Sophie Gao
For almost three decades, John Harrington, an award-winning photographer and best-selling author has traveled the world creating visual stories of every day lives and history-making events through his camera. His work has appeared in Life, Time, Newsweek, and Rolling Stone. His images from the Pentagon on September 11th, 2001 are a part of the permanent collection of the Smithsonian's National Museum of American History. Images from his work as a part of the team documenting the historic inauguration of Barack Obama in 2009 are also a part of that same Smithsonian collection.
Harrington is a San Francisco Bay area native and came to Washington, DC in the mid 1980s as a student at Catholic University of America. He graduated in 1990 with a political science degree , then hired for on as a photographer with The World & I, where he routinely covered the White House, Congress, and the Pentagon. Soon after, he was signed under contract by the Black Star picture agency exclusively licensing his stock images and to fulfill assignments in Washington, DC.
While maintaining Washington, DC as his home base, his assignments took him to Mexico shooting bullfights and ruins; the Caribbean’s lush rain forests and colorful artisans; Bermuda’s postcard-famous pink beaches and haunting lighthouses; Cuba’s isolation-induced poverty and despair; and California’s flow of immigrants crossing the border. Harrington says, “I believe my photographs, usually taken under strenuous conditions and on tight deadlines, captured the flavor and personality of the location while also emphasizing the highest level of photographic detail and expertise.”
In addition to location assignments, Harrington has taken his editorial magazine eye and applied it to corporate clients including Coca-Cola, SiriusXM Satellite Radio, Lockheed Martin, and the National Geographic Society, to name just a few. His ability to blend his photographic skills and creativity with an organization’s specific goals and directives has made him a sought after professional meeting worldwide deadlines and maximize exposure for clients.
Harrington has a true love for his art and takes time to satisfy his artistic whims. His original images have been purchased as art on both coasts. One particularly striking image has been printed as an inspirational poster by the Smithsonian Institution’s Air and Space Museum. Harrington is also a Native-American and has put his skills to use for the Smithsonian’s National Museum of the American Indian. He believes in being a role model and mentor, educating influential business people about the art and science of photography. Additionally, he offers an internship program for aspiring photographers.
I was born in Hoboken, NJ and raised in Union City, NJ. I experimented in different mediums of writing, such as poetry and journalism, until finally settling in screenwriting. I attended New York Film Academy to study screenwriting while also assisting on several independent film projects for MOJOCreative Group. After completing the screenwriting program in 2009, I co-founded Sunnyside Down Productions with a couple of my filmmaker friends. With my Sunnyside team, we made multiple award-winning indie films of all genres such as drama, action, and comedy.
In early 2011, I co-founded C.G.O. & G.ORE Entertainment, LLC with my brother. We produced many short films from horror to comedy to romance such as the award-winning films "Adhesive Love," "Mixed Signals," and “Based on True Events.” My latest short film, “The Hunted,” was recently completed and has begun making its rounds in the film festival circuit, already garnering awards. In June 2018, I was honored to have been a recipient for the Union City Artist Award for Excellence in Filmmaking. I am currently writing several scripts, one of which will be my next film.
Kerry van der Griend
Josiah Newbolt
Thy Vo, Sydney Seekford, and Ryan Imm are 2019 BFA grads from the Savannah College of Art and Design (SCAD). Thy Vo and Ryan Imm are currently working as animators in their home city of Atlanta, GA. Sydney Seekford has gone on to freelancing, while prepping for an MBA.
R. T. Francis is an independent filmmaker from North Carolina. Francis takes pride his creativity and versatility, his background including illustration, painting, theatre, and music among other creative endeavors. By investing in other art disciplines, Francis was able to take the lessons he gained and apply them to his filmmaking. This way of learning, allowing for variety, has taught Francis the importance of variation in mindset.
Lynette is her-self a seasoned talk-show host on New Day. She is curious, humorous, with engaging people skills. She is a successful Videographer and Editor. Her passion for story-telling and film-making has developed over the years, and her short film, Kandace Queen, has been entered into several film festivals
2019 Award-Winning Filmmakers in the spotlight
Trei Hill is a film director from Germantown, Maryland. He began to perform and host in several hip hop events throughout the country until deciding to attend the Art Institute of Washington. With a focus on Film & Television, he gained experience directing music videos and promotionals for several Washington, DC musical artists. What followed were brief stints instructing for Silver Spring, Maryland Non-Profit Organization PSA program, “Gandhi Brigade,” and hosting local events. He spent over three years working on large budget film productions as a production assistant. Trei now attends the Graduate Film & Television Program at Savannah College of Art & Design in Atlanta, Georgia as he develops his next film production.
