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All Advisory Board bios can be found below.
PATRICIA AUFDERHEIDE, Director,
Center for Social Media
Patricia is a professor at the School of Communication at American University and the director of the Center for Social Media there. She is the author of, among others, Documentary: A Very Short Introduction, The Daily Planet and Communications Policy in the Public Interest. She has been a Fulbright and John Simon Guggenheim fellow and has served as a juror at the Sundance Film Festival. She has received numerous journalism and scholarly awards, including career achievement awards in 2006 from the International Documentary Association and in 2008 from the International Digital Media and Arts Association. Patricia serves on the board of directors of Kartemquin Films and on the editorial boards of a variety of publications, including Communication Law and Policy and In These Times newspaper. She has served on the board of directors of the Independent Television Service and on the film advisory board of the National Gallery of Art. She holds a PhD in history from the University of Minnesota.
MITCHELL BLOCK, Filmmaker, Distributor and Professor
Mitchell conceived, co-created and was a producer of Carrier, a 10-hour documentary series and produced its companion feature Another Day in Paradise, which premiered in May 2008. For seven years, Mitchell worked as an acquisitions consultant for HBO Original Pictures. In 2002, he was an executive producer of the Academy Award-winning documentary Big Mama. He was also a producing fellow at the American Film Institute, a member of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences, the Television Academy and the University Film & Video Association. He was an executive producer of Stealing America: Vote by Vote, a documentary about the 2004 and 2006 elections. His company, DirectCinema Limited, has handled the marketing and distribution of over 60 Oscar nominated and winning documentaries, shorts and animated films. Mitchell holds a BFA and MFA from New York University and MBA from Columbia University. He lectures globally on independent producing, distribution and marketing, and is an adjunct professor at the University of Southern California School of Cinematic Arts. Mitchell is a columnist for Release Print and a regular contributor to International Documentary.
JEFF BURKE, Director, Technology Research Initiatives, UCLA School of Theater, Film and Television
Jeff is Director of Technology Research Initiatives for the UCLA School of Theater, Film and Television (TFT), Adjunct Assistant Professor, and Executive Director of REMAP, a joint research program of TFT and the Henry Samueli School of Engineering and Applied Science. REMAP’s core projects investigate the interrelationships among community, culture, and technology and how embedded and mobile computing can support community development and cultural expression. Most recently, he helped to form what is now the Participatory Sensing area at the National Science Foundation Center for Embedded Networked Sensing (CENS). Participatory Sensing seeks to enable everyone to use their mobile phones, along with cloud-based computing resources, to safely collect, analyze and share data about things they care about most.
ANDREI CODRESCU, Poet, Novelist and NPR Commentator
A poet, essayist and novelist, Andrei has been contributing commentaries to NPR’s All Things Considered since 1983. He is the author of forty books of poetry, fiction and essays, and the founder of Exquisite Corpse. He has received a Peabody award and reported for NPR and ABC News from Romania and Cuba. Andrei is the MacCurdy Distinguished Professor of English and Comparative Literature at Louisiana State University. He has received National Endowment for the Arts fellowships, the Romanian Literature Prize, the ACLU Freedom of Speech Award, and the Ovidius Prize.
STEVE CONNELL, Actor, Playwright and Poet
An acclaimed actor, renowned playwright, and a National Poetry Slam Grand Champion, Steve’s work has been hailed by critics as “Powerful Theatre”, “Hilarious”, and “Brilliant”. Considering himself as much an activist as an artist, he is passionate about using his voice to make a positive impact in the world. As a poet, Steve has won numerous national and regional slam championships (including 2002 Hollywood/ 2003 LA Poetry Slam Champion, 2003 National Champion (team LA)). He has created original pieces for such organizations as People For The American Way, Global Green, AIDS Care, the Sierra Club, the American Cancer Society, and many others. His work has been featured on a wide variety of media outlets, including ABC World News, Good Morning America, MSNBC’s Hardball, HBO’s Def Poetry (twice), MTV’s World AIDS Festival, BET’s Lyric Café, as well as Oprah Winfrey’s celebration of Maya Angelou’s 75th birthday and Quincy Jones’ Lifetime Achievement Award celebration. He performed at the Marian Anderson Awards in an evening honoring the life and work of Norman Lear and Maya Angelou and recently had the great honor of being invited to the Whitehouse for a special celebration of Poetry and Spoken Word..
MELISSA HAVARD, Owner, Casablanca Consulting
After 20 years experience in health and entertainment cause-related marketing, public speaking and non-profit management, Melissa founded Casablanca Consulting. She has been a guest lecturer on the subject of social responsibility, the First Amendment and the entertainment industry. Melissa is on the Advisory Board of the Jason Foundation and a member of Women in Film and NARAS. She recently provided consulting services to the Kaiser Family Foundation assisting with their Entertainment Media Partnership outreach and launch of Fox Broadcasting’s PAUSE campaign. Melissa also serves as a media/strategy consultant to LA Youth Newspaper and Profiles in Caring. She provides pro bono services to the Andre Sobel River of Life Foundation as well as numerous other projects. Prior to Casablanca, Melissa was the Director of Edelman Entertainment’s Marketing Health campaigns, the Executive Director for the Media Project and the Entertainment Director of the Office on Smoking and Health. She has produced several award-winning educational videos.
