Above the Line Instructors
Azra Alkan
Cohort 2 Panelist
Azra Alkan, a Washington-based VFX professional, filmmaker, and Unreal Engine enthusiast, brings over a decade of industry experience to her work. She’s made her mark on major films like “Spider Man: Far From Home”, “Ant man and the Wasp”, “Gran Turismo” and popular TV series such as “StrangerThings”, “TheFlash.” Beyond post-production, Azra is an on…
Rachel Antell
Cohort 3
Rachel Antell has worked in documentary film production for over two decades and found her true passion in archival producing. In 2014 she co-founded Sub-Basement Archival, where she has had the honor of being archival producer on contemporary and historic documentaries. Sub-Basement films have aired on streaming platforms, cable, public and network television, screened at…
Noelani Auguston
Cohort 2 Panelist
Noelani Kanuha Auguston (Bumatay-Jefferson) is a member of the Shxhwa:y Village of the Stol:o Nation, Nooksack and Kanaka Maoli. Wife and mother. She currently resides in the Pacific Northwest Coast corner of Bellingham, WA on her traditional homelands. In 2014 Noelani received a Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of Washington, Seattle. As a…
Tony Becerra
Cohort 1 Panelist
Tony Becerra has been a Freelance Assistant Director for more than 23 years. Seattle & Los Angeles based, but working worldwide on commercials, feature films, television series like Grey’s Anatomy, Station 19, Pearl Jam 20. He has also expanded his role on set as a producer on series such as JourneyQuest and Co Producer of…
Ian Bell
Cohort 2 Instructor | Cohort 3 Instructor
Ian Bell is the creator and director of Source Material, an all-archival digital series produced for VICE News. While at VICE he contributed archival-oriented projects for VICE News Tonight, VICE on Showtime, and VICE Special Report, which aired in primetime his real-time recreation of the events of January 6th, 187 Minutes. His short documentary about…
James-Michael Boyer
Cohort 3
I manage Collective Eye Films, a company which distributes more than 300 award-winning documentaries to the educational and non-theatrical markets.
I am an expert in the fields of film sales, contract negotiations, royalty procedure, and generalized film distribution. I’ve spoken on various panels at DOC NYC, ArtHouse, The Gotham, and more about the film market.
Katrina Brede
Cohort 1 Instructor | Cohort 2 Instructor | Cohort 3 Instructor
Prior to becoming an attorney, Katrina worked professionally for two decades in film and video production and media management. As an attorney, she concentrates on business formations, intellectual property and entertainment law. In her spare time, Katrina loves movies, music, reading, writing, sports, traveling, and filmmaking.
Peggy Case
Cohort 2 Panelist | Cohort 3 Panelist
Peggy Case is an award-winning producer and director of dramas and documentaries. Her Seattle-based production company is Mad as Birds LLC. Case’s producing credits include: Lynn Shelton’s feature debut WE GO WAY BACK, David Russo’s dark, stylish comedy THE IMMACULATE CONCEPTION OF LITTLE DIZZLE and Robinson Devor’s provocative documentary ZOO, an official selection for the…
Enrique Cerna
Cohort 2 Panelist
Enrique Cerna calls himself a recovering broadcast journalist. He worked in Seattle media for more than four decades. Cerna was a reporter, producer and host for KOMO Radio and Television, KING Television and KCTS Public Television. In February 2018, he retired from his role as senior correspondent with KCTS. Still, he remains active as the…
Jane Charles
Cohort 1 Panelist
Jane Charles has spent over 25 years as a Producer, Executive Producer and Production Executive. Her film and TV projects (SOLD, Fat Kid Rules the World, East of the Mountains, Rescued by Ruby), based on best-selling books, have been widely distributed and have won multiple awards in international film festivals and industry awards ceremonies. Jane…
SJ Chiro
Cohort 1 Panelist