Shari Harding
T.C. Barrera
Jamal Hodge is a multi-award winning filmmaker and writer. Since May of 2016 Jamal Hodge's films have been an official selection in over 70 Film Festivals, and have won 21 awards. In 2018 he also directed the first season of Investigation Discovery Channel's 'Primal instinct' and came on as a Producer on the Animated feature film 'Pierre The Pigeon Hawk' starring Nick Cannon and Whoopi Goldberg.
Also In 2018 his short screenplay 'Mourning Meal' won 5 awards (including best short screenplay at NYC Horror Film Festival) and was featured as a finalist in 7 writing competitions including (Shriekfest, Nightmares Film Festival). Jamal's horror poetry has been featured in SPACE AND TIME MAGAZINE.
John Pope
Brandon Ray Olive, a prolific actor who recently appeared in Steven Soderbergh's Logan Lucky and HBO's Mosaic, has directed projects for Warner Bros and Comedy Central. He currently resides near Park City, UT. with his wife, 3 kids, 2 cats, his dog, a bunny and a chicken...where he continues to hone his craft, with several new projects coming up in 2019.
Thy Vo, Sydney Seekford, Ryan Imm
At an early age storytelling has always been a passion of mines. At the age of 12 years old, I would direct and produce home movies. It has always brought me great joy to be behind the camera. My goal as a filmmaker is to entertain people and give them hope.
I have study Screenwriting at Southeastern University in Hammond, La.
I"m a member of Wift(Women in Film and Television of Louisiana). Also, member of the Film Society.
Théo Collet is a 20 years old French student in Film & Television currently at Savannah College of Art and Design, Georgia (USA). He started to make short movies at 15 when moving to the USA to follow his parents.
His first release in 2015 was a short documentary film about the fight of a man who survived a major stroke.
Being passionate about the Middle East and having been really affected by the situation in Syria and of its people, he decided, when he was 18, to start the project "Voices from Zaatari", later filmed in Jordan at the Syrian border with the support of two French journalists for France 2 (main French public channel).
Théo aspires to become a documentary film director.
Paul Catalanotto
Serkan Öztürk
Tim Earnheart is best known for writing, producing and directing the short films Ricochet (2019), as well as the multi-awarding winning short films Safe (2018), Conduit (2017) and Executive Producing the short dramedy film The Divorce (2018).
He has lead projects from concept through delivery -- writing, producing and directing high quality content for Microsoft, AT&T, Boeing, Dell, Netflix, Warner Bros. and Crypt TV to name a few. He currently works in an AI org at Microsoft.
His background ranges from leading creative teams, 3D/video/motion teams, to writing, producing and directing commercials and corporate video shoots. He's also written, produced and directed thrilling short films that were accepted into a number of film festivals and won a handful of awards. He's managed the entire production process: Edited, sound mixed, and created VFX for all his short films.
Tim has been represented by agents and managers in Hollywood for film making and has had 3 feature screenplays optioned. He's working to set up his feature film directorial debut from an original action/thriller/sci-fi script he wrote.
As a seasoned educator in New Jersey, Shari Harding’s aspirations for screenwriting hadn’t come to fruition until she moved to South Carolina in 2016. Her love for film, art and theater has always been with her.
Harding was an associate producer and played a supporting role in the short film "Spark" prior to moving to South Carolina. The following year, she was an associate producer for the short film "Among the Stars". This later inspired her to write her first screenplay, "The Farmhand", which she also co-directed and co-produced.
Harding is the owner and co-founder of MESH Films, LLC with her daughter Michelle Elise Harding. She plans on continuing her love of writing dramas and romance for the screen.
Jason Kierce, actor, writer, director and producer lives in up and coming Charlotte NC. His philosophy is to create and surround himself with art and color. Formerly Teen is his first film (a short) to open the doors to 3 feature scripts and many more to come. He has an eye for detail, complexity, humor and social consciousness.
Jinghan Zhang is an animator and designer from China, When she studied in Beijing Film Academy-animation department, she created various animation, such as her graduation thesis-a short animation film “Seven Deadly Sins”. In 2015, she went to new York and studied in School of Visual Arts.
In 2016, she created a short experimental animation “liberation” and “Eternity”, were selected by various international Film Festivals around the world, including Sydney World Film Festival,Wasteland Film Festival, Anim!Arte - International Student Animation Festival of Brazil, Cinema London Film Festival, Los Angeles CineFest, Hollywood Screenings Film Festival……..
Jinghan is now focusing both short animation films and APP design.
Lynette Jones
Curtis Ballard
Michelle Elise Harding is an award-winning cinematographer, film editor, producer, and director. Born and raised in New Jersey, Harding fell in love with the film and television industries at an early age. She has an array of work, spanning from narrative filmmaking (short and feature), performance videos, music videos, commercials, live sports, and live broadcasting/television.
Prior to moving to Myrtle Beach, South Carolina in 2016, Harding was the director of photography, executive producer, and film editor on award-winning short film, “Spark.” She has continued to pursue filmmaking by creating short films “Among the Stars” and her latest film “The Farmhand” in South Carolina, as well as working on several others.
Collaboration is key for Harding. The possibilities are endless through the power of community, which is why Harding founded the Myrtle Beach Film Community and co-founded MESH Films, LLC with her mother, Shari Harding. She plans to continue working with others that have the same drive for creating and bringing words to life through film across the Carolinas.
Cinematography and film producing are Harding’s true passions, and she is grateful to be able to implement them every day in her work.
Tom Kondilas
Sara Eustáquio
Chris Borgo
Kerry trained in acting—MFA from the National Theatre Conservatory in Denver, Colorado—and
has appeared in numerous productions on stage and screen across the US and Canada. An
award-winning theatre director, this is Kerry’s first foray into film. His screenwriting and
directorial debut has garnered numerous laurels and nominations from award ceremonies and festrivals from Amsterdam to L.A.
Born in Maryland, raised in Arizona, dabbled with Utah, and grew-up in North Carolina, John Pope now resides in New York City as an actor-filmmaker. John never really settled in one place his whole life. He grew up wanting to be a musician until he became attracted to acting. Attending NYU's Meisner & Stonestreet Conservatories, John quickly fell back in-love with his Middle School passion: making movies. He is making his film debut with "Curtains (Live)".
José Luis Anaya
Shanalyna Palmer
Jan Fabris was born in Ljubljana (Slovenia) in 1986. Since 1999 his main interests have been filmmaking and film history. He received his Bachelor's of Science degree in Chemistry in 2010 and his Ph.D. in Biomedicine in 2014.
Filmography
Modri zajček (Blue Bunny) - director, writer, editor, producer
Spremembe (Changes) - director, writer, editor, composer
Dovzetnost (Sensitiveness) - director, writer, composer
Kdo je ubil Anastazijo Elster? (Who Killed Anastazija Elster?) - assistant director
Mine dan, začne se jutro (Day Passes, Morning Begins) - assistant director
Most (The Bridge) - editor, assistant director
Skupaj (Together) - assistant editor
Strah (Fear) - assistant director
Jeremiah Moore was born in Pasadena CA, to an elementary school teacher mother and a University administrator father. As a child with an active imagination which included imaginary friends who he would accompany on exciting adventures and his love of role playing and creating stories with interesting characters, led him to major in Radio, T.V. , and Film At Clark Atlanta University.
After graduation he returned to California and participated in the Streetlight’s Production Assistant Training Program which led to work on a variety of projects from Kevin Costner’s film “ Dragonfly” to positions on Television Shows “Donnie & Marie”, America’s got talent, American Idol and Key & Peele. As an African American male in an industry criticized for it’s lack of diversity, he feels now would be a perfect time to write, produce and film his own creative projects to enlighten and entertain our society.
John Draekul
Forrest Tuff
Shanalyna holds a bachelor’s degree in Theatre Studies from Swarthmore College. After spending time as a stage manager in Wilmington, NC, she was introduced to the film industry where she transferred her skills to assistant directing. Limbo is the sixth short film that Shanalyna has directed, and she looks forward making her feature debut in the not too distant future.
Newcomer Director, PAINT VK, is a writer from Thailand who makes short films in the US.
PAINT VK debuted his first short film "Friend Spirit" and has since followed up with 14 more short films.
Tim Earnheart
Paul Catalanotto earned a Bachelor of Arts in Mass Communication and a minor in Marketing from Southeastern Louisiana University. He worked as a producer for Charter Media before taking a position with the Southeastern Channel. During his two years at the channel, Catalanotto directed and produced a variety of programming including "College Night", a Telly award winning student entertainment show and was the editor of the international and national award winning documentary, "Fighting Lions: The Glory Years". In 2005, Catalanotto founded Untitled Films to address his interest in directing music videos, documentaries, and narrative films. He has won an Atlanta Hip Hop award for directing the music video "Lookin’ Down on Me" and placed in the top ten videos of the 2008 Inspirational Country Music Awards with the video "Pictures" featuring Tommy Brandt. In 2009, he graduated with an MFA in Film Production from the University of New Orleans. Recently, several of his music videos have made it into CMT and GAC rotation, and his films “Proof of the Devil” and "Sacrilege" have received national and international distribution. "Knock Knock" is the latest short he is bringing to the festival circuit.
