FEATURED MENTORS
HILLARY CUTTER
Founder/EP, Cutter
Cutter formed her own video production company, Cutter Productions, in 2005, to create an environment where the storytellers’ backgrounds would match the diversity of the stories they tell.
In 2015, Cutter created her own women’s mentorship program, Cutter Connections, to fill the industry gap and provide specialized networking resources to women at all stages of their career.
Since its founding, Cutter Connections has hosted more than 700 women through its mentorship program at events around New York City. These get-togethers help young women hone their interviewing skills while cultivating their personal network. They have led to countless mentor-mentee relationships, as well as professional collaborations between the mentors themselves.
NIKA OFFENBAC
Director & Executive Producer
Nika Offenbac is an award-winning director, producer and collaborator whose heart lives in the world and whose stuff lives in Brooklyn NY.
Commercially she has directed brand campaigns for Evian, Airbnb, Ubisoft, Nestle & TBS, among others. Her visual style and onset approach is based on 10+ years of experience in post-production, animation and visual effects leading tour visuals for Skrillex, Tiesto & Zedd, and branded content for Nordstroms, Macy's. Toshiba, & Sprint.
In the realm of network television, she has executive produced rebrands, show packages, promos, series and network campaigns for the likes of truTV, Amazon, Netflix, FX, MTV & HBO, including co-executive producing a 5 part documentary series for MTV World, “Until the Sun Comes Up,” about the global evolution of dance music.
When not on set, in meetings or a windowless editing bay, you can usually find her in the boxing ring taking a refresher course on some of life’s deeper lessons which can be boiled down to the following. Be fearless. Be kind. Never ask how many.
BRITTANY ROSTRON
Founder/Executive Director at Female Artistic & Commercial Entrepreneur Support(FACES)
After 15 years of diverse experience in feature film, TV, and digital content, Brittany decided to dedicate her life to helping women break into and develop their careers in this crazy industry she loves so much. She founded Female Artistic & Commercial Entrepreneur Support, Inc. (FACES), a nonprofit that offers women opportunities for real-world onset experience, job placement assistance and access to their own creative platform.
JUSTINE SIMONSON
Producer, Writer, Director of Non-Fiction media
Justine Simonson is a producer and writer of documentary media and the owner of Co Lab Productions in New York City. She’s worked in various genres from investigative journalism to arts and entertainment, and her work has appeared on PBS, ABC, NBC, National Geographic, and Showtime among other outlets. Her favorite topics to cover include travel and social issues.
SUSIE FRANCOIS
Co-Founder and Director at Imagine This
Women’s International Film Festival
Susie Francois is the co-founder and director of development of Imagine This Women’s International Film Festival. Her passion is to help develop people in ways that improve their working and personal lives and to promote cultural change. Together with her daughter, Patrice, they launched Girl Power Film + Media Summit and Ladies Rocking the lens to continue their support of women storytellers.
MARIA RAPETSKAYA
Founder & Creative Director, Undefined Creative
Inspired artist. Inspiring leader. Dedicated pay-it-forward give-backer. Hands-on creating. Writing, speaking and occasionally teaching. Internationally honored, screened and published. Travel addict at sixty-six countries across six continents and counting. (Free travel tips with any project purchase.)
SARAH KERLIN
Rental Manager at TCS
Sarah Kerlin is the creator/director of the YouTube webseries, 'Film Life Rules', a how-to series for set behavior and etiquette. She is also the creator of the upcoming podcast, Anxious AF, where people share stories and experiences with anxiety. She is currently the senior rental manager at TCS, a film/television camera rental house in Hell's Kitchen, Manhattan. Follow her at @sarahkerlin on Instagram or the podcast at @anxiousafshow on all platforms for updates.
LISA CORTÉS
Producer/Director (Precious, The Apollo, The Remix)
Lisa Cortés is an Academy Award®–nominated Producer whose credits include PRECIOUS; and THE APOLLO. Her work with trailblazing companies such as Def Jam Records, Lee Daniels Entertainment and Cortés Films has defined a career that has been distinguished by her commitment to empowering inclusive voices in front of and behind the camera. Her productions have received over 70 awards and nominations including the Academy Award®, the Golden Globe, the Berlinale Golden Bear, and the Sundance Film Festival's Grand Jury Prize among others.
She has collaborated with directors including Ernest Dickerson and Gabourey Sidibe, producing innovative features, documentaries and short films that assert the centrality of diverse and untold stories while delighting audiences. She recently produced with Academy Award Award®-winning director, Roger Ross Williams, a feature-length documentary about the legendary Apollo Theater, THE APOLLO (HBO) and produced and co-directed the documentary, THE REMIX: HIP X FASHION. Both films opened at the 2019 Tribeca Film Festival to great acclaim.
Cortés is a proud mentor to filmmakers affiliated with Sundance, Tribeca Film Institute and the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences Gold Mentorship program.
MEG KETTELL
Director of Photography/Cinematographer
Meg Kettell is a cinematographer based in New York City. She owns an Arri Alexa camera and shoots commercials, narrative films, documentaries and branded content. A member of IATSE Local 600 [International Cinematographers Guild] and a graduate of NYU’s Tisch School of the Arts, Meg won the Bahoric-Meisel Award for Women Cinematographers two years in a row. She works with some of the best film crews in New York City and around the globe and her cinematography has screened at numerous film festivals, including the Tribeca Film Festival and the Toronto International Film Festival.
