Amanda Arya works as a Director of Documentary at Participant where she scouts for new projects and helps support the slate from development through release. Arya was featured in Business Insider as a Rising Star in the Entertainment Industry in 2022. This year, she was on the Jury for New Filmmakers LA. In her spare time she volunteers at the Refugee Children’s Center in the San Fernando Valley, where she is also on the board. She started her nonfiction film career in the Original Programming Division at Pivot TV, before joining Participant. She earned her BFA at NYU Tisch.

Company Bio

Participant was founded in 2004 by social entrepreneur Jeff Skoll, with a commitment to creating content that stands at the intersection of art and activism. As the leading global media company dedicated to entertainment that inspires audiences to engage in positive social change, Participant partners with key nonprofits and NGOs to drive real-world impact and awareness around today’s most vital issues on a global scale. Participant’s films have earned 86 Academy Award® nominations, including 2022’s historic triple nomination for Flee, and 21 wins, including Best Picture for Spotlight and Green Book; Best Documentary Feature for An Inconvenient Truth, CITIZENFOUR, The Cove and American Factory; and Best Foreign Language Film for Roma and A Fantastic Woman. 

Participant’s growing television slate includes such acclaimed series as award-winning filmmaker Rachel Dretzin’s Keep Sweet: Pray and Obey; America to Me, the 10-part docuseries from award-winning filmmaker Steve James; as well as his follow-up series City So Real on National Geographic; and sci-fi drama series Noughts + Crosses. Participant believes that diversity is a source of strength, that inclusion is essential to progress, and that equity is an imperative for impact.