Vanessa Bryant Celebrates Daughter Natalia's Directorial Debut with Nod to Kobe: 'Proud Mom, Dad and Sisters'

Mar. 15, 2025

Photo:Vanessa Bryant/Instagram

Vanessa Bryant/Instagram

Vanessa Bryantis one proud mama!

On Monday, the mothershared a carousel of photoson Instagram ofNatalia Bryantto celebrate her eldest daughter’s directorial debut as a student filmmaker at the University of Southern California.

“I’m so proud of you @nataliabryant !!!” Vanessa, 41, wrote. “You’ve balanced school, friends, family, your sorority, your internship, your modeling jobs, runway debut, and film responsibilities & projects!”

She continued, “You still find time to be present and responsible for everything you do and show up for every family event your schedule permits you to attend. I cannot express how proud we are of you. We love you so much."

Vanessa then added, “Proud mom, dad and sisters for sure! 😘❤️,” a touching nod to Natalia’s late fatherKobe Bryantand sisterGianna, whodied in the 2020 helicopter crashthat also killed seven others.

The model has long had an interest in film — something she shared in a 2021 interview with IMG Models — and credits her father Kobe for her interest in becoming a part of the movie industry.

In theinterview, Natalia shared how her father inspired her to pursue an Oscar after he scored one in 2018 for Best Animated Short Film forDear Basketball.

“My dad and I would always watch as many movies as we can and we’d go on movie marathons,” Natalia said at the time. “And then we’d always analyze as many movies as we can and we’d talk about it for months.”

Never miss a story — sign up forPEOPLE’s free daily newsletterto stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from celebrity news to compelling human interest stories.Natalia explained that she and Kobe would often find links between things during their travel adventures and things they saw in movies. “It’s just things like that…. It just really inspired me and I was like, ‘I want to do this forever.'”

Last month,Vanessa honored her late husbandwith a sweet photo on Instagram of the two of them from 24 years earlier, a nod to Kobe’s iconic jersey number.

In the photo, she poses alongside Kobe as he wraps one arm around her waist and she presses herself against his chest. Both Kobe and Vanessa are smiling from ear-to-ear in the shot.

“24 years ago…. Day 1. #1999 👑❤️ 11/27/99,” she wrote in the caption.

source: people.com