CEO, Frakas (BELGIUM)

From intern to CEO of Frakas, Warnauts has had a front-row seat to Belgium’s rise in global co-productions. She backed Cannes winner Titane and this year reteams with director Julia Ducournau on Alpha. At Toronto, she produced Bring Them Down with Barry Keoghan. Her proudest moments? Pairing local talents with foreign auteurs and watching the sparks fly. “Emerging voices — writers, technicians, even 40-year-old actresses overlooked by the system — need to be heard,” she says. “That’s where real diversity starts.”

Sarah-Jane Wright (Top International Film Exec)

Head of Production, Working Title (U.K.)

Is Sarah-Jane Wright the hardest-working woman in British film? The evidence is persuasive. In a career that stretches back three decades, the Working Title executive has been quietly instrumental in delivering some of the U.K.’s most iconic modern cinema. Pride & Prejudice, Love Actually, Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy, Les Misérables, Baby Driver — her name is on all of them, even if the spotlight rarely is.

She began, humbly, as a runner at Fugitive Features in 1993. But by 2014, she was overseeing Oscar campaigns for the Stephen Hawking biopic The Theory of Everything and by 2024 was onstage at Cannes with The Substance, Coralie Fargeat’s subversive body-horror thriller.

“I worked very intimately with that film,” she says. “Coralie is an absolute force of energy, and I was in awe of Demi Moore every day on set.” That film, a surreal and bloody takedown of beauty culture, would go on to win major festival hardware — and introduce a new generation to an underloved genre.

The same year, Wright also helped bring Bridget Jones: Mad About the Boy to the screen, the tearjerking swan song for Renée Zellweger’s lovably messy singleton. The fourth installment in the franchise — and Wright’s fourth Bridget film — grossed more than $130 million globally and scored some of the strongest reviews in the series. “Renée and I are the same age,” Wright says. “It’s been wonderful to grow up with her.” That kind of long-haul collaboration is one of Wright’s defining traits.

She’s also navigated big-budget prestige dramas (Darkest Hour), tricky biopics (Mary Queen of Scots), musical crowd-pleasers (Yesterday) and has remained a key figure in Working Title’s ongoing evolution under Tim Bevan and Eric Fellner. Through it all, she’s stayed focused on the work. “Don’t be afraid to be ambitious,” she advises young women entering the business. “Speak up, be prepared to work incredibly hard and never forget that your perspective as a woman is valued and unique.”

For Wright, the future of British film lies in boldness — not just in content but in conviction. Whether it’s rebooting a beloved franchise or diving headfirst into genre terrain, she remains committed to storytelling that resonates both locally and globally. “Every challenge is a catalyst for fresh creativity,” Wright says. “It’s an invitation to collaborate with new talent and reimagine our beloved stories.” — Lily Ford

Eva Yates

Director, BBC Film (U.K.)

Yates has very quietly, very Britishly, overseen some of the U.K.’s most exciting recent cinema, from Aftersun to Rye Lane to Santosh, the country’s Oscar submission. With two Cannes titles (Urchin, My Father’s Shadow) on the horizon, she is building a slate that blends credibility with emotional punch. Her philosophy: “Set your quality bar high — and hold it.”

Chen Zhixi

CEO, Wanda Film (CHINA)

A powerhouse producer and founder of Beijing-based Heyi Pictures, Chen has backed some of China’s most successful mainstream comedies, including Hello Mr. Billionaire and Goodbye Mr. Loser. But she’s no genre snob — she also co-produced Lou Ye’s Cannes black-and-white espionage drama Saturday Fiction, starring Gong Li. With a sharp eye for both commercial appeal and artistic ambition, Chen is part of a new wave of female producers reshaping the Chinese film industry from within.

This story appeared in the May 7 issue of The Hollywood Reporter magazine. Click here to subscribe.