(AllHipHop News) Oscar winners Octavia Spencer and rapper/actor Common have signed on to help mentor aspiring young directors as part of a new short film program.
Moviemaker Rick Famuyiwa and his “Dope” producer Nina Yang Bongiovi, and actress/director Desiree Akhavan are also part of the panel of experts for the AT&T Hello Lab initiative, which aims to help five talented youngsters fund and develop their projects.
Each of the stars will provide advice and guidance to the fledgling filmmakers about directing, pitching their projects, and managing their budgets, while a group of professionals from various business aspects of the industry will also be on hand to offer support, reports Variety.com.
“What I love about this program is that it’s tactical,” Spencer declares in a statement. “It’s enabling young filmmakers to make actual, physical work. It’s giving them the first crucial part of their reel.”
The five finished films will be broadcast via U.S. cable provider DirecTV later this year.