Meet the New NYWIFT Member Archives - New York Women in Film & TelevisionNew York Women in Film & Television

Meet the New NYWIFT Member: Sara Beneke

Welcome to NYWIFT, Sara Beneke! Sara Beneke is an actress and model, born and raised in Minnesota. There, she discovered her love of the arts through community theater and studio dance. Since moving to New York, she’s had the opportunity to work in a variety of theater and film production while studying at HB Studio. Passionate about the crossover of arts and education, she has recently partnered with a local elementary school developing “Readers Theater” productions. Sara is eager to be joining the NYWIFT community through the Next Wave Program. Sara discusses her roots, her experiences as an actress and model, and upcoming projects she is working on!

Meet the New NYWIFT Member: Jayson Simba

Welcome to NYWIFT, Jayson Simba! Jayson Simba is a Cuban-American actor, director, writer, and producer who hails from Forest Hills, Queens. After attending LaGuardia H.S. of Performing Arts, Jayson enrolled at the Acting Studio NYC, where he studied the Meisner Technique under renowned acting teacher James Price. As an actor, Jayson has starred in over 40 films and television roles. In 2002, Jayson founded One Man Show Productions to help produce the work of independent filmmakers and writers. In 2007, he was hired to write and direct his first feature film, What Matters Most. As an independent filmmaker with 15 films under his belt, Jayson founded Festival of Cinema NYC with the aim of giving emerging filmmakers a platform to showcase their work to further their careers. Jason discusses his experiences as a filmmaker and the foundations of the Festival of Cinema NYC.

Meet the New NYWIFT Member: Hayley Pace

Today, we’re thrilled to shine a spotlight on new NYWIFT member Hayley Pace, an award-winning production designer and actor whose unique blend of skills and passions continues to inspire us! Hayley Pace hails from Toronto, Ontario. They are known for their work on Schitt’s Creek (CBC), In The Dark (CW), and The Expanse (Amazon Prime). In addition to their on-screen work, Hayley has self-produced original projects through their experimental marching band theatre company, The Teeny Tiny Music Show, and has designed for numerous film, TV, and theatre productions across Canada. A graduate of the Stella Adler Studio of Acting and York University’s BFA in Devised Theatre & Design, Hayley brings a dynamic and multidisciplinary approach to their artistry. We caught up with Hayley to discuss their career, their creative journey, and what brought them to NYWIFT.

Meet the New NYWIFT Member: Kacie Newport

We are so excited to spotlight new NYWIFT Member Kacie Newport, the powerhouse behind BAM Management and BAMbooks. With two decades of experience in the entertainment industry, Kacie brings a wealth of knowledge and a passion for supporting artists to the NYWIFT community. From her early days as an assistant director and producer to now leading a thriving talent management company, Kacie's journey is a testament to her dedication and drive. She's even pursuing an MFA in Creative Writing to further BAM Management's creative endeavors. In our interview, Kacie opens up about her motivations for joining NYWIFT, how she maintains positivity in a challenging industry, the importance of mentorship, and her vision for the future of acting. Get ready for some inspiring insights and a dose of much-needed encouragement from this new member!

Meet the New NYWIFT Member: Anna Koukouli Born

Welcome to our new NYWIFT member, Anna Koukouli Born! Anna Koukouli Born is a bicoastal writer-director splitting her time between NY and LA. She explores women's stories, dysfunctional families, unbearable workplaces filled with Succession-like egos, social inequality, and climate-caused disasters set in the near future. Drawing from her Greek history and heritage, Anna loves allegorical cautionary tales about strong, tragic characters trying to overcome adversity. She’s also obsessed with women's rights and gender parity. Her humor is darker than yours. She bets on it. Anna studied Story Analysis and TV Development at UCLA Extension and holds a BA (Hons) Marketing and an MBA from the UK Universities of Lincoln and Liverpool, respectively. Anna talks about her journey into the film industry, her experiences working on various films, and how she overcomes challenges within these fields!

Meet the New NYWIFT Member: Paula de la Fuente

Let’s give a warm welcome to our newest NYWIFT member, the multi-talented Paula de la Fuente! Hailing from Valladolid, Spain, Paula is a filmmaker, actress, writer, and director with a passion for storytelling. From gaining hands-on production experience on Spanish film sets and the Goya Awards ceremony to co-writing and producing her own horror short, Paula has already made significant strides in the industry. Now, she's pursuing her dreams in New York City, studying Acting for Film at the New York Film Academy as a Talent Award Scholarship recipient. Paula joins NYWIFT seeking connection, mentorship, and inspiration as she navigates the U.S. film scene. Let's dive into her journey and discover what drives this exciting new voice in filmmaking.