SJ is a Seattle filmmaker. Her latest feature film, East of the Mountains stars Tom Skerritt, Mira Sorvino and Annie Gonzalez. The film was distributed in 2021 and maintains 100% Fresh rating on Rotten Tomatoes. East of the Mountains was nominated for two Satellite Awards – Best Picture, Drama and Best Actor in a Leading…
Rebecca Cook
Cohort 1 Instructor | Cohort 3 Instructor
Rebecca Cook has been involved in the Spokane area entertainment industry in many aspects throughout her life and career. Her roles include director, producer, actress, voice over artist, costumer, makeup artist, assistant director, stage manager, payroll accountant, instructor, and community leader. Currently, she serves as President for IATSE Local 488, the union covering the film…
Rich Cowan
Cohort 1 Panelist
Rich has functioned as producer of Wayne Wang’s A THOUSAND YEARS OF GOOD PRAYERS; HANGMAN starring Al Pacino; VENGEANCE: A LOVE STORY starring Nicolas Cage: NORMAN starring Richard Jenkins and Emily VanCamp; FAMILY HOLIDAY, a Lifetime Original Movie; I AM WRATH with John Travolta; WRONG TURN AT TAHOE with Cuba Gooding Jr. and Harvey Keitel;…
Sarah Crowe
Cohort 2 Panelist | Cohort 3 Panelist
Sarah Crowe is an award winning Producer, Director and sometimes Assistant Director. She has been producing documentaries, narratives, and commercials for nearly 15 years. Sarah is an Executive Producer at Amazon. She spends her day creating branded content and spends her free time creating documentaries and supporting independent film in Washington and beyond. Films such…
Marc Dahlstrom
Cohort 1 Instructor
Marc is a manager of feature film and television production. He has been active in the industry for more than 40 years. As a Directors Guild of America Unit Production Manager and First Assistant Director, he has worked on dozens of feature films and television programs. Most recently he was the UPM on Walker: Independence…
Ryan Davis
Cohort 2 Panelist | Cohort 3 Panelist
Ryan Davis is a film publicist and communications professional with almost twenty years experience in the film industry and arts marketing. She is co-founder and principal at Smarthouse Creative. Ryan has worked in almost every aspect of the film business–from production and festivals to distribution and exhibition.
Christopher Day
Cohort 2 Panelist
Chris Day is a nonprofit administrator, bookkeeper and tireless supporter of small community-run and grassroots organizations. Chris currently acts as Senior Bookkeeper for Seattle Accounting Services and previously acted as Managing Director of Northwest Film Forum from 2016-2024, where he oversaw the organization’s finances, HR and perhaps most notably its fiscal sponsorship program, supporting over…
Aaron Drane
Cohort 3
Aaron Drane is a tenured filmmaking professor at Olympic College and an active producer and screenwriter with more than 25 years of industry experience. He teaches screenwriting and producing, guiding emerging filmmakers from concept to production with an emphasis on professional standards and real-world application. He has sold three feature-length screenplays in different genres to…
Dave Drummond
Cohort 1 Panelist
Dave Drummond is a location scout for movies, television, commercials and multimedia projects that film in the state of Washington. Dave’s work includes the TV shows “Grey’s Anatomy,” “Station 19,” and “Twin Peaks: The Return,” the independent films “Year of the Fox,” “East of the Mountains,” and “Captain Fantastic,” and the upcoming television series “Penelope.”…
Steve Edmiston
Cohort 1 Instructor | Cohort 2 Instructor | Cohort 3 Instructor
Steve Edmiston is a business, IP, and entertainment lawyer with Bracepoint Law. He is also an indie film screenwriter and producer, founder of Quadrant45. His film credits include the features “Crimes of the Past,” distributed by MarVista Entertainment; “A Relative Thing,” distributed by Spiritual Cinema Circle and Official Best of Fest; “Farewell to Harry,” is…
Amy Enser
Cohort 2 Panelist
Spanning 15 years of storytelling through film, Amy Enser’s body of work reflects a deep commitment to writing, directing, editing, and filming real people as they share impactful narratives. From capturing racially charged educational experiments in the ’60s to shedding light on the social stigmas surrounding our homeless populations, Amy is passionate about uncovering the…
