After 20 years of experience in the film industry Dunya Djordjevic (Cowell ‘90, film and theater arts) is giving back through her non-profit, Girls in Focus, which brings together girl and nonbinary individuals, ages 12-18, for a two-week intensive on the art of filmmaking. Started in 2020, Djordjevic wanted to put an emphasis on uplifting female voices and giving girls technical experience at a young age.
Born in Serbia, Djordjevic has spent most of her life living in the U.S after immigrating when she was 12. Before coming to the University of California, Santa Cruz she intended on attending UC Berkeley, and was informed that if she did two years in Santa Cruz she could transfer over. However, like many UC Santa Cruz students she fell in love with the school and the area, deciding instead to finish her degree in one place.
“Santa Cruz was extremely pivotal to my identity as a human being,” she says. This was due in part because Djordjevic’s mother wanted her to become a doctor, but the rigidity of science classes and the lack of women role models in the industry at the time led her in a new direction. One day she walked into the theater department and never left (the Film and Digital Media Department would not be formed until several years after her graduation).
Djordjevic professors and classmates played a major role in influencing her life. She credits the late Professor Emerita Audrey Stanley with being a lifelong mentor who played a major role in shaping Djordjevic’s future. She also mentioned her connection with former members of her cohort such as Kevin Beggs (‘89, politics and theater arts), the chief creative officer at Lionsgate, whom she’d been regularly texting recently to share her feelings on his newest show, The Studio.
In her career Djordjevic worked both in front of and behind the camera. She fell in love with acting at UC Santa Cruz and was one of two girls in her class who acted in a feature film while they were still in school. Inspired, in part, by her father, who was a documentary filmmaker, Djordjevic stepped back into a producer role. “Acting will always be my very first love,” she says, “but then I discovered that directing was like the flip side of the same coin. I got the same kind of creative freedom and had that same satisfaction working with actors.”
With Girls in Focus she gets to share her passions with a new group of emerging filmmakers. The program started in 2020, and now the first wave of girls from it are graduating from college and entering the industry. Djordjevic is experiencing the joy of hiring some of them for their first professional roles.
The trailblazing program puts girls and nonbinary youth from around the world into small groups and has them create a film in two weeks. During that time participants are introduced to award winning professionals in the industry and gain technical skills in filming and editing.
Girls in Focus largely serves underrepresented communities and offers scholarships to those who cannot afford the program on their own. They’ve partnered with Roybal Film and Television Magnet, a Los Angeles based high school that gives students experience in filmmaking and largely teaches underserved communities especially in “below the line” jobs, which focus on the technical aspects of filming. Roybal made news several years ago after receiving a $10 million donation from George Clooney, who connected Djordjevic with the school.
Their partnerships extend beyond high schools and including several production companies. During the 2023 Writers Guild of America strike, Djordjevic was able to take the girls to an almost empty studio lot and give them a once in a lifetime chance to explore.
Beyond their summer intensive, Girls in Focus also offers online workshops throughout the year on everything from using drones to music making. Their workshops also reach a wider audience and several are open to adults.
Currently Djordjevic is looking for interns for Girls in Focus, and all women and non-binary students at UC Santa Cruz are invited to apply. Internships are both remote and in person, and Djordjevic loves to support students from her alma mater.
When Djordjevic is not busy helping build up the next generation of filmmakers, she works at her own production company, Focus 50. The all woman company emphasizes female voices and is one of the biggest partners with Girls in Focus, giving a portion of all its proceeds to the nonprofit. Djordjevic’s work has left a lasting impact on girls and on the UC Santa Cruz campus.