Starting a new film? In the middle, finishing, or trying to get one seen? Would you like some professional feedback on a work sample, trailer, website, outreach strategy, written material or grant application? Get the conversation started and come to NYFA’s Doctor’s Hours for Filmmakers. This event will provide you with individual, 20-minute one-on-one consultations with theatrical and nontheatrical distributors, exhibitors, broadcasters, outreach strategists, and fundraisers. Bring a short work sample or trailer, or show them your website, written materials or a grant application. Each appointment will be $25, and there is a three appointment limit.

WHERE:
New York Foundation for the Arts (NYFA)
20 Jay Street, Suite 740
Brooklyn, NY 11201

TO REGISTER:

CLICK HERE for registration

Consultant Bios June 20th, 2013

Stephanie Bleyer, Outreach, partnerships, fundraising & events
Stephanie Bleyer is a fundraiser and outreach and engagement campaign coordinator for social issue documentaries; she is the founder of Six Foot Chipmunk. She provides a wide range of services for her clients, from community engagement coordination and partnership cultivation to event production and fundraising. In the last few years, Stephanie has raised millions of dollars and worked on the engagement campaigns for over 20 documentary films. Her current projects include three Sundance-selected films: Inequality For All, God Loves Uganda and Escape Fire and the Creative Capital Foundation. Stephanie holds a Masters of Public Administration from NYU's Wagner School of Public Service.

Jim Browne, festival and theatrical distribution strategies
Jim Browne is a distributor and programmer. His company, Argot Pictures, provides theatrical distribution services for films such as Note by Note: The Making of Steinway L103; Secrecy, Crips & Bloods: Made in America; Throw Down Your Heart; American Casino and many others. He is a programmer for the Abu Dhabi Film Festival, and for five years was a programmer for the Tribeca Film Festival. He started his career programming experimental films at PS 122, founded the film, music and performance touring series People’s Cinema, and was programmer and general manager of the Pioneer Theater in NYC. www.argotpictures.com

Amy Finkel, Websites, documentary production
Amy Finkel is a designer, documentary filmmaker, photographer and writer. Her recent documentary, FUREVER, is currently appearing in festivals. She is the founder and creative director of Sailor Beware, an agency that specializes in web design and video work. She is an instructor at NYU and Parsons School of Design, teaching web, photography and documentary courses. Her film “Zing! Went the Strings of My Heart” was nominated for IDA's Pare Lorentz Award, and she has since served as a judge for IDA’s Documentary Achievement Awards and for New York Festivals. www.fureverfilm.com

Ryan Harrington, Proposals, grant applications, festivals
Ryan Harrington is the Director of Documentary Programming for the Tribeca Film Institute, where he provides grants to up to 40 feature documentary projects annually, while developing filmmaker training labs and workshops world-wide. Throughout his tenure at TFI, he has supported over 150 films and over 500 filmmakers. Previously, Harrington managed production at A&E IndieFilms, the theatrical documentary arm of the A&E Television Networks, where he championed the films American Teen and My Kid Could Paint That and the Oscar-nominated Murderball and Jesus Camp. He recently produced Participant Media’s A Place at the Table which opened in theatres nationwide this spring.

Darcy Heusel, Social media, digital engagement and marketing, distribution, partnerships 
 Darