CAPE (Coalition of Asian Pacifics in Entertainment) and The Asian American Foundation (TAAF) have selected writer-directors Beth de Araújo and Ravi Kapoor as the inaugural recipients of the 2025 Rising Filmmakers Finishing Fund, awarding each a US$50,000 post-production grant to complete their upcoming features — de Araújo’s Josephine and Kapoor’s Patel. Alongside the funding, the filmmakers will gain access to networking opportunities through CAPE and TAAF’s communities, as well as Filmmaker Pro Memberships from Film Independent.
Launched in January 2025, the Rising Filmmakers Finishing Fund was created to champion the career longevity of Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) creatives at a pivotal moment for the community. As audience appetite for authentic and nuanced AAPI storytelling continues to grow, the fund specifically supports filmmakers working on their second through fifth features — a career stage where financial backing often becomes scarce.
To apply, filmmakers had to submit live-action narrative features at least 90% through principal photography or already in post-production.
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“In light of the precipitous decline in funding support after a debut feature, CAPE is proud to partner with TAAF on the only funding opportunity of its kind that invests in sustaining filmmakers’ careers by supporting their second through fifth feature films,” said Michelle K. Sugihara, Executive Director & CEO of CAPE. “Both Beth de Araújo and Ravi Kapoor are talented storytellers with strong voices. Josephine and Patel could not be more different and they are important additions to the canon of Asian American storytelling.”
Norman Chen, CEO of TAAF, highlighted the urgency of investing in filmmakers who are shaping the future of Asian American narratives. “We’ve seen unprecedented audience demand for more nuanced Asian American and Pacific Islander stories, and with it, incredible opportunities to invest in directors working to capture the full humanity of our community,” he said.
“TAAF is proud to support Beth de Araújo and Ravi Kapoor through the Rising Filmmakers Finishing Fund. We believe in championing talented artists at all stages, and hope that programs like this can help grow and sustain their long-term careers.”
De Araújo, whose debut feature Soft & Quiet premiered at SXSW and was later acquired by Blumhouse, has long been recognised for her distinctive voice. Named one of Filmmaker Magazine’s 25 New Faces of Independent Film and nominated for the 2022 Gotham Bingham Ray Breakthrough Director Award, she has also garnered attention for her storytelling beyond film — including her Moth Mainstage story Don’t Move, which sold out performances across New York, Pittsburgh, and Los Angeles.
Her short film I Want To Marry A Creative Jewish Girl, adapted from her own Gawker essay, won Best Screenplay at Hollyshorts. Her upcoming feature Josephine follows an eight-year-old who, after witnessing a crime in Golden Gate Park, spirals in search of a sense of safety that the adults around her seem unable to restore. The cast includes Mason Lily Reeves, Gemma Chan, Channing Tatum, Phillip Ettinger, and Syra McCarthy.
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Kapoor, an LA-based writer, director, and actor, has carved a niche in South Asian American cinema through genre-blending, character-driven narratives. His film Four Samosas — a quirky heist comedy set in LA’s Little India — premiered at Tribeca before being acquired by IFC and went on to win the Audience Award for Best Narrative Feature at the Newport Beach Film Festival. He previously directed and co-wrote Miss India America, a coming-of-age comedy originally released on Netflix.
His next feature, Patel, is pitched as an off-kilter gangster tragedy inspired by Macbeth, set among Indian-American motel owners in the 1990s and framed as “Wes Anderson meets Scorsese meets Shakespeare.” Its ensemble cast features Utkarsh Ambudkar, Richa Moorjani, Kal Penn, Kunal Nayyar, Meera Simhan, Danny Pudi, Nik Dodani, Rizwan Manji, and Pete Holmes.