MARY NITTOLO
Founder/CEO, The Studio
Mary Nittolo is the Founder and Creative Director of the STUDIO, an award winning production and animation company about to celebrate its 30th anniversary. She is widely recognized as a Creative Thought Leader and has judged highly regarded industry awards including AICP, CCDP and ADCOLOR. In addition, she has lectured at the FMX Animation Festival in Stuttgart, the Re:Design Conference, the Digital Diversity Panel during Advertising Week, The Art of Creativity panels at Soho House as well as The Warrington College of Business Women’s Collaboratory for Innovators.
Daniela Echevarria
Art Director
Daniela is an award winning and passionate Art Director with a concentration in motion graphic design. Being a part of a creative project from concept to execution is her speciality. An MFA in Motion Media Design from Savannah College of Art and Design (SCAD) elevated her craft. She has been a creative force in the media industry for more than 10 years for brands such as NBC Universal, Estée Lauder: BCA, National Geographic, VISA, General Motors, MSG Networks, and more. She is an adventurous spirit with a great sense of color and shape in visual design. Her passion has lead her to take on new challenges in experiential design/projection mapping in Chelsea, New York. Her visuals are projected within an immersive dome and help create a therapeutic experience through sight and sound.
Instagram: @dani_ech_
SEWRA KIDANE
Fashion Film Director/Editor
Sewra G Kidane is a renowned Creative Commercial Film Editor, working with fashion and beauty brands such as Creme of Nature, Estée Lauder, Herring & Herring, and Ooshie. She has an innate ability with her editing style, elevating the quality of the footage, whether its high budget beauty rushes, gritty digital handheld material, or found media and transforming it from a raw concept into a stylized spot.
Ms. Kidane is also the highly acclaimed Director and Editor of the award-winning fashion film, “Punctuation Proclamation”. The film has been featured in various national media outlets and has been named on Forbes’ list of “The 12 Best Fashion Films” and Aesthetica Magazine "5 To See Fashion Films"; along with winning several awards, including “Best Visual Moving Art”, “Best Short Film” and “Best Glam Fashion Film”. Noticing a lack of Black fashion, glamour, and beauty being shown and celebrated, particularly in the fashion film world, Ms. Kidane decided to create her own lane. Her vision combined with her meticulous artistry has allowed her to pave a new style of fashion film.
Her second fashion film "As Above" is currently on festival tour; already receiving 7 Official Selections, including 2019 LA Fashion Festival, 2019 Women of The Lens Festival in London, and 2019 Reel Sisters Film Festival in NYC. "As Above" has been nominated for Best Director at the 2019 Croatia Fashion Film Festival and Best Glam at LA Fashion Festival, and Best Fashion Film for 2020 Taste Awards and Best Score at the Hollywood Art and Movie Awards (which btw was scored by a woman... Alexia Riner). The film has won two awards; Achievement in Narrative Short at 2019 Silicon Valley African Film Festival and Stylemaker Award at 2020 Taste Awards in Beverly Hills, the second time Ms. Kidan'e work has won the Stylemaker Award.
A native New Yorker and a graduate of Emerson College, Boston, Ms. Kidane is currently based in New York City. Along with cutting client work and directing fashion films, she also teaches “Film + Fashion” and "Edit + Post" at Pratt Institute in Brooklyn and is in post with her next 2 fashion films; "Bitch I Got An Attitude" with editorial model Iman Mariah, and in the final finishing post stages for "The Monks of Brooknam", a conceptual fashion film created for menswear designer Anitra Michelle.
ROZZ THERRIEN
Producer
Rozz Therrien is a producer and director who has worked in both the commercial and TV/Film world. Most recently, Therrien has worked on series for Facebook Watch and Disney+ in both development and production. Therrien co-founded 2325 Blossom Street in 2017, a company that focuses on lifestyle videos and social justice documentaries in the U.S. and France. In her spare time, Therrien co-hosts a podcast called “We Forgive You” that is all about “self care through celebrity” exploring what our likes and dislikes say about us—and our society—through the lens of celebrity culture
VANESSA HUDSON
Director/Producer, VICE Media
Vanessa Hudson is a director and producer with VICE Media. In her current role, Vanessa spearheads creative direction of programming for The Olympic Channel - a collection of documentary series’ that illustrate sport’s impact on society worldwide.
Vanessa started her career as a production manager at MTV World. With a strong desire to be in the field and a passion for storytelling, Vanessa joined VICE in 2014. She made her directorial debut in 2016 with Dutee, a short documentary which premiered at multiple film festivals worldwide. Her series, Identify, won the Webby for best online video in the sports category in 2018. She is currently working on her first docu-series,Taking Refuge, which chronicles three refugee athletes as they train with a 3-time Olympic Gold medalist for a chance to qualify for the 2020 games. The series will be edited into Vanessa's first feature length documentary.
Her latest short film, Inspired by Sport: Pal-O-Mine Equestrian, represents the intersection of Vanessa's two greatest passions - horses and film, and is the manifestation of Vanessa's longtime goal - to visually represent the beautiful connection between horse and human. The piece will premiere at The American Documentary Film Festival later this month.
Vanessa has created content in 20+ countries and is driven by the impassioned stories told through her films.
JENNIFER CHO SUHR
Writer/Director
Cho Suhr is a writer/director based in Brooklyn. Her debut feature, YOU AND ME BOTH, was selected for Tribeca Film Institute’s All Access, both the Film Independent Producing Lab and Fast Track programs, and was a finalist for AT&T’s Untold Stories. Most recently, Jennifer was chosen to participate in Tribeca Film Institute and CHANEL’s Through Her Lens program where she was mentored by Kathryn Bigelow, Christine Vachon, Marti Noxon, and Rachel Morrison, among others. She is currently developing a live action series with Daniel Dae Kim and Alan Yang and an animated series with Frederator Studios.
ALEXANDRA DELL
Sports Documentary Producer, Lagardere Sports
Alexandra is a writer, producer, and filmmaker living in New York City. She is an Executive Producer of the unscripted series "Lace Up: The Ultimate Sneaker Challenge" on YouTube Red, which won the Cynopsis Sports Media Award for "Best Reality Series". She works at Lagardere Sports, where she produces sports documentary series for companies like YouTube Premium, Amazon, Netflix. Alexandra has written about sports, legal issues, and humor first person pieces for publications such as Newsweek, the American Lawyer, the Washingtonian, and Bethesda Magazine. She wrote and directed a short film “The Mime” that was selected as “The Best Of” the DC Shorts Film Festival and is currently showing at festivals a web series she wrote and directed, “Roommating”.
DANA BOL
Creative Editor
Dana Bol studied experimental film with Stan Brakhage at the University of Colorado Boulder, engendering a life long love of layered imagery and film. After her studies, Dana moved to the Netherlands.During her two years abroad, she participated in various film projects, including editing commercials and documentaries as well as working with such creative visionaries as director John Schlesinger and Nicolai van der Heide. Returning to the U.S., Dana worked at several editorial companies before forming arc*light editorial in 1998. She was the managing director until 2001, when she formed Tallgirl, a company specializing in VFX and Creative Film Editing which she still runs today.
Dana has a passion for rock climbing and painting, and enjoys connecting with other artists, finding inspiration in collaboration.
LAUREN ANDERSON
Film Director & Graphic Designer
Lauren Anderson is a Group Art Supervisor and short film director/producer living in Brooklyn, NY. Lauren graduated from the University of Oklahoma in 2018 with a degree in Advertising. After graduation, Lauren began her career at one of the largest public relation agencies in the world, Burson (Formerly BCW). She now works at Marina Maher Communications where she designs for the Creative & New Business team and production assists for the Content Studio.
AUBREY SMYTH
Commercial and Film Director, Commercial Rep: Cutter Productions
Aubrey Smyth is a NYC based commercial and fim director who has helmed national and digital commercials for hallmark brands including Audible, Google, Netflix and Colgate to name a few.
Her first documentary about donor conception and the unregualted fertility industry, The Need To Know, was executive produced by Tribeca Studios and 23andMe. Aubrey was the Grand Prize Winner for Moët Moment Film Festival sponsored by Moët & Chandon for her film The Bout and recipient of a $25,000 prize.
WHITNEY CUSACK
Executive Producer, Filmmaker
Whitney Cusack is a creative production consultant who inspires and empowers you to create content that your customers will love, igniting a connection with your audience and purpose. At the intersectionof creativity and strategic leadership, Whitney harnesses order and excellence while producing high-quality and compelling stories.
With over 10 years of experience in brand strategy, she has worked on multimedia projects with numerous leading consumer brands including: St. Ives, Caress, Axe, Suave, TRESemmé, Dove, Hellmann’s, Bank of America and Colgate.
In 2013, Whitney founded her company, Reelistic Media LLC, which produces creative content that delivers real impact. In collaboration with The Catch by Elyse, Reelistic Media executive produced fashion campaigns focused on the diversity and beauty of women.
Understanding the importance of the female voice in media, Whitney empowers women to persevere in the film and digital media industry. She mentors and trains the next generation of creative talent by conducting film workshops in academic arenas. Passionate about uplifting communities, Whitney wrote, directed and produced grassroots media projects ranging from a series of inspirational shorts for a faith-based organization to a video campaign raising funds to further education for children in Liberia.
Whitney currently works as an Executive Producer at an award-winning global communications agency in New York City. Leading a team of producers for mid to large-scale branded content shoots, she uses an integrated digital approach to bring clients’ stories to life. Cusack has also worked on awareness campaigns for healthcare brands resulting in increased sales and social engagement. Her goal is to remain at the forefront of content production, either through her continued work in the independent film space or creative directing projects for social justice. Her most recent project, "No More..." Hashtag Campaign, is an initiative that calls for an end to systemic racism, demanding action.
REBECCA ESKREIS
Writer, Director & Producer
Rebecca Eskreis, whose work has screened at major film festivals around the world, is a recipient of the Sandra Adair/Empowering a Billion Women Grant for promising female filmmakers from the Austin Film Society, and a selected member of the Austin Film Society’s Artist Intensive in 2017. With select credits that include: WHAT BREAKS THE ICE (director, writer, producer), CLEARMIND, (director, set to premiere in 2024), as well as the SXSW-premiered INFINITY BABY (producer), Eskreis is also set to direct CLEO 2.0, a romantic comedy, in spring 2024. Mentored by the late Jonathan Demme, Eskreis previously worked as a producer at his company, Clinica Estetico, following stints at 72 Productions, Red Hour Films, and Di Novi Pictures (as the Creative Executive). Currently an Assistant Professor at the Feirstein Graduate School of Cinema at Brooklyn College, Eskreis holds a BA, Magna Cum Laude, from Barnard College at Columbia University, and an MFA from the USC School of Cinematic Arts.
AYANA BARAKA
Cinematographer
Ayana Baraka was the Cinematographer for “Behind the Curtain: Eclipsed,” starring
Lupita Nyong’o and Danai Gurira, which documented the ‘herstoric’ Broadway production of “Eclipsed.” She was also a cinematographer for the Oscar hopeful, “The Hunting Ground,” the John Legend produced film, “United Skates,” and “Giving Voice,” which premiered
at Sundance 2020. Baraka was named a ‘person on the rise’ in Hollywood by producer Mel Jones. She’s a winner of the 2016 award for Best Cinematography at the Victoria TX Independent Film Festival and the 2019 Culture Catalyst award recipient at the Digital
Diversity Network’s Innovation & Inclusion Awards.
Baraka is the content creator for a virtual reality experience about Black Wall Street and the
Race Massacre of 1921 called “Greenwood Avenue.” Baraka’s foray into immersive storytelling came while attending USC’s School of Cinematic Arts for her MFA in Cinematic Art, Film, and Television. She joined a team of innovators at USC's Mixed Reality Studio,
a Siggraph winning team for creating photo-real animation in virtual reality. Baraka went on to become a 2018 YouTube VR Creator Fellow, 2018 Oculus Connect Fellow, and a 2019 Black Public Media 360+ Incubator Fellow.
BECCA FALBORN
Executive Producer, Sound Lounge
Becca Falborn is the Executive Producer at Sound Lounge in NYC. Becca studied Broadcast Communications & Journalism at Manhattan College. She started out working in reality TV, and pursued an opportunity to transition into post-production. Beginning at Nice Shoes as a receptionist in 2014 and then onto Hogarth Worldwide. In April 2017, Becca began working at Sound Lounge as a Producer.
JAMIE BAKER
Educator, Audio Mixer & Sound Designer
Jamie Baker is an NYC-area based post production sound designer and educator. She originally studied audio engineering to help create original music, but ended up also designing sound for theater and creating post production audio for award winning projects. Today she continues to sculpt post production audio and enthusiastically shares her knowledge and experience with students of all ages.
KRISTEN PALADINO
Casting Director, Founder
Kristen Paladino is an industry-celebrated Casting Director, Creative Consultant and founder of New York City-based Paladino Casting. Paladino and her keen eye are renowned for uncovering hard-to-find, highly-specialized, raw talent across the board from premium television to film, commercials, AR/VR, social/internet and theatre. Kristen's commercials are celebrated both domestically and abroad, while her films have screened at the world’s top festivals and venues including Sundance, Tribeca, SXSW, Cannes, Palais de Tokyo, and The Shed. Her clients range from musical artists like Beyonce, Justin Bieber, Madonna, Drake, Alicia Keys, to brands and networks like Converse, Google, Coca-Cola, Adidas, Gerber, Dior, Levi’s, Heinekenm, NBC, HBO, Hulu, Facebook, Comedy Central, GLAAD to name a select few
JENDRA JARNAGIN
Director of Photography/Cinematographer
Jendra Jarnagin is an award winning DP with over 25 years experience working in feature films, episodic television and online series, commercials, music videos, documentaries and VR. Her films have been shown at the Whitney Museum, the UN, Sundance and Camerimage. She has shot TV series for ABC, FOX, PBS, and Hulu and ad campaigns for Maybelline, Estée Lauder, Shea Moisture, Adidas, Canon and Lincoln.
LAUREN MAGURA
Founder, CEO Cinemather
Business Ventures - SpectreVision / Company X
Lauren's background began in the media operations center at NBCUniversal supporting multiple networks and the 2012 London Olympics. She transitioned into publicity and marketing for Universal Pictures, where she implemented and worked red carpet premieres, press junkets, celebrity public appearance tours, screening programs, radio interview tours, guerrilla, word of mouth, experiential marketing campaigns and more. Lauren’s love for film enabled her to gain years of experience in film production which led her to found her own company Cinematcher: a digital platform streamlining hiring, onboarding and payroll for film productions.
Lauren has experience with business ventures for Elijah Wood's Film, TV and Video Game production house Company X / SpectreVision and is the onset producer for the Shudder original podcast Visitations, hosted by Daniel Noah and Elijah Wood. Lauren also helped lead business strategy for Company X Marketing: an experiential agency owned by Company X / SpectreVision.
Lauren produces and develops p assion projects across film and Television implementing financing, casting, legal, script sourcing, packaging and distribution.
JOANNA KATCHER
Creative Director, Mixer, Composer, Nice Manners
Joanna Katcher is the Creative Director and Founder of Nice Manners, a mix and music house in Los Angeles, CA. Joanna’s love for creating the unexpected via unexpected means (and her extreme nostalgia for all things John Hughes) have made unconventionality the trademark of her mix and production style. Over 12 years, Joanna has mixed and composed thousands of pieces for commercials, networks, agencies, films, recording artists and video games, including writing the theme for an Emmy-award winning show. After magically convincing her clients to re-hire her, Joanna has scored amazing repeat collaborators who boastfully call her work ‘not bad’ and ‘fine’...but they’re probably just being Nice.
RAVEN IRABOR
Creative Producer
Raven Irabor is a first-generation Bronx-born Creative Producer, currently living in Los Angeles, where she works as a Senior Production Coordinator at Blavityas well as a Studio Coordinator at Edge Studios & Grip. Raven’s passions for connecting the worlds of fashion music, and culture as well as creating community and sharing the stories of the African Diaspora through editorialized photo and video production, has led her to a few side projects near and dear to her heart: Digital Producer for The Folklore (an online retail shop stocking high-end and emerging designer brands from Africa and the diaspora that serves as a cultural hub for contemporary brands, artists and creatives to showcase their personal stories) and Brand/Content Lead for The Roux (a IRL and digital platform that serves to provide community and safe spaces for black creatives).
She is currently in pre-production for her photobook and in pre-production for season 2 of “Lea the Late Bloomer” a web-series following Lea Watson after a failed attempt at “making it” in Los Angeles. Lea returns home to The Bronx to live with her parents, and is forced to face her old demons and self-sabotaging behavior.
You can watch all of season 1 here
CHLOE SMOLKIN
Director of Photography/Cinematographer and Storyboard Artist
Brand new
Chloe Smolkin is an award-winning cinematographer and storyboard artist with over a decade of experience in the worlds of independent film, nationally broadcast television, and high-end commercials. She recently won the Award of Excellence in Cinematography from the Brightside Film Festival for the short film, “Isolated Incident,” which also played at Cannes. Her varied commercial clients include AT&T, Lego, Ford, PayPal, and Nickelodeon. She has shot many nationally aired TV shows, including Good Morning America and Would You Fall for That? for ABC, Top Chef Masters for Bravo, and The Chris Gethard Show for Fusion. The features she’s shot have won many prizes, including Best Alternative Feature at the Manhattan Film Festival and Best Comedy at the Madrid Int’l Film Festival. She has storyboarded five features, as well as dozens of short films and commercials, including spots for Toyota, Comedy Central, West Elm, and Dasani. One such commercial, for History Channel, won a Silver Promax Award.
NICOLE COSGROVE
Producer/Director
Nicole started her career as a local 600 camera woman on a variety of projects ranging from film, television and commercial.
She transitioned away from the camera department and into producing with short film GUN(2013 Sundance Film Festival) followed by Ludovic Littee’s White Horse (San Diego FF 2017) and SWEEP (2015 Aspen Shortsfest, LA Film Festival).
Since, she has produced dozens of short films, commercials and documentaries. Including feature length film Lingua Franca, (Venice Film Festival Premier 2019, Dir. Isabel Sandoval)and Donal Ward’s We Only Know So Much (Nantucket 2018, Amazon).
Nicole marked her directorial debut in 2014 with narrative short film GLINDA premiering at the Palm Springs International Shortfest and winning Best of Fest.
Nicole currently serves as Head of Production for Vice overseeing long form and short form scripted and unscripted branded content in conjunction, she has two narrative feature films in development with her creative partners.
Click Here to learn more about her films and WATCH “Glinda” on Vimeo Here
JESSICA BLAIR
Associate Director of the Creative Alliance
Jess Blair is the Associate Director of the Creative Alliance. Jess joined Civic Nation from Creative Artists Agency, where she was a part of the Digital Talent & Packaging department. She started her career there in the Corporate Communications department. Jess attended Syracuse University where she majored in Television, Radio & Film and Entrepreneurship and Emerging Enterprises. She grew up in Los Angeles, CA and now calls New York City home.
“A project I'm excited about now is using our creative resources to get out the count in this year's Census!”
STEPHANIE FEINMAN
Associate Producer
I have been working in documentary, non-scripted, natural history, and wildlife based television and filmmaking since graduating from The George Washington University in 2014. I am passionate about influential storytelling that educates, encourages reflection and inspires change. I currently work as an Associate Producer in Silver Springs, Maryland at Red Rock Films International producing an archival six part series for the Smithsonian Channel about Space Missions. Before making the transition to do the "freelance dance", I was working as a Production Coordinator at the National Geographic Channel in NYC. While at Geo, I had the privilege to work on an array of incredible projects such as 2019's Oscar winning Documentary Feature, Free Solo, as well as 2020's Oscar nominated Documentary Feature, The Cave by filmmaker Feras Fayyad (The Last Men in Aleppo). We also produced the breathtaking 10 part cinematic series, One Strange Rock, in collaboration with award winning filmmaker Darren Aronofsky (Black Swan, Requiem for a Dream) and legendary Discovery Producer Jane Root. I so honored to be associated with the other brilliant and inspiring female media titans that Cutter Connections has introduced me to.