Udy Epstein
Cohort 2 Panelist
Udy Epstein is a graduate of American Film Institute’s Center for Advanced Film and TV Studies (MFA 1990), a producer of the feature film, Midnight Edition, and a writer of Tattoo (first MOW produced by Israeli TV, 1990). He established 7th Art in 1994 as an independent production and distribution outfit for specialized independent films.…
Warren Etheredge
Cohort 1 Instructor | Cohort 2 Instructor | Cohort 3 Instructor
Warren Etheredge is a Storyfinder™, a successful producer, published author, staged playwright, veteran festival programmer and much sought-after public speaker. He has conducted over 3,500 interviews. He recently wrote and produced the feature doc, DOWNWIND (d. Mark Shapiro, Douglas Brian Miller), narrated by Martin Sheen which premiered at Slamdance 2023. Other producer credits include PERSONHOOD…
Marq Evans
Cohort 3
Marq is an award-winning independent filmmaker, creative entrepreneur, and documentary coach. His most recent documentary, THE DIAMOND KING premiered at the 36th annual Palm Springs International Film Festival in January 2025 where it won “Best of Fest,” and was released in April 2025 to great fanfare from the baseball community. His previous film, CLAYDREAM, premiered…
Andrew Franks
Cohort 3
Andrew Franks is an award-winning commercial and documentary filmmaker based in Seattle. Most recently he served as co-director and editor on two feature documentaries: RADIOHEART: The Drive & Times of DJ Kevin Cole and ODESZA: The Last Goodbye Cinematic Experience.
Lulu Gargiulo
Cohort 2 Panelist
Lulu Gargiulo, award-winning cinematographer and filmmaker, has shot countless narratives, commercials, music videos and documentaries, including the award-winning doc The Most Dangerous Year as well as several short films, including, Her Mad Hatter, Well Actually and Insure Domestic Tranquility and full-length feature, Year of My Japanese Cousin. In addition to shooting, Lulu also produced the…
Maria Gargiulo
Cohort 2 Panelist
Maria Gargiulo is an Emmy award winning producer/director whose work has appeared on PBS, the Discovery Channel, Fox, CBS and film festivals around the world. She began her career straddling the world of corporate production and social issue documentaries. As a commercial producer/director, she has worked with national clients such as Google, Chrysler, and others.…
JJ Gerber
Cohort 2 Panelist
JJ Gerber is a two-time Emmy-nominated creative producer and storyteller. His feature documentary credits include the 2024 News & Documentary Emmy-nominated Omoiyari: A Song Film by Kishi Bashi (MTV Docs, 2023), Harmontown (SXSW, 2014), and We Are Blood (The Orchard, 2015). He also served as a consulting producer on the Emmy-nominated Beauty Is Embarrassing (PBS…
Lacey Leavitt Gray
Cohort 1 Instructor
Credits include Lynn Shelton’s Outside In, Touchy Feely, and Laggies, Megan Griffiths’ Year of the Fox, I’ll Show You Mine, Sadie, The Off Hours, and Lucky Them, Todd Rohal’s The Catechism Cataclysm, The Hunky Boys Go Ding-Dong, and M.O.P.Z., Colin Trevorrow’s Safety Not Guaranteed, and adult swim’s Three Busy Debras. Her films have played at…
Gavin Greenwalt
Cohort 2 Panelist
Gavin Greenwalt is a commercial director and VFX supervisor which has given him a personal appreciation for the pressures and opportunities faced by both crafts and thrives on finding creative solutions to leverage both the camera and computer in service of cinema. Recently Gavin directed and Straightface Studios produced a commercial for FSC which was…
Megan Griffiths
Cohort 3
Megan Griffiths is a prolific filmmaker whose work has premiered at film festivals such as Toronto, Sundance, SXSW, and Tribeca. She has directed television shows for HBO, EPIX, TNT, Hulu, USA, Fox, Netflix, and served as the producing director for season two of Amazon’s “The Summer I Turned Pretty.” Griffiths’ feature film work includes: YEAR…
Bill Guentzler
Cohort 1 Panelist
Bill Guentzler is currently Vice President of Acquisitions for Gravitas Ventures. Gravitas, an Anthem Sports and Entertainment company, is recognized worldwide as one of the largest all rights distributors of independent films and documentaries. After spending a summer studying in Berlin in 1998, he joined the Cleveland International Film Festival as an intern and grew…
Dina Guttman
Cohort 2 Panelist | Cohort 3 Panelist
Dina shifted from a love of architecture to a love of editing unscripted documentary films in 1996. Dina specializes in working with first-time directors. She is passionate about collaborating to identify the heart of the story while creating the structure that best shares it with the audience. Films that Dina has edited have had successful…
Shaleece Haas
Cohort 2 Instructor
Shaleece is a certified somatic practitioner and facilitator. She works with individuals and groups to build the skills to shift patterns and ways of being that are no longer serving them and to more deeply align their actions with their values. Shaleece also works as a somatic coach and film supervisor with Film in Mind,…
Roy Hsu
Cohort 3
Roy Hsu is a Seattle-based screenwriter, producer, director, and actor who began his career as an advertising creative director in NYC, before switching careers and now runs his own investment advisory firm (because yes, he’s Asian and good at math), and pushes back against those who tell him to stop offending himself with stereotypes. He…
Vee Hua
Cohort 3
Vee Hua 華婷婷 (they/them) is a writer, filmmaker, and artist who splits their time between Oaxaca, Mexico, and Seattle, Washington. Much of their work unifies their metaphysical interests with their belief that art can positively transform the self and society. They are the Editor-in-Chief of REDEFINE magazine, reporter at South Seattle Emerald, and recent Interim…
Joleen Hughes
Cohort 2 Instructor | Cohort 3 Instructor
Joleen Winther Hughes is the founder and CEO of HMLG, the law firm that provides in-house counsel service to clients who are trendsetters in business. Joleen’s deep ties in the music, gaming and technology industry began in Seattle and quickly expanded worldwide. With decades of industry experience spanning tech, gaming, music, entertainment, consumer products and…
Nike Imoru
Cohort 1 Panelist
Nike Imoru PhD, CSA is a casting director, actor, director, teacher of film and theatre. She has years of experience as a producer and has managed a film fund. She currently sits on Washington Filmwork’s Equity Committee. She began casting in the Pacific Northwest and LA in 2006. Since then she has cast numerous feature…
Ramon Isao
Cohort 2 Panelist
Ramón Isao is an award-winning writer/producer whose screenwriting credits include Junk, Dead Body, and Zombies of Mass Destruction. He teaches creative writing at Seattle University and Richard Hugo House. His cat–just now–bit him while he was writing this bio.
Michelle Jaeger
Cohort 3
Michelle Jaeger is an entertainment attorney and former production executive with over 25 years of experience bridging creative, production, and dealmaking. She began her career in physical production as a DGA 2nd AD, giving her firsthand insight into set life, schedules, and the realities producers and directors face when projects move from idea to execution.…
Sandy Jeglum
Cohort 2 Panelist
Sandy Jeglum has over a decade of experience editing unscripted short and feature-length documentaries. She started her editing career as the assistant editor of the award-winning feature-length documentary CRAZYWISE (Seattle International Film Festival, Mountainfilm) and the editor of the award-winning feature-length documentary Headhunt Revisited (Hawaii International Film Festival). Short documentary credits include Concerning Contraception (Cascadia…
Erin O. Kay
Cohort 1 Panelist
I work as an Art Director most days. I am a skilled and resourceful scrounger, fabricator and puzzle-solver. I collect telephones, televisions and typewriters, 90s era walk-mans and vintage photographs of people and their bicycles. I have a strong affinity for tweed, bauhaus simplicity, Miami art deco, and all things teal.
Dae Kim
Cohort 2 Panelist
Dae Shik Kim, Head of Studio Dae Shik Kim is the Head of Noisy Creek’s new digital media company and is an accomplished media professional and award-winning journalist, renowned for his dynamic contributions to digital media and journalism. Born and raised in Honolulu, HI, he studied Journalism at the University of Hawaii. As the Director…
Susan LaSalle
Cohort 1 Instructor
Susan is a longtime resident of Seattle and a local PNW producer, post production supervisor and Director’s Guild Unit Production Manager. Over the years her work as a commercial and corporate producer have won Telly, Addy, and Davey awards. Highlights of her career are THE BREACH, a feature documentary about the plight of wild salmon…
Ron Leamon
Cohort 1 Panelist
Ron Leamon is a Costume Designer for film and television. He has designed for many networks including CBS, ABC and HBO. He was the recipient of the Mayors Award for outstanding Achievement in film at SIFF and is an active force in the Northwest film community. He has had the pleasure of styling commercials for…
Paul Mailman
Cohort 1 Panelist | Cohort 2 Panelist | Cohort 3 Panelist
Paul Mailman is a Directory of Photography and a member of the International Cinematographers Guild/IATSE Local 600. He works nationally and internationally on documentary, narrative and branded content projects. His work can be found at: paulmailman.com
Misael Martinez-Melo
Cohort 2 Instructor
Misael, also known as Misa, is a documentary filmmaker and owner of MediaRoom, a media production company located in Olympia, WA. Born in Puerto Rico, he was raised in both Borikén (the Taino name for Puerto Rico) and Kiskeya (the Taino name for the Dominican Republic). His cultural roots are significant in his documentary work,…
Ty Massey
Cohort 2 Panelist
Growing up in the Pacific Northwest, Ty’s passion for music and the outdoors continued to grow through high school. After graduating, Ty decided to pursue studies in audio engineering. Once in Riverside, CA, working as the Lead Audio Engineer for the LSU Music Department, film projects started to trickle in. Coming back to his home…
Kathleen McInnis
Cohort 1 Instructor
Kathleen is a Writer/Strategic Publicist/Producer. Her company, See-Through Films LLC, is a strategic film consulting company for world cinema filmmakers. At See-Through Films, Kathleen designs individual campaigns for each film specific to their goals and expectations. She works to expand filmmaker networks, broaden and cultivate audience and raise profile for both the films and filmmakers,…
J.D. McKee
Cohort 2 Panelist
With over 20 years of professional experience in the film industry, J.D. McKee has worked in various positions. Starting from the bottom as a Production Assistant on low-budget action flicks and working his way up, J.D. McKee has served as VFX Supervisor on the horror film “John Carpenter’s The Ward” in 2010, VFX Supervisor for…
Paul Miller
Cohort 2 Panelist
Bad Animals re-recording mixer, sound designer, and audio engineer Paul Miller recalls that his passion for sound began in high school. That led him to pursue a bachelor’s degree at the Seattle Art Institute. His first big gig after college was an internship at Bad Animals, which quickly became freelance work when they witnessed his…
Becky Morrison
Cohort 3
Becky Morrison is an award-winning producer, renowned for her conscious approach to production. Her cinematic journey began on the Hollywood blockbuster I AM LEGEND, where she coordinated the 200+ production staff required to shoot the film’s exteriors. She then worked in animation on Disney’s feature film THE WILD, before entering the world of rock n’…
Erin Joy Nash
Cohort 2 Panelist
Erin Joy Nash is a persistent dreamer and a queer creative of Mediterranean European descent. She is a human in practice and in process on the journey of decolonizing self and the systems we live in. As an artist, filmmaker, and photographer, her work aims to cultivate individual and collective healing through storytelling and community…
Kat Ogden
Cohort 1 Panelist
