NYWIFT Summit: Thank you to all who attended last week’s first inaugural NYWIFT Summit. The theme of the 2019 Summit was Inclusion, Equality and Safety, and it established forward-moving strategies to create change in these areas with an eye towards mobilizing support and leadership for the future. We had many meaningful conversations and I look forward to the work we can accomplish together this coming year. A special thank you to Cara Mertes and our friends at the Ford Foundation for Social Justice for hosting.
Media Workshop: Speaking of firsts – earlier this month NYWIFT also brought our Women’s Media Workshop, a full-day training, collaboration, and production workshop, to Staten Island for the very first time.
Yellow Rose: Congrats to NYWIFT Ravenal Foundation Feature Film Grantee Yellow Rose, which is the opening film of the Asian American International Film Festival in NYC next month! Be sure to get your tickets.
Cynthia Lopez
Related Posts
Maria Miles Previews the 2025 New York Greek Film Expo
As former NYWIFT Board Member Maria C. Miles finishes up her first year as President of the Hellenic Film Society, we sat down with her on the eve of the New York Greek Film Expo to discuss her time with the organization and what we have to look forward to at this year’s fest. Mary is the founder of an entertainment law practice with offices in New York. Maria’s practice focuses on all areas of entertainment law, including film (narrative and documentary), music, literary publishing, and digital media. She has represented award-winning producers, directors, writers, actors, television hosts, multi-platinum recording artists, and corporations in the fashion and sports industries related to their entertainment matters. Maria is the Executive Director of the Hellenic Films Society, USA, and served as Secretary of the board of New York Women in Film & Television. She continues to serve NYWIFT as their legal counsel. She is also an Adjunct Professor at the Feirstein Graduate School of Cinema and the School for Visual Arts, as well as an Adjunct Instructor at NYU Tisch School of the Arts.
READ MOREMeet the New NYWIFT Member: Olivia Fouser
Welcome to NYWIFT, Olivia Fouser! Olivia Fouser is an award-winning queer writer and director. She's been featured in multiple LGBTQ film festivals such as the LGBTQ+ Toronto & Los Angeles Film Festival and the Seattle Queer Film Festival with her short film The Last Gay In Indiana, and has won numerous awards for her queer Western screenplay Blood On The Saddle. With her work, Olivia aspires to bring diversity both to the screen and behind the camera, and to make viewers laugh, cry, and, in seeing a story or character that's rarely seen on screen, hopefully widen their worldview.
READ MOREMeet the New NYWIFT Member: Amy Heller
Welcome to NYWIFT, Amy Heller! Amy is the co-founder of Milestone Films, an award-winning film restoration and distribution company dedicated to rediscovering lost and overlooked films. After fleeing academia, Amy found her passion in the independent film world and co-founded Milestone with her partner Dennis Doros in 1990. For 35 years, their mission has been to restore forgotten cinema, particularly films by and about women, people of color, Native Americans, and LGBTQ+ community members. Amy spoke to us about her journey in film distribution, the evolution of the industry over four decades, and her exciting upcoming transition as she passes Milestone to the next generation.
READ MOREMeet the New NYWIFT Member: Courtney DeStefano
Welcome to NYWIFT, Courtney DeStefano! Courtney grew up in a small town, where she spent hours devouring old movies and pouring through every indie-film magazine she could get her hands on. She graduated with a BFA in Film & Television from NYU Tisch School of the Arts before embarking on her editing career where she worked with clients like CBS, Bravo, Showtime, BET, NatGeo, Discovery & TLC. She’s spent the last several years dividing her time between chasing after her three young sons and hiding in her home office to write. Her work has been recognized by the Los Angeles International Screenplay Awards, PANO Network, Hollyshorts and the PAGE Awards, among others. In our interview, Courtney discussed her small-town inspirations, how editing informs her writing and directing, and her latest short film.
READ MORE
Comments are closed