CARL HEBELER, Hebeler Accountancy Corporation
Carl brings a depth of experience from corporations where he has served as CFO and Controller for the past eight years from start-ups to established manufacturing companies. Currently, he provides consulting services for a number of technology companies in the field of webanalytics and media placement. Prior to his financial executive roles, Carl was a manager of accounting at a Continental Airlines subsidiary in Miami. Carl has helped numerous clients both with their individual and business tax needs, providing tax savings, planning and management consulting. His services also include compilations, review and audits and general business consulting. He teaches accounting, auditing and tax as an adjunct professor at the University of Phoenix.
JOANNE HOFFMAN, Entertainment Attorney
Joanne has over 15 years of experience in motion picture development, finance, production, distrubution, licensing and merchandising. A former development executive, her practice areas include copyright, trademark, co-production and joint-venture arrangements, production finance and new media.
KERN KONWISER, Filmmaker
Kern and his brother Kip through their company Konwiser Brothers are industry leaders in writing, producing, directing and marketing award-winning theatrical films, documentaries, cable and network movies & series and other entertainment media. Among their award-winning credits are the HBO film Miss Evers’ Boys, the documentary film On Hallowed Ground and the feature film Shanghai Kiss. Kern holds a MFA from the University of Southern California and BA from Cornell University.
ANDREW LAUER, Founder and President, Reel-Aid
Andrew is an actor, director, writer and producer. He has worked under the direction of Oliver Stone, Michael Bay, David Fincher and David Kellog, among others. He recently directed The Tehuacan Project. Prior to that, he received critical claim for his feature film Intermedio and the multi-award winning short film Little Cuba. As an Emmy-nominated actor, Andrew has co-starred on the big screen in Gushy, Screamers and Never on Tuesday. He has also appeared in For the Boys, Oliver Stone’s The Doors and Born on the Fourth of July. He is best known to America as "Charlie" on the hit NBC comedy series Caroline in the City.
DENISE MANN, Associate Professor and Head, UCLA Producers Program
Denise teaches graduate and undergraduate courses on contemporary entertainment industry practices as well as critical studies seminars on film and television history and theory. Denise routinely delivers talks at scholarly conferences and international film festivals and conferences. Denise serves as a consultant to Creek and River Co., a media management firm in Tokyo, and serves on the board of the Association Internationale des Medias in Paris. Denise co-edited Private Screenings: Television & the Female Consumer and has published articles on television and consumer culture in a range of journals. She served as an associate editor on Camera Obscura, a journal of feminism and film theory, for six years. Her most recent book is The New Hollywood Independents: The Postwar Talent Takeover.
STEPHEN NEMETH, Executive Producer, Rhino Films
Stephen formed Rhino Films, an independent film company that originated as a division of iconoclast record label Rhino Records, and has produced several critically acclaimed major motion pictures, including Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas and Dogtown and Z-Boys. Stephen was named one of the "Top Ten Most Prolific Producers in Hollywood." He serves as a board member for Rock The Vote, the Graphic Arts Council of the LA County Museum, Children’s United Nations, the Wildlife Ecostation and Artists for Amnesty. Stephen also serves on the board of The Collaboration Foundation, a non-profit organization devoted to creating collaborative art and films that address various social issues.
LUCIA NOYCE, Director, Artists for Amnesty
Lucia currently runs the Artists for Amnesty program at Amnesty International USA, the world’s largest grassroots human rights organization. Artists for Amnesty works with the arts and entertainment industries to raise awareness about human rights abuses worldwide and inspire people to take action. Since its inception, AFA has built public awareness and advocacy campaigns around such films as Hotel Rwanda, Blood Diamond and Rendition, using them to educate audiences on the genocide in Darfur, conflict diamonds, child soldiers, torture and secret detentions. Prior to joining Amnesty, Lucia worked in film production in the United States and her native Australia, working on such films as The Quiet American and Rabbit Proof Fence. She was the principle cinematographer of the documentary The Making of Rabbit Proof Fence. She has a BA in Political Science from the University of New South Wales.
Tom Nunan, Producer, Bull’s Eye Entertainment
Tom is best known as founder and partner of Bull’s Eye Entertainment (B.E.E.) – a mid-sized independent film and television production company. During his oversight as a partner in B.E.E., Nunan generated a television and film slate of over 50 projects, including creating a strategic alliance with Sony Pictures TV. Nunan and his partners achieved worldwide fame and success for producing their Academy Award-winning Best Picture Crash, as well as other beloved titles including The Illusionist, Thumbsucker and Employee Of The Month. Nunan also supervised the creation and production of many high-profile television projects including the STARZ cable network adaptation of the series Crash, as well as the Lifetime series Angela’s Eyes and the CBS comedies All Grown Up and The Papdits.
PETER SAMUELSON, Owner, Samuelson Productions
Peter spends his time in media development and production through Splashlife Inc. and Samuelson Productions, and he is President of Film Associates Inc. He and Steven Spielberg co-founded the Starlight Starbright Children’s Foundation Inc. Peter is also the Founder and President of the First Star Public Policy Initiative and EDAR (Everyone Deserves A Roof), Inc. He is a founding board member of Participant Media and has produced a number of films including Revenge of the Nerds,The Libertine, and Arlington Road.