Kat has worked in the Seattle film market since 2007 as a 1st, 2nd, and 2nd 2nd Assistant Director for film, television, industrials, reality shows, and music videos, and has worked in other markets across the US and beyond – London, New York, Austin, and Los Angeles. Kat currently chairs the newly-formed Seattle Film Commission.…
Jeff Ostenson
Cohort 2 Instructor
I love documentaries because they create a window into people’s lives that we would otherwise never witness. Through film, we experience how people live, work, and play from across the globe or in a part of our hometown we never knew existed. This expands our perspective and hopefully heightens our empathy for others. I believe…
Allison Otto
Cohort 2 Panelist
Allison Otto is an Emmy-winning filmmaker and journalist. Her first feature film The Thief Collector, premiered in the Documentary Feature Competition at the 2022 South by Southwest Film Festival. The doc/narrative hybrid was nominated for a 2023 Critics Choice Award for Best First Feature Documentary and Best True Crime Documentary. Variety magazine hailed The Thief…
Alece Oxendine
Cohort 1 Panelist | Cohort 2 Instructor | Cohort 3
Alece Oxendine is a film industry strategist, educator, and writer with over 15 years of experience guiding filmmakers through the worlds of marketing, distribution, partnerships, and festival strategy. She has held leadership roles at Film at Lincoln Center, BAMcinema, Rooftop Films, Fandor, Good Deed Entertainment, and Columbia University’s film school. Currently, she is the Executive…
Amanda Pisetzner
Cohort 3
Amanda Pisetzner is a Queer, Emmy Award-winning documentary producer with over 15 years of experience crafting character-driven narratives for major networks including Showtime, HBO, NBC, VICE News, Tubi, and others. Her work has earned 2 Emmy wins and 11 Emmy nominations across news, documentary, and primetime categories, and an Alfred I. duPont-Columbia University Award. Amanda’s…
Davis Powell
Cohort 1 Panelist
Davis is the Executive Director for the SAG-AFTRA Seattle Local. He has been with SAG-AFTRA since early 2021. Davis is originally from the Atlanta area, but after several visits to the Pacific Northwest, he finally made a long-planned permanent move to Washington state in 2019. He is an attorney by trade, having represented labor unions…
Melissa Purcell
Cohort 1 Panelist
Melissa is the Northern Business Agent of the I.A.T.S.E. Local 488, Studio Mechanics of the Pacific Northwest. She is a Seattle Film Commissioner, in Position 2, representing film industry labor unions, and currently sits on the King County Executives Film Advisory Board (EFAB). Prior to being elected to business Agent, she worked as a prop…
Margie Ratliff
Cohort 2 Panelist | Cohort 3 Panelist
Margie Ratliff (she/her) is the Managing Director of the Documentary Participants’ Empowerment Alliance (DPEA), which aims to bring vital resources to all those who have appeared in or are considering appearing in documentary films. She is also a producer of and key participant in the film Subject, in which she examines her participation in the…
Will Reeve
Cohort 3
Born in the UK and raised in Los Angeles, Will currently resides in Tacoma. He has a diverse background working both in front of and behind the camera. having worked as an actor, writer, production coordinator, set decorator, and prop builder. Currently, Will serves as the Portland and Seattle Local Business Representative for SAG-AFTRA, dedicated…
Jon Reiss
Cohort 2 Panelist | Cohort 3 Panelist
Jon Reiss is a filmmaker, author and media strategist who wrote the book Think Outside the Box Office. His company, 8 Above, creates custom audience-building strategies, theatrical experiences and digital release campaigns for independent feature and documentary films. Reiss has consulted with hundreds of filmmakers and film organizations throughout the world, most recently The Librarians.…
Shirley Roberson
Cohort 1 Instructor | Cohort 2 Instructor | Cohort 3 Instructor
Shirley Roberson is Senior Associate at DLHA Law Group in Walnut Creek, CA, where she focuses on operational business transactions – including intellectual property protection and monetization, product licensing and distribution, and employment relationship management. At DLHA, Shirley works with a broad range of clients, including those in the entertainment, business media, gaming, real estate,…
Sav Rodgers
Cohort 2 Panelist | Cohort 3 Panelist
Originally from Kansas, Sav Rodgers is an American filmmaker. Sav’s debut feature CHASING CHASING AMY explores the complicated legacy of Chasing Amy (1997) and its profound impression on his life. In 2018, Sav gave a TED Talk on the subject, appropriately titled, “The rom-com that saved my life.” The film had its World Premiere at…
Malikkah Rollins
Cohort 2 Instructor
As co-founder of DocuMentality, Malikkah Rollins, LCSW-C, champions mental health awareness across the global documentary industry. Her extensive hands-on experience exploring mental health and well-being in the documentary film ecosystem has given her unique insight into filmmakers’ complex challenges while amplifying vital stories. With a decade of practice as a psychotherapist, she specialized in supporting…
Elliat Graney Saucke
Cohort 2 Panelist | Cohort 3 Panelist
Elliat Graney-Saucke (she/they) is a White queer femme documentary filmmaker based in Seattle on Coast Salish lands. Over 27 years, Elliat has produced award-winning media in 10+ countries, including 20+ short films such as The Resilience of King Khazm (SIFF/Alaska Airlines) and the feature Travel Queeries, which premiered at BFI London in 2009 and toured…
Basil Shadid
Cohort 2 Panelist | Cohort 3 Panelist
Basil Shadid is a documentary filmmaker and producer whose credits include Academy Award nominated, Emmy winning, and Audience Award winning films. Recent work includes Elements of Mutual Aid, a 4-part documentary series where he served as an Impact Producer, Angels Are Made of Light (director James Longley) and Drag Becomes Him (director Alex Berry). He…
Philip Shane
Cohort 2 Panelist
Philip Shane is an award winning documentary filmmaker with over 35 years of experience. He is currently producing & directing a feature documentary, THE WORLD I WANT TO LIVE IN, about MYST, one of the most important video games of all time that is now residing in The Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) in New…
John Sharify
Cohort 2 Panelist
John Sharify is one of the most honored broadcast journalists and documentary filmmakers in the country. He is a 79-time Emmy award winner with nine National Edward R. Murrow awards, including the National Murrow for top news writer in the country in 2004, 2007, 2008, and 2020. John is also the recipient of the 2021…
Gilda Sheppard
Cohort 2 Panelist
Gilda Sheppard is an award-winning filmmaker who has screened her documentaries throughout the United States, and internationally in Ghana, Nigeria, South Africa, France, and Germany. For over a decade, Sheppard has volunteered to teach sociology courses in several women and men’s prisons in Washington State. Her work has culminated in an award-winning documentary Since I…
Peter Sillen
Cohort 2 Panelist
Peter Sillen is a New York-based documentary filmmaker directing portraits of an array of individuals living and working outside stereotypical 9-to-5 situations. His latest film Love Machina Premiered at the 2024 Sundance film Festival. Sillen’s for SNY on the 1969 Jets, Mets and Knicks championships won an Emmy and his ESPN 30 for 30 Unhittable:…
Devante Smith
Cohort 1 Panelist
Having studied at Eastern Washington University Devante Smith obtained a major in Film with a focus in Graphic Design. Having the opportunity to work on shows from Z Nation, Super Nanny, American Idol, and even Netflix’s Love is Blind. Now Devante focuses on pursuing art from the visual point of view obtained by these two…
Brent Stiefel
Cohort 1 Panelist | Cohort 3 Panelist
Brent Stiefel is the founder and CEO of Votiv, the media group advancing the world’s brightest talent through film and television production and artist management. Brent founded Votiv in 2010, establishing the company to lead with an artist-driven approach – making socially salient and left-of-center projects with a commercial heartbeat. His most recent credits include…
Tim Street
Cohort 3
Tim Street is a writer, director, and producer with credits spanning Nickelodeon, Disney, Fox, Warner Bros., Universal, ABC, CBS, and NBC — including All That and What Would You Do? As founder of his own production company, he worked as a creative director producing film trailers for independent films, TV promos, short-form programming, and TV…
Patrick Stubblefield
Cohort 2 Instructor | Cohort 3 Instructor
Before practicing law, Patrick Stubblefield’s career spanned higher education and entrepreneurship, with roles that took him to Tennessee, Kentucky, Texas, Oklahoma, and Utah before settling in the Pacific Northwest. As a former collegiate soccer athlete, he began his career in NCAA compliance with the Louisville Cardinals, Lipscomb Bisons, Houston Cougars, and Oklahoma Sooners before founding…
Gavin Sullivan
Cohort 2 Panelist
As Founder and Principal Madrona Bureau (MB), Gavin P. Sullivan has both written and executive produced critically acclaimed feature documentary, TV, and commercial work. Under MB he has written and produced feature documentary films: ARGENTINA FUTBOL CLUB (Premiere, Havana Film Festival. Special Jury Award, IFFI Goa International Film Festival), HUSKY LOYAL (PBS), and produced and…
Laura Tatham
Cohort 2 Instructor | Cohort 3 Instructor
Laura is a creative documentary producer committed to telling stories that highlight urgent social justice issues. She most recently produced “WTO/99,” the Critics Choice–nominated and IDA Award–winning (Best Editing) all-archival feature that premiered at True/False Film Festival (‘25). In 2024, she produced “All We Carry,” the Indie Award–winning (Best Documentary) feature. “All We Carry” premiered…
Bryan Tucker
Cohort 2 Panelist
Bryan Tucker is a three-time regional Emmy award-winning documentary filmmaker based in Seattle, WA. His debut feature documentary, Closure (2013), aired nationally and streamed on Netflix, Hulu, and Amazon Prime Video. Bryan has collaborated with VICE, PBS, Seattle Seahawks, Schultz Family Foundation, and The Guardian, among others. His short documentary Flat Town (2021) premiered at…
Mike Vukas
Cohort 3
Mike Vukas is a seasoned film and television professional with a diverse background in video production, graphic design, and photography. He is dedicated to the art of storytelling through visual media. He has spent the last 20+ years as a freelance chief lighting technician and cinematographer, with more than 60 films and TV series to…
Patty Warren
Cohort 1 Panelist
Patty has over 40 years of experience, including 11 years at the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB). Patty has worked for HERE, IBEW, UFCW and the Teamsters. She currently is the Director of Negotiations at Teamsters Local 174 where she supervises and monitors over 100 contract negotiations. She negotiates all first contracts for newly organized…
Colin Weatherby
Cohort 2 Panelist
Colin Weatherby is a researcher and archival producer for feature documentary films based in Pasadena, California. He has worked on a wide variety of archival projects ranging from the Billie Eilish biopic “The World is a Little Blurry” to the HBO cult series “Love Has Won”. His latest archival project, “Take No Prisoners” –a film…
Jennessa West
Cohort 1 Panelist
Jennessa started her production career working in episodic television for Warner Brothers Television, the FX Channel and CBS Television while living in Los Angeles. Jennessa later moved to Seattle where she founded Pressing Pictures, LLC. Jennessa’s producing credits include Megan Griffith’s feature film SADIE starring Sophia Mitri Schloss, Melanie Lynskey, John Gallagher, Jr., Danielle Brooks,…
Wendi Wills
Cohort 2 Panelist
When you work with Bad Animals, Wendi is the first person you talk to about your project’s schedule, budget, and objectives. As the studio’s production manager, client liaison, and voice casting agent, Wendi has spent over 25 years guiding clients from a creative brief to a final project. She facilitates logistical issues and ensures that…
Jeffrey Winter
Cohort 3
Jeffrey Winter is co executive director at The Film Collaborative since 2010, an LA-based independent film distribution company with specialities in human rights, social justice, environmental issues, and LGBT cinema. Highlight films during this time include Shaunak Sen’s ALL THAT BREATHES (Oscar nomination Best Doc Feature 2023), Maite Alberdi’s THE ETERNAL MEMORY (Oscar Nomination Best…