Sheryl Riley Gripper is Founder and executive director of the Black Women Film Network, an organization that prepares women for work in the film industry. The organization has given thousands of dollars in scholarships to women pursuing careers in film, broadcast and related areas.

A multi-Emmy Award winner, Gripper was Vice-President, Community Relations, for WXIA-TV, 11Alive and WATL-TV 36, for 29 years. She is a Community Relations Consultant for WXIA-TV, 11Alive and Atlanta Technical College. A graduate of Spelman College and Georgia State University, she holds Masters Degrees in Education and Film.

Additionally, Gripper was Founding Executive Director of the BronzeLens Film Festival, a festival that promotes diversity in film. She is also founder of Rosey Posey Pictures, LLC, a company that produces film and digital media that encourage and inspire.

The mother of three, she is the wife of Jeff Gripper, Atlanta’s First World Karate Champion. As a member of Elizabeth Baptist Church, she serves in the Intercessory Prayer and Encouragers ministries. Gripper wrote and produced the documentary, I Didn’t Make Him, God Did, the story of three media moms who lose their adult children to murder. Her most recent work is a short film, choreopoem entitled “In the Last Days.”

Established in 1997, the Black Women Film Network (BWFN) was founded to prepare black women to enter the film and television industries.

The organization seeks to preserve the voice of these women through film and educational programs that empower and inform. A 501(c)3 non-profit, BWFN provides student scholarships, hosts screenings and workshops, and honors individuals who have excelled in this difficult industry.