Tom Kondilas is a Cleveland writer/director who has been doing the rust-belt hustle for about 20 years. He's been in some movies; a bunch of plays. He fell in love with another performer and they have two children together.
THIS IS NOT A TRUE STORY. Though, he assures you, elements of real life are most definitely present.
Mehmet Tığlı
Young Norwegian director Philip Geertsen got his start on the platform YouTube in 2009 after watching the behind the scenes documentary of The Phantom Menace. In later years he has done over 50 music videos, some commercials and a a lot of branded content. Always writing and developing his own short and feature films.I try to keep my work honest which means that my films emulate reality regardless of genre. I find that people resonate better with characters if they see themselves in the character. This is what helps me to direct my actors, the camera, collaborate with my PD's and editor and sound. Over the years I have been blessed with the ability to follow my passions and improve as a filmmaker. I aim to continue growing as my journey has only begun.
Robynn Lin Fredericks
Ethan was born and raised in Alaska. He has been passionate about filmmaking since the age of 9. He has completed two feature length films and various shorts, in his hometown of Palmer.
Joseph Villapaz's directorial film debut began with the romantic comedy, Love Eterne. Then, a sci-fi series of films emerged, which started with No One Lives Forever followed by 14 Days, Subversive, Engagement and most recently, Tragic Consequence. Joseph Villapaz writes and produces his films with small budgets that he can finance himself without the help of campaign fund support avoiding the need to satisfy expectations of others, keeping his work truly independent.
Joe Gallo
Ryan N. Olsen is no stranger to the video production & filmmaking industry. His love for visual storytelling became honed while studying film at the University of Nebraska at Lincoln and on many film sets over the years. He is a devout cinephile, a constant student of the craft, and remains an active member of the film community.
Lee was born in 1974 in the town of Walpole, Massachusetts who is a former portrait photographer turned filmmaker.
I love coming up with one idea then turning that into a film. From writing to filming to editing, I love it!
PAINT VK
Jeremiah Moore
Born and based in Scotland I worked as an actor in both theatre and film for several years gaining valuable practical experience before turning to writing and directing for film with my first short film Executive Killing, a psychological horror.
I have since written and directed a number of short films including Sacred Birth (2014) and Out Of His Tree (2016). My recent short films have included Robber Girls utilising my love of history in my first historical period piece, and Career Opportunity: The Protégé a satirical horror which both were Silver Award Winners at the 2017 Spotlight Short Film Awards and Spotlight Horror Film Awards respectively.
Jamal Hodge
Kamil Olejnik was born in 1982. After studying cinema in 2006, he worked on TV, clip and fiction film sets, perfecting himself. In 2015, he directed his first short film "L'Art de l'Esquive", which won two festival awards and made an honorable career in the festival. Subsequently, he wrote, directed and edited "I'm an asocial symphony", "My Atlantis", "I'm sorry" and finally "Black Gold". He is currently developing his next two projects: "Echo", a short film about infantile traumas, and especially "Un Dernier Souffle", a feature film about people that live near death experiences.
A Savannah native, Drew Hunt, is an award-winning news photojournalist who has turned his keen eye for storytelling to a narrative form.
Natalie gained her first acting and performance experiences at a very young age and studied performing arts with the focus on acting in Berlin. After finishing her studies, she worked in German and international film productions, shot music videos, commercials and performed on stage.
A few years ago, the ambitious actress decided to dedicate more time to writing and directing her own films. Natalie's short films "The Man Who Couldn't Cry", "Like A Summer Sonata", "Lola wants to see the sea", “It’s getting darker every day”, “The Redhead” and “A Universal Love Story” have been shown at numerous international film festivals. Her latest film "The Funeral Dancer" is about to premiere and her Esperanto web series called “Malsano Nomata Amo” is going to be released on Valentine’s Day this year.
Having burnt a hole in the roof of the house at the age of 13 shooting his first short film, entitled 'Fire-God' (due to some ill-advised 'in-camera' pyrotechnic visual effects), Joseph has been making and creating films from a young age.
Joe’s first foray into ‘incident-free’ film-making began in London's live music scene, creating acclaimed performance documentaries for acts such as Q-Tip, Tinie Tempah, Weezer, Kate Tempest and Jurassic 5.
Since then, his love for music, poetry and comedy has informed and framed Joe's lyrical realism, wry visual humour and cinematic style. He has won loads of awards for his commercial work but feels most at home when telling a story.