Please feel free to reach out to me to connect further or even for any upcoming projects in need of an AP willing to get their hands dirty in the field and who is itching to flex their muscles behind the camera.
Onwards and upwards ladies!
HALEY BORDERS
Director of Production, Whistle
Haley Borders is a NYC-based Director of Production. She has worked in sports & media for over 10 years. She’s worked at MLB, MTV, New Wave Entertainment, A&E, and she currently works at Whistle where she has produced projects for YouTube Premium, Facebook Watch, The Olympic Channel, Topgolf, and the Premier League. She is currently working on 2 unscripted series for Quibi and a doc-series for VUDU. Haley is a huge sports fan: she watches every Yankee game and is a massive Auburn Tiger fan. War Eagle!
EUNICE KINDRED
Associate Creative Director, NEON | FCB Health
Eunice began her creative career when she received a Wacom tablet and Corel Painter for her birthday and decided to launch her own graphic design business — in high school. After interning at Tiger Beat and Teen Beat magazines and later designing at Penguin Books, she landed in advertising. For over the past decade, she has called Neon and the FCB Health network her home, launching and leading an array of professional and consumer brands as an Associate Creative Director. Her work has been awarded a Bronze Clio, a DTC Perspectives Gold, Global Awards finalist, and short-listed for Cannes Lions Health.
HALLE COOKE
APOC on Power Book II: Ghost
After graduating from Syracuse University, Halle moved to New York City to work in Commercial and TV production. She has since come up through the production office and is now an APOC on Power Book II: Ghost. She looks forward to continuing up the chain and eventually producing the sort of content that has always inspired her. Getting her start in the industry through Cutter Productions, Halle was lucky enough to be a part of primarily female crews and work for some amazing female producers. Empowering and supporting women in entertainment is incredibly important to her and she enjoys meeting young women entering the industry through organizations like Cutter Connections.
JANET OH
Administrative Aide at NYU | Screenwriter & Producer
Janet Oh, an NYC-based Screenwriter, Producer, and Admin Aide, holds a Bachelor’s degree in Cinema Studies from the NYU Tisch School of the Arts and a Certificate in Scriptwriting/YA Fiction from the Oxford University Creative Writing Summer School. Recognized in screenwriting competitions like the Boston Screenplay Awards (Finalist) and the Fan Fiction Film and Screenplay Festival (Best TV Pilot), Janet is passionate about writing and producing romantic pieces, aiming to inspire self-love and healing through her stories. In addition to serving on the Cutter Connections event committee, Janet serves as an Executive Board Member on the NYU Arts and Entertainment Alumni Network.
FARAH X
Director/Editor
Farah X is an award-winning Pakistani-American director and editor, whose list of clients includes Prince, Mariah Carey, and Beyoncé – among many other industry icons. Her first music video got her on Billboard Magazine's 'Top 10 Up and Coming Directors to Watch' list. She was sought out by Mariah Carey to be her personal editor and soon thereafter, took on the same role for the legendary Prince. Since then, Farah has gone on to edit and direct award-winning projects, with a consistent focus on women’s stories – especially women of color. Her work has been showcased at SXSW, AFI Docs, LA Film Festival and can be seen on Netflix and iTunes.
Farah co-directed (and co-edited) her first feature length documentary, The Remix: Hip Hop x Fashion. The film premiered at Tribeca Film Festival in 2019 and has gone on to win several awards worldwide before being picked up by Netflix.
Her online docu-series SeeHer: Multiplicity, an extension of the SeeHer campaign, won a Gracie Award for Original Online Programming – Video Series National (previously won by First Lady Michelle Obama). The series also won Gold and Silver Telly Awards. She recently directed an episode of Hulu’s acclaimed doc series Rap Caviar Presents, and her short documentary Mamba’s Murals for the upcoming Sports Explains the World Series premiered at Tribeca Film Festival 2023.
Farah is currently in development on a project with Five All in the Fifth and Jesse Collins Entertainment and calls Brooklyn home.
JESSICA EDWARDS
Commercial and Film Director, US commercial Rep: Cutter Productions
Raised on a hobby farm by musician parents, Jessica Edwards’ imagination for storytelling was inspired at a young age.
After a decade growing a career on the marketing/production side of media and advertising, Jessica made the natural transition to direct commercials and branded content for clients such as; Huawei, The Washington Post, Air Canada, Sport Chek, Canadian Tire, Kellogg’s and RBC. She launched the next phase of her career with a short narrative film, HARD BOILED EGGS, and a fashion film (which paid homage to the 1966 film Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf) for an online magazine. She quickly established herself with visually rich stories told using unique angles of narrative.
Jessica’s first feature film, STAY AWHILE, is a personal story chronicling her parents’ brush with fame as they climbed the worldwide music charts in the 1960s/70s as Canada’s first supergroup, The Bells. The film premiered at the Whistler International Film Festival and was an opening weekend selection for the Hot Docs International Film Festival, receiving glowing reviews at both. It was subsequently picked up by Netflix, iTunes, Amazon Prime, and DirectTV in the U.S. Her content work has won Best-Of-Show at the Gramercy Content Marketing Awards and her recent short films Connecting The North for Huawei was nominated for Best Documentary at the Cynopsis Media Awards taking place in NYC .
The success of the film Stay Awhile led to Jessica being deemed a “filmmaker to watch”.
While continuing to direct branded content and evolving series work, she is currently meeting with producers to develop her next feature script The Laurentians.
NIKI JANOWSKI
Producer, Production Manager and 1st AD
Niki Janowski (Producer) has more than a decade of experience as a producer, production manager, production coordinator, and 1st and 2nd assistant director on features, documentaries, shorts, television, commercials, promos, music videos and corporate videos. She has also spent time as an art coordinator for an elite design studio. Though based in New York, she has had the opportunity to film in several locations all over the United States and internationally.
PATRICE FRANCOIS
Co-Founder and Director at Imagine This
Women’s International Film Festival
Patrice Francois is a Haitian-American actor, writer, and filmmaker. She is the co-founder, and program director of Imagine This Women’s International Film Festival, a Brooklyn-based film festival that aims to celebrate and empower independent and aspiring women filmmakers from around the world. Continuing with her mission, she launched Girl Power Film + Media Summit and recently curated Ladies Rocking the Lens, a film series celebrating local cinema.
ANNE FLANNERY
Women's Sports Pioneer, Non-Profit CEO
Anne is a sports leader and social entrepreneur with over 25 years in the industry where she led innovation and advocacy efforts at the Women's Sports Foundation, the Women's Basketball Coaches Association and at Spalding where she helped to found the WNBA. She is a founding member of the Women's Basketball Hall of Fame and just recently, joined the board of Women 2.0 to help create more resources for female founders. I am looking forward to my upcoming trip to France for the Women's World Cup and to some of the work around getting more women into coaching. I hope to continue to mentor the next generation of women sports leaders and social entrepreneurs, and to tell more stories of those upon whose shoulders we all stand today.
KATE PHELAN
Director of Photography/Cinematographer
After years as a union gaffer lighting such films as GIRLFIGHT, PIECES OF APRIL & SUNSHINE STATE, Kate began shooting full time in 2005. In 2009 she lensed the first season of TOSH.0 and the Emmy nominated web series HONESTY, both for Comedy Central. She’s shot half hour pilots for MTV & VH1, five features and over 100 promos & commercials. She’s most recently shot for AMAZON, ABC & TBS. She’s been a member of the International Cinematographers Guild for 12 years.
SEHAJ SETHI
Screenwriter
Sehaj Sethi is an Indian American screenwriter and alumna from the New York University Graduate Film Program. She is currently partnering with Scott Free Entertainment on her script Everything is Fine, as well as I Can & I Will Productions on her original TV series Bad Betis. Sehaj is a staff writer on the CW show Two Sentence Horror Stories and previously worked as a staff writer at Luma Pictures, focusing on sci-fi feature projects. Early in her writing career, she created a horror feature for Paperclip Ltd. headed by Yeardley Smith.
In 2019 Sehaj was awarded a fellowship for the New Orleans Writers Residency. Her script The Third Rule was a finalist for the 2017 Athena List. Her script My Husband's Corpseplaced on the 2012 Purple List, selected by industry judges as one of the best screenplays from New York University, and was an official selection at the Female Eye Film Festival. She is a member of New York Women in Film and Television, an organization supporting women in entertainment, and of Kalakars, a community promoting and supporting South Asian filmmakers. Sehaj is represented by Corrine Aquino at Artists First Management.
JESS PETERSON
CEO & Creative Producer, Mighty Oak
Jess Peterson leads business dev, operations, and concept development at Mighty Oak, an award-winning creative studio specializing in hand-made animation and design. Her background in music production and museum communications taught her how to solve problems, tell stories, and connect with audiences. As CEO & Creative Producer at Mighty Oak, she’s led campaigns for clients such as Netflix, HBO, Airbnb, NBC, G.E, Estee Lauder, and many more. To date, their work has reached over 300 million views across platforms, receiving accolades from Vulture, BroadwayWorld, Brooklyn Magazine, Fusion, Adobe’s Create Magazine, Mashable, Daily Mini, and Inc.com.
KAREN HOGAN KETCHUM
SVG, Director of Production
Karen Hogan Ketchum oversees and manages SVG’s event marketing, branding, promotions, programs, print materials, and deliverables, and serves as editor of SVG’s semiannual SportsTech Journal and annual Mobile Sports Production Yearbook. Since 2011, she has directed SVGW, a networking group that aims to advance the role of women in the creation, production, and distribution of sports content. Prior to joining SVG in 2011, Hogan Ketchum worked for Professional Sports Publications, Advanstar Communications, and the Trenton Devils (ECHL). A 2009 graduate of Fordham University, she began her career in sports with WFUV Sports, serving as Supervising Producer of “One on One,” WFUV Sports’ weekly call-in show.
MÓNICA-TEZLA SOLÍS VEGA-GÖRSÜN
Producer, Commercials, Branded Content, Features
Mónica-Tezla Solís Vega-Görsün is a Costa Rican camerawoman turned award-winning producer with experience in branded content, commercials, and features.