Meet the New NYWIFT Member: Kristina Libby

Welcome to NYWIFT, Kristina Libby! Kristina is a storyteller, writer, artist, and technology executive living in NYC. She is best known for founding The Floral Heart Project — a national COVID memorial initiative — for which she was named a Hero of 2022 and recognized as a leading public artist for social change. Kristina’s work spans mediums and genres: her writing has appeared in The New Yorker, McSweeney’s, Popular Mechanics, Elle, and Salon, among others. She co-created the award-winning television pilot Penny Starts a Cult and the indie comedy Books, which was recently filmed with Rick and Morty’s Spencer Grammer, Office Space’s Ajay Naidu, and director Micah Khan. She’s also a novelist represented by Sterling Lord Literary, a former one-woman show performer, and an artist whose work has been exhibited at Spring/Break, the Arizona Historical Society Museum, and the Milwaukee Art Museum. In our interview, Kristina discusses her unique journey across art, tech, and storytelling — and how she finds power in combining them all.

Meet the New NYWIFT Member: Chantel Simpson

Let's give a warm welcome to our newest NYWIFT member, the incredibly talented Chantel Simpson! Based in Brooklyn, Chantel is a writer, director, and producer with a true passion for amplifying underrepresented voices through compelling storytelling. Her diverse portfolio spans documentaries, branded content, and photo campaigns, showcasing her ability to connect with audiences on a deep level. From capturing the vibrant energy of NYC's breakdancing culture in Children of the Zulu Kings to exploring the brotherhood within a lowrider club in A Drastic Tale (screening next month at the Tribeca Festival), Chantel's work is both captivating and culturally resonant. She's even collaborated with major brands like Nike, Meta, and JPMorgan Chase, bringing their visions to life with her unique creative touch. As a new member of New York Women in Film & Television, Chantel is eager to connect with fellow creatives, find inspiration, and continue to grow as an artist. Join us as we delve into Chantel's creative journey and discover what motivates this dynamic storyteller.

Meet the New NYWIFT Member: Christy Veeder

Welcome to our new NYWIFT Member, Christy Veeder! Christy is a screenwriter, former climate scientist, and erstwhile bureaucrat whose first major work of fiction, a personal interpretation of The Dark Crystal, was written in response to not being allowed to see Jim Henson’s fantasy epic in the theater with her other third grade friends. But what Christy really loves is 30-minute comedy and the ways in which it can illuminate our hopes, defang our fears, and help us keep going in this thing called life. Christy’s screenplays culminate a career spanning years of editing and writing about the culinary arts, publishing academic journal articles, handing out coupons at the Port Authority while dressed as a box of cough syrup, impersonating celebrity cats on Twitter, and drafting federal legislation in the U.S. Senate – all of which have been rich preparation for the process of creating worlds on the page. Christy discusses her diverse career background, her experience as a writer, and how she first got into the field.

Meet the New NYWIFT Member: Guneet K. Singh

Welcome to NYWIFT, Guneet K. Singh! Former NYWIFT intern Guneet K. Singh is a producer and writer with a passion for diverse storytelling. She was most recently the producer for the poignant play, Irreparable, which premiered at the Act One One-Act Theater Festival. She has worked in television development for NBC and Peacock, working on programs such as That’s My Jam, Password, Joyelle Nicole Johnson: Love Joy and 5 More Sleeps ‘Til Christmas. Her first producing role was as the Digital Producer for the Emmy nominated The Kids Tonight Show. She began her career as an NBC Page, working on shows like Saturday Night Live and The TODAY Show. In our interview, Guneet discusses her exciting time in NBC’s legendary Page Program, the power of networking, and finding her calling as a writer and producer.