Taking what he's learnt from capturing authenticity in documentary, Joe's approach to shooting drama infuses realism and improvisation to create authentic emotion for film.
Bellmouth is Joseph's first dramatic short film.
Alejandro Espinoza and Michael Benton met during film school and became fast friends. They've been making short films for awhile now but have recently begun to truly express their view of the world. They believe strongly in inclusion, as Alejandro is Latinx and Michael is openly gay.
Nathaniel Johnson
Sandra James
Sarah Koteles is a young filmmaker whose gripping work has found critical acclaim. A Chicago native living in Los Angeles, her craft is colored by her background in design and animation, with works across narrative film, commercial work, music, video and fashion.
As a child, Sarah Koteles was obsessed with music videos and Tim Burton films. She got her start as a motion designer at various tv companies while pursuing a career in directing on the side. Sarah is now on the roster at LaLaLa Productions and has also founded her own production company (L’ouest).
Joe Roberts
Evan grew up in the Appalachian mountains of North Carolina, minutes away from locations where feel-good movies "Deliverance" and "The Hunger Games" were shot. There, he spent his teenage years hanging out with his Jack Russell Terrier and writing for local newspapers, save for a brief stint pulling pork. Lacking the skills necessary pursue a more lucrative career as a farmer or fisherman, Evan chose to postpone inevitable death and taxes by pursuing a college degree, ultimately squeaking through UNC Chapel Hill with a Bachelor of Arts. Since then, Evan has backpacked around the world and founded a regional video production company, working with corporate and small business clients. Evan also works on independent feature films and has just finished his first short film "Airplane Mode."
Michelle D. Ivy
#MenToo was filmed and directed by Bradley Bohannon and Brandon McDuff. Both Brandon and Bradley are both highschool students with a huge passion for film making. Brandon and Bradley have both been successful in music and film making, and they are proud to present their first film that they have made public.
Rob Kneller
John Harrington
Brandon Ray Olive
Sophie Gao was born in a small-town in South China. She aims to be a bilingual filmmaker who makes films that connect people around the world despite the different languages they speak.
She finished her undergraduate program on film management from Beijing Film Academy where she trained her skills as producer in film. After graduation, she continues studying in graduate program Film & TV Production in Loyola Marymount University, Los Angeles.
From the bottom of her heart she is passionate about storytelling. Hence, throughout her academic years she has emphasized on directing, writing and editing. She believes in a universal emotion which transcends cultures, borders and religions all across the world. She wants these stories to echo in people's life.
In 2017, Meaningless Red, the first short film she shot in America, got selected by International Student Film Festival host by Beijing Film Academy.
Paul Catalanotto earned a Bachelor of Arts in Mass Communication and a minor in Marketing from Southeastern Louisiana University. He worked as a producer for Charter Media before taking a position with the Southeastern Channel. During his two years at the channel, Catalanotto directed and produced a variety of programming including "College Night", a Telly award winning student entertainment show and was the editor of the international and national award winning documentary, "Fighting Lions: The Glory Years". In 2005, Catalanotto founded Untitled Films to address his interest in directing music videos, documentaries, and narrative films. He has won an Atlanta Hip Hop award for directing the music video "Lookin’ Down on Me" and placed in the top ten videos of the 2008 Inspirational Country Music Awards with the video "Pictures" featuring Tommy Brandt. In 2009, he graduated with an MFA in Film Production from the University of New Orleans. Recently, several of his music videos have made it into CMT and GAC rotation, and his films “Proof of the Devil” and "Sacrilege" have received national and international distribution. "Ham Sandwich" is the latest short he is bringing to the festival circuit.
Joseph Villapaz
John Long
Serge Alhelayel
Trei Hill
SPOTLIGHT
FILM AWARDS
Théo Collet
Igor Coric
Award winning photographer and film director Gallo began his career as an Advertising Agency Art Director. Creating broadcast commercials and campaigns for large iconic brands
He maintained a dual career as a photographer working as a freelance photojournalist and documentary photographer. His photo journalistic work was recognized by the Chicago Headline Club and he was twice recognized with the coveted Peter Lisagor award for photo-journalistic excellence. His documentary and fine art photography are in many private and corporate collections.
The Magic Behind the Mojo is his first long form documentary. The film has had several private screenings and so far has made it to Finalist in the Indie Visions Festival, and Official Selection in the Indie Short Fest, Short to the Point and Mindfield Film Festivals. It also received a Gold for Short Documentary in the Mindfield Festival.
Currently living and working in Chicago he is in production planning on ‘BOP’ a narrative film based on a short story by Maxine Chernoff.