As a commercial producer Mónica has led national and digital campaigns for American Express, Maybelline, Samsung and Microsoft to name a few.
Her last feature, The Nymphets, starring Kip Pardue, world premiered at SXSW and her short film , Lily+Mara, starring
Oona Laurence had a successful festival run including Best Screenplay & Award of Merit from IMDB's Global Shorts Contest in 2017. Her film, “Better Than Somedays” won Best Overall Mobile Video for AT&T SHAPE Create-a-thon 2018.
Mónica is an active NYWIFT and IFP member. She’s also the co-founder of Sankara Pictures, a Brooklyn film production company specializing in developing short and long-form content.
ASHLEY EPPING
Program Lead at the Clio Awards
As a Program Lead at the Clio Awards, Ashley curates juries consisting of 150 of the top thought leaders and creatives from the advertising, design, public relations and film production industries globally. Ashley has traveled extensively to places such as Germany, Italy, Switzerland and Mexico to meet, connect and educate the creative industry. Ashley is also a designer, currently creating graphics for Muse by Clio.
CHRISTINE NG
Director of photography
Christine Ng is a Hong Kong born, New York raised director of photography and a graduate from New York University’s Tisch School of the Arts. Her cinematography work spans commercials, music videos, documentaries and narrative.
The first commercial she shot, Honda’s “50 states” aired during Super Bowl XLVI. Since then she has shot for clients such as: Chanel, Dior, Google, Nike, Dove, Maybelline, HP, Sony, Bushmills, Land Rover, Ralph Lauren and many more. Her work for Cancerland x Refinery 29 won a Bronze Clio Award.
The first feature-length documentary Christine shot was the Emmy nominated and Critic’s Choice winner “Everything is Copy: Nora Ephron Scripted and Unscripted”, which she co-DP’ed with Bradford Young and premiered on HBO.
Christine has worked on long-form series such as “I Hart Food” starring YouTube star, Hannah Hart, Spike Lee’s “She’s Gotta Have It” for Netflix. and most recently Ava DuVernay’s “When They See Us” also for Netflix.
ARNIESHA WILLIAMS
Post Producer, RadicalMedia
Arniesha has been immersed in post production, managing operations for feature films, episodic series, branded content and things of the like since joining RadicalMedia in 2015. She has become a rising post producer in the film industry, taking her talents from NYC to LA to continue the climb. She holds content highlighting social justice, women’s voices, and music dear to her heart.
ELI ASH
Head of Production | Netflix Internal Studio
Eli joined the Netflix team in August 2020 in an effort to scale their internal creative agency. In her career, she has built creative and production teams and department workflows for end-to-end efficiencies across the globe for companies such as Mustache Agency, Complex Media and Dear World.
As a Head of Production, she has led numerous large-scale efforts for clients including Clinique, S'well, Under Armour, Sony Records, Everlane, AM Resorts, Grammarly, Nectar, Quibi, and Expedia.
With over 13 years in the industry, Eli has successfully worked across an array of verticals including broadcast TV, commercials, branded content, digital media, music videos, corporate marketing, films, VR, and experiential, accumulating expertise in each.
Prior to Netflix, she collaborated with world class brands and organizations including Warner Brothers, Vice, Sesame Workshop, Food Network, Travel Channel, Honda, General Motors, Nike, T-Brand Studios, OXFAM, The Nobel Peace Prize and Sony Music.
TIFFANY JACKMAN
Film Producer/Director
Tiffany has had a love of storytelling from a young age starting while writing skits and plays for her classmates to perform during school assemblies. Playwriting evolved to filmmaking when she bought her first camera at 12 years old and has been a passion ever since. Through the years she has produced commercial campaigns for various fortune 500 companies while working as a producer at two major advertising agencies. She has produced three feature films. One of which premiered on HBO in the summer of 2017, and another other secured a distribution deal with Amazon. She has also directed or produced web series, music videos, commercials, and short films. She is currently working on an award winning TV pilot titled "The System". When not making films, Tiffany can be found teaching film to the next generation of filmmakers as a Adjunct Professor at The New York City College of Technology. Tiffany loves the thrill of filmmaking and is willing tackle any project no matter how challenging.
CLAIRE DUNDERMAN
Account Manager | Fullscreen
Claire has been working in the New York City media industry for the past five years in a variety of roles and environments. She started out of college working at MLB Network, where she won an Emmy working in the Media Management department. She then worked at IFC at AMC Networks for three years as part of the Digital Content department. She now works at Fullscreen as an Account Manager in her first managerial role, leading presentations and having done work for entertainment and media clients. Claire loves to write and read in her spare time, dreaming of one day where she can simultaneously hold a high-powered entertainment position and write novels at the time."
OLIVIA STOMSKI
Director, Newhouse Sports Media Center
In addition to being part of the Newhouse School faculty, Olivia Stomski is an executive producer at ProAngle Media in Los Angeles. She oversees, manages, produces and directs over 100 live events a year across the country, leads the production team and works with executives and personnel from several networks and professional collegiate teams.
She also held various editing and producing positions at Fox Sports Net. An alumna of the Newhouse School, she is an Emmy and Telly Award winner.