Meet the New NYWIFT Member: Monique Gabriela Curnen

Welcome to NYWIFT, Monique Gabriela Curnen! Monique Gabriela Curnen is an actor and producer known for a string of critical and commercial successes, including Half Nelson, The Dark Knight, Contagion and Birth/Rebirth. While working with Warrington Hudlin at the Black Filmmaker Foundation, she started producing short films. She continued producing independently, including the Joe Holt short Noël, which sold to ShortsHD. She served as executive producer on the award-winning feature documentary, A Run For More (PBS, Amazon) directed by Ray Whitehouse. She’s currently in development on the narrative feature Sheila & the Punk Rock, written and directed by K. Lorrel Manning. Monique discusses the roots of her career, her experience working on large-scale productions, and how she overcomes challenges within these realms. Get to know her in our latest interview!

Meet the New NYWIFT Member: Sonia Malfa

Let's give a warm welcome to new NYWIFT member Sonia Malfa! Inspired by nature and myth, Sonia Malfa is a writer/director who creates visually poetic films that draw from her Puerto Rican-American roots. From music video and commercials to documentary and narrative film, her directing work has been featured in Tribeca Festival, AdAge, Vogue Italia, and won both Webby and Clio Awards. Sonia is currently in development on her narrative feature debut, It's Always Sunni, which was selected for the Gotham Project Market and Film Independent’s Fast Track. Most recently, Sonia was selected for the NALIP/Netflix Woman of Color Film Incubator and the Actors Studio Directors Unit. In our interview, Sonia discusses her deep connection to nature, commercial projects, the importance of creative community, and her road trip film - with a twist!

Meet the New NYWIFT Member: Melissa Roxburgh

Welcome to NYWIFT, Melissa Roxburgh! Melissa Roxburgh is a Sagittarian (12/10/92), actress and Canadian. Her parents moved to Canada from the United States and founded a church in Vancouver. Roxburgh is the second oldest of four children; she has two sisters and one younger brother. While pursuing acting roles in Vancouver, Roxburgh studied communications at Simon Fraser University. She is an alumna of the William Esper Studio. Roxburgh landed her first major role in Diary of a Wimpy Kid: Rodrick Rules and has worked steadily in television and film. She is currently portraying Rebecca "Bex" Henderson, an FBI Special Agent, in The Hunting Party, a procedural crime drama on NBC. Melissa spoke to us about her creative journey, family roots, favorite actors, and her directing dreams.

Meet the New NYWIFT Member: Angelica Marciano

Let’s give a warm NYWIFT welcome to our new member, Angelica Marciano. Angela is a location manager and producer who has worked in several different states on narrative feature films and TV. She just recently moved to New York after living in New Mexico, and Boston. She is the person behind the scenes of queerfilmbk and prides herself on being a person who excels at bringing community together. She has a cat named Lewis who acts like a dog. She’s an enthusiastic extrovert who can talk to any stranger and is a self-proclaimed freak in that she hopes that the person sitting next to her on an airplane wants to chat. In our interview, Angelica discusses her winding career path, advice to women filmmakers, and what excites her about the locations department!

Meet the New NYWIFT Member: Herrana Addisu

Welcome to NYWIFT, Herrana Addisu! Herrana Addisu is a multi-disciplinary artist and social impact strategist. Her family's journey to the United States and her personal experience growing up in Ethiopia and immigrating to the U.S. have shaped her career in human rights. She works to uplift marginalized communities through advocacy initiatives, research, and programming. She incorporates her expertise in various human rights issues into her artistry through Chucha Studios LLC, a creative production agency that aims to reduce social disparities within marginalized communities by connecting the art of visual storytelling with systemic change. NYWIFT was proud to present Herrana with the NYWIFT Award for Excellence in Short Film Directing at the 2024 UrbanWorld Film Festival for her short film The River this past Fall. She spoke to us about her short film, upcoming projects, and what types of creative work resonate with her most.

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.

Meet 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.

Meet the New NYWIFT Member: Hsi Cheng

Let's give a warm welcome to new NYWIFT member, Hsi Cheng! Hsi Cheng is an award-winning filmmaker in both fiction and nonfiction, she’s originally from Taiwan and based in New York City. Her work often delves into themes of identity, community, and resilience, reflecting her commitment to amplifying underrepresented voices. Her short documentary Find Me won the 2024 DOC NYC U competition and was selected for multiple film festivals. Her horror-romantic drama I Heard a Fly Buzz won first place at the Annual School of Visual Arts Writing Contest and was published in Match Factory Magazine in 2023. Hsi is currently working on Voices of Deoli as an associate producer. In our interview, Hsi Cheng discusses the powerful themes throughout her work and the importance of community.

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