By Tatiana Trebisacci
Welcome to NYWIFT, Ashley Berkman! Ashley Berkman is a multimedia artist in the truest sense of the word. She is a producer, video editor, videographer, photographer, performer, visual/installation artist, educator, amateur puppeteer, prop maker, and kids’ entertainer – and she is constantly exploring new forms of expression. Working in a wide variety of disciplines, she seeks to make connections between them. As a video professional she strives for precision. As an educator, she loves to help students push their work to the next level. When creating for kids, she loves teaching self-love and self-trust through mindful movement, play, and a whole lot of silliness.

NYWIFT Member Ashley Berkman (image courtesy of Ashley Berkman)
How would you describe yourself in an elevator pitch?
I’m a professional multimedia artist who values equal accessibility to a great product. Whether I’m crafting a customized, wearable breadstick sculpture for a local comedian or providing technical support for the continued education of national mental health professionals, what you can expect is attentiveness and excellence.

Here’s Ashley Berkman wearing that breadstick… (image courtesy of Ashley Berkman)
In your position as a freelance video editor and photographer, what is your philosophy for creating engaging visual media?
Photography and video is about observing and capturing a suspended moment of time. It’s my job as a photographer and videographer to catch this moment and share it in its realest form. Editing is about connecting and refining those moments. When done right, the artist is invisible, and the moment speaks for itself.

Ashley Berkman taking a photo (image courtesy of Ashley Berkman)
As a multimedia artist, you have experience across a number of artistic mediums. What are some of your favorite projects, and how does exploration play a role in your creative process?
Some of my favorite projects involve life sized, wearable sculptures such as a giant box of French fries, a giant breadstick helmet, and an angry Samoa Girl Scout cookie made from a kiddie pool. I explore new ideas through curiosity and play. Humor and fun are a fundamental part of my expression and creative process.

Ashley Berkman and the angry Samoa cookie (image courtesy of Ashley Berkman)
What brought you to NYWIFT?
I am a member of Women in Film & Video Washington D.C., and I am looking forward to expanding my creative community into NYC. I enjoy connecting with other like-minded women in media.

Videographer Ashely Berkman on set (image courtesy of Ashley Berkman)
You also produce work in the realm of children’s media. How do you develop for a younger audience, and what do you hope viewers take away from their experiences?
Developing for a young audience is a lot of fun. Part of it is tapping into the child part of yourself. The other part is testing ideas to see what kids respond to – really listening to them to see what things are the most interesting to them. The stories, props, and costumes are also so much fun to create – I get to explore color, scale, and production in a way that is catered to kids.
I hope to teach a young audience the importance of self-love and self-trust at the beginning of their journey. This is a philosophy we encourage through movement, play, and storytelling.

Ashley Berkman on set (image courtesy of Ashley Berkman)
How does your interest in comedy inform and/or influence your work?
Great comedy is great editing. Like video and photography, it also entails observing and listening to the world around you – and just like video it is all about timing! I love editing and refining things so the story being told is clear and streamlined. Whether it’s a video or a punchline – it’s fun to tweak it and make it the best version of itself.

Ashley Berkman takes a photo (image courtesy of Ashley Berkman)
What is the best industry advice you have ever received?
Good business is good relationships. I pride myself in the respect I bring to my work and to the people I work alongside.

Ashley Berkman with her cameras (image courtesy of Ashley Berkman))
What types of projects do you see yourself working on in the future?
I plan to continue developing my current projects and I’m looking forward to incorporating more animation into my personal ventures. Professionally, I’m always open to connecting with other creatives doing interesting things!
Connect with Ashley Berkman on LinkedIn, on Instagram @yummypony, and on her website www.ashleyberkman.com.
Related Posts
Meet the New NYWIFT Member: Lindsey Lambert
Lindsey Lambert is a Brooklyn-based filmmaker originally from Austin, Texas. She works as a location scout for film and television in the NYC area, currently on Law & Order: Organized Crime. After receiving her Master’s Degree in Human Rights from John Jay College of Criminal Justice in the spring of 2022, she began directing and producing her debut feature documentary Teaching Social Studies about public school education and the anti-critical race theory laws in Texas. It is currently in production and she hopes the film will be completed by the summer of 2025. In our interview, she discusses her decision to go back to school, her work on the new Amazon Prime series Étoile, how to educate young people about our challenging history, and the most memorable location she's scouted to date.
READ MOREMeet the New NYWIFT Member: Melanie Fox
Let's give a warm welcome to new NYWIFT member, Melanie Fox! Melanie Fox is a linguist who turned her passion for accents, dialects, presentations, and language learning into a thriving coaching business. Melanie empowers actors and public figures to speak clear, confident English through accent reduction, interview and presentation training. She also trains actors to master authentic English and Spanish dialects. She is a paid public speaker who helps her audiences "Hack into Language" and hosts a new podcast, "Hack That Accent." Melanie holds a Masters of Science degree in Linguistics from Georgetown University. She credits a lot of her inspiration to two semesters studying abroad at la Universidad de Salamanca in Spain. In our interview, she discusses how her work as a dialect coach spans multiple industries, her coaching success stories, and how she encourages clients to maintain their cultural authenticity while adjusting their presentation to match their business goals.
READ MORECracking the Code on Film Fundraising: Insights from NYWIFT’s Winter Film Festival Panel
On a brisk February afternoon, I found the perfect escape from the cold—diving into an eye-opening discussion at the 2025 Winter Film Festival. One of the standout moments? Navigating Film Fundraising with NYWIFT, a must-attend panel for any filmmaker tackling the most daunting part of filmmaking: raising money. Leading the conversation were Easmanie Michel, NYWIFT’s Director of Artists Programs and Finance, and NYWIFT Member Joanna Rudolph, executive producer of Burning Annie and The Co-op: The Kids of Dorie Miller. Their wealth of knowledge made for a powerful session, packed with real-world success stories and actionable strategies. Marchelle Thurman summarized some key takeaways to help you fund your next film.
READ MOREMeet the New NYWIFT Member: Melody Gilbert
Welcome to our new NYWIFT member, Melody Gilbert! Melody is an Emmy-nominated and Alfred I. duPont award-winning documentary filmmaker. Over the course of her career, Melody has directed and produced 20 documentaries that have been screened at several film festivals and distributed internationally. Melody is also an educator committed to teaching new and emerging filmmakers. She has been on the faculty at several universities (including the American University in Bulgaria), teaching documentary production, multimedia, and journalism. Currently, Melody is traveling the world and spreading her love for film by teaching pitch training workshops and conducting her “Documentary Boot Camp” while working on her new documentary about the scandalous topless monokini bathing suit in 1964. The most recent documentary she helped produce, Queendom, was shortlisted for an Oscar in the feature documentary category. In our interview, Melody discusses her move from chilly Minnesota to NYC, her unconventional documentary subjects, and key lessons she shares with film students.
READ MORE
Comments are closed