Forrest Tuff is CEO of One Vision Productions, an award-winning multimedia agency with clientele ranging from small businesses to Fortune 100 companies. OVP specializes in video production, photography, television, aerial drone services, and graphic design. It has been named one of Atlanta's "Best and Brightest Companies to Work For."
An empowerment speaker, Tuff shares his life experiences with the hope of motivating others to pursue their dreams. He teaches workshops sharing insight on how small business owners can find work in Georgia's Film Industry. He has been recognized as "Toastmaster of the Year" and the "Top 100 Transformational Leaders" by the John Maxwell Team.
Tuff is also an award-winning filmmaker whose desire to entertain, teach, and inspire is the driving motivation behind his films. Adapting the moniker "Filmpreneur" (filmmaker/entrepreneur), Tuff has more than 100 movie credits to his name, to include documentaries, indie films, and a major motion picture with 20th Century Fox.
An advocate of servant leadership, Tuff is an Ambassador for the American Heart Association and pro bono SCORE business mentor. He is a recipient of the MLK Drum Major for Service Award and President's Call to Service Award.
Tuff has been featured in Black Enterprise, Faith Film Flix, and Voyage ATL, to name a few. He has been a judge for the Atlanta Film Festival, Atlanta Jewish Film Festival, Cause + Effect Georgia Progressive Film Festival, Telly Awards, and National Academy of Television Arts & Sciences Southeast Regional Emmy.
Samuel Saravolatz
Robert Howat
Snigdha Kapoor
Giancarlo Orellana
Owner of Drækul Films. He has a degree in mathematics and physics. Through a study of physics and astronomy, he found a love for photography and cinematography. He combined these loves with his previous loves of reading and writing, to give birth to Drækul Films and bring exciting stories to life.
R. T. Francis
Josiah is currently working as a film editor on everything from global fashion campaigns to Vogue editorials. He is a writer, director and editor. Since 2003 he has made multiple short films, award-winning stop frame animations, music videos and commercials
Drew Hunt
Rob Kneller is retired and makes films in his spare time. He is also the Executive Director of the Highlands Film Fest in New Jersey.
Mehmet Tığlı was born in İstanbul in 1970. He graduated from Marmara University in 1991. He completed cinema courses at İFSAK in 1989. He won best screenplay awards of Orhon Murat Arıburnu National Art Awards in 1992 and 1993. He was assigned as a jury member at many short-film festivals. Mehmet Tığlı is also Marketing and Communication lecturer at Marmara University since 1993.
His first short film ‘Twin Stars-İkiz Yıldızlar’ was shot in June, 2016. 'Twin Stars' was officially selected to 58 international festivals and won 22 awards until the end of 2017. His second film High Calorie-Yüksek Kalori was selected to 45 international festivals and won 24 awards until 2018. His third short film A Ferry Tale-Bir Vapur Masalı was officially selected to 97 international festivals and won 46 awards.
Ethan Feaster
Jeremy McClelland
William Murray
Mike McKenzie – born in London to Jamaican parents in 1965.
Filmmaker, drummer, teacher who creates under the name DrumCamFilms.
My 1st Documentary was about Russ Henderson “The Pan Man” It was shown at the Portobello Film Festival 2009 and won best audience film. It was also screened at various film festivals in London, Trinidad, Barbados and an article in Pan Podium about Russ, the film and me.
My latest film project is a film called Be-Longing, which was screened at the Lexi Cinema in Kensal Rise and at The Portobello Film Festival in late 2018. This film was about a young 10 yr. old boy in Foster care.
While working on the design for his person music album cover Curtis Ballard picked up the camera for the first time and decided to take his own cover shot. The sensation of him touching that camera felt like magic. He took a few classes on photography to get him started. It was during that time that he was introduced to film making. Ballard relied on his story telling ability that he developed through rap music and used that to write his first movie script. It wasn't long before he was shooting his first independent film entitled Baghdad. Curtis has since become a highly sought after director, filming everything from music videos to feature films. He has shot over 100 music videos, six feature films and is currently working on his fifth Life Time Movie Network project.
Jason Kierce
Bradley Bohannon & Brandon McDuff.
Taryn Smith is a recent graduate of Oklahoma City University's Film Production Program. "Sketch" is her debut short film, based on her own life, which she wrote, directed, produced, and edited. She works as a full time editor for TCM Creative, a tv, film, and video production company that specializes in documentary and direct action tv and commercials, as well as working as a freelance videographer and editor.
Annie Tohill is an independent animator based in Northern Virginia who specializes in traditional animation. In 2017 she was diagnosed with a connective tissue disease that causes joint hypermobility, which led her to the Ehlers Danlos Syndrome community. Because joint hypermobility often causes dislocations with loud popping sounds, members of the EDS and hypermobility communities like to joke that they pop like Rice Krispies. As she began to collect her share of joint damage and mystery ailments, Annie began to think about what Ehlers Danlos Syndrome would look like as a cereal box. That project ended up expanding into a full two minute cereal commercial inspired by the deeply unhealthy cereal commercials of the 1950s. If sugar frosted cereal was considered part of a healthy breakfast, why not throw in a connective tissue disease into the mix? When not animating or popping her hip back into her socket, Annie enjoys cooking and playing Dungeons and Dragons.
Rob Lee
Philip Geertsen
Multi award-winning filmmaker Pete Dickson has a proven track record for producing dramatically compelling and emotionally gripping documentary and short films. With a unique style of creative treatment to storytelling he has a rare
talent in drawing the best out of the human element within each story.
Pete Dickson has won numerous festival accolades all over the world for his documentary films, all of which have been consistently broadcast nationally onfree to air Television in Australia.
Pete is passionate and determined to continue the wonderful legacy of his late brother Rob - an amazingly talented filmmaker who was killed in a car accident in 2009. “It’s still difficult to talk about the loss of my brother but I first teamed up
with Rob in a working sense in the year 2000 when we made our first film “The passion to play” for the AFL. I was just floating behind him watching and learning from the best filmmaker I have known. All of my style, knowledge and ability in this business is borne from what I learnt from him. So I owe it to him to continue to develop and continue to produce films that he would be proud of.”
Paul Catalanotto
Annie Tohill
Sara Eustáquio, 19, is a Portuguese multi-award-winning filmmaker and a BFA2 majoring Film and Video at Calarts, in California.
Born to two actors, growing up Jeremy has always wanted to work in the film industry. Throughout his early years he participated in school theatre in works such as Midsummer Night's Dream, Three Musketeers, and a stage adaptation of the movie Clue. As he grew older he started delving more into performing arts; playing numerous instruments, all types of saxophone, clarinet, bass clarinet, starting the first jazz combo at his high school, participating in musical theatre, and a little training in stage lighting. In college, Jeremy took film more serious by going to Shoreline Community College. With the hands on film program at the school he quickly started making his own projects in and outside of school, participating in school productions and learning the Meisner Technique. Learning all elements of the filmmaking process, Jeremy started out as a production assistant working on small commercials, music videos, documentary. Now one of the most worked PA's in the Northwest, he has worked on network television show and feature films across the entire west coast. Recently he has finished a short film called Rocky Jones written and directed by himself.
Director William Murray is a Brooklyn, NY based freelance Producer / Director / Editor specializing in effective, compelling music videos for the city and beyond.
Though Michelle D. Ivy is a seasoned, Chicago born Actress who displays her chops in every aspect and genre of entertainment, NOT MYSELF is a directorial debut for her. While acting in every genre, perfectly executing her performances in film roles from sweet and loving, to scary, to strong, to vulnerable to powerful, this was exceptionally challenging to perform in a leading role as well as step into the Director's chair. NOT MYSELF is the first film directed, produced and written by the talented entertainer. Michelle is currently in post production for "Not The Child I Raised" the second film written, directed and produced by her, a narrative which addresses the issue of violence in Chicago. Michelle D. Ivy is slated to produce additional projects in the near future, all of which are written by Michelle, including a pilot episode for her dramatic series "Exposed" which will be a very powerful and explosive show! Michelle's goal is to break through barriers and create great content.
Kamil Olejnik
Michelle Elise Harding
My name is Serge Alhelayel, I'm 26 years old , I live in Lebanon, Beirut .
I grew up in a small village , i studied filmmaking in Antonine University in Lebanon ,
I filmed 3 short films :
VICTORIA a short documentary in 2013 , it was selected in many film festivals around the world, I've won the Gold Award in this film festival , it was a Semi - Finalist in Los Angeles and many more .
i Am a short experimental film in 2019 so far it was selected in 3 film festivals and I've won the Silver Award in this film festival .The third short film is a fiction still under editing ...
I work now as an Editor for Lebanese Tv-series in a Post Production and a freelance Editor for senior short films.
Natalie MacMahon
Sarah Koteles
José Luis Anaya. Actor and Director. He began his studies in Method Acting, before studying the acting program at drama school CasAzul Argos. Holds a BA in Communications with a Film minor from Universidad Iberoamericana and a Master's degree in Film Studies from Casa Lamm. He's currently studying a Master's degree in Filmmaking (Directing & Screenwriting) at Facultad de Cine film school in México City. He has acted professionally in film, theatre & television. "Damián" is his first short film, horror genre, and his introduction into the cinema world as a film director. His 2nd short film "La decisión de Lourdes", drama genre, is currently in postproduction and also working on his 3rd and 4th short films, both thriller and supernatural horror genre, soon to start production. He's also working on his first feature film during the Filmmaking Master's, in which he will be both the Lead Actor and Director.
Evan G. Schmidt
Taryn Smith
Jana Mosquera
John Long is an independent Filmmaker from North Carolina. His most recent award-winning film, It's Night, follows J as he returns home and traverses a tense family dynamic.
Igor Coric is an animator, film director and an author of inexorable energy. Since he graduated painting at the Belgrade Faculty of Fine Arts 16 years ago, he created over two hundred animated shorts screened and awarded at numerous animation and short film festivals around the world.
Snigdha is an Indian Cinematographer and Director based out of New York City. She is a visual storyteller with a background in Journalism and Advertising who finds the process of communicating through films, liberating. Her work spans from narrative (feature and shorts), music videos to experimental and commercial content. She believes that the art of cinematography embraces understanding subtext, subtleties and deeper psychology to best visually represent the story, characters, and the tone.
She is known for her work in Shattered Beauty that won her best cinematography at Asian American Film Lab. As cinematographer, her feature film Antofagasta, New York shot in New York and Chile has been included in Chilean film catalog (2017).
Her latest music video Aghor, an homage to all women changing the course of one sided history by action was recently premiered by Brown Girl Magazine and her latest fashion film as a cinematographer, Rituals, has been published in Oyster Magazine.
She is a proud member of NYC Women Filmmakers and Kalakars, a South Asian film collective.
Jan Fabris
Born and raised in Los Angeles and currently based in Atlanta, Tim Barrera lives his entire life in the independent film world. Working consistently and coming up in the Assistant Directing department, Tim has a passion for the creation of independent films specifically in Georgia.
Ryan N. Olsen
He was born in 1976 in Ankara. Until 1992, he worked in theater and cinema field in Ankara and İstanbul. After graduating from university in arts, he made his masters degree in acting.In 2012, the play he wrote “Death comes after me” translated and performed by Flemish actors and actresses. He acted in various motion pictures and TV series. In the year 2013, “The Exile Cow” movie which he wrote the screenplay and starred, has been watched by five hundred thousand people in Turkey.Then, in 2017, he settled in Germany, opened an exhibition of Karagöz figures, and presented shadow theater and puppet shows at various festivals. In 2018, he wrote the script and directed the short film named “Dictators don’t die”.
Alejandro Espinoza & Michael Benton
Chris Borgo is a Canadian award winning filmmaker, born in Thunder Bay, Ontario, Canada. His passion for filmmaking started at a very early age, writing his first script at the age of 10 yrs. and directing his first short horror film at the age of 18 yrs. He graduated with honours from the Television / Broadcasting program at Confederation College.
After graduating from College, he went to work on numerous big budget films at a post-production facility in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Several years later he moved back home, and started his own production company.
Currently, he is in the final stages of completing his newest film and will be completed in the last quarter of 2019. He has multiple film projects lined up in 2020 and beyond.
Jana Mosquera is a writer, producer and lead actress of Duality. Born and raised in Colombia, She is currently in Los Angeles pursuing a career in the entertainment industry.
Born in Detroit Michigan, Sam moved to Brooklyn, NY after receiving his degree in Screen Arts and Cultures from the University of Michigan. After working for one year in post-production with the company Hero Edit he enrolled in the William Esper Studio 2-year program studying with the world renowned William Esper himself. Now he spends the majority of his time working in a restaurant in the West Village, writing his next project and auditioning for theatrical and film projects in New York.
Pete Dickson
Mike McKenzie
Jinghan Zhang
Robynn Lin is an independent filmmaker based in both North Carolina and South Florida. Growing up in the world of fashion and nutrition, she learned early on how to create, inspire, navigate, promote, follow direction AND give direction. It was while doing these things that Robynn's creative side found an exciting new avenue in Film!
Changing careers in her 40's may have gone against the norm but she hasn't looked back.
"Whether I'm acting, producing or encouraging others to live agelessly, it's that past experience that enables me to put my most creative, yet authentic, self out there. I want to be 'that person' who reminds others that it’s not too late to follow a new dream."
Films that inspire, lift others up and challenge society to think, are Robynn's focus and she excited to see where her filmmaking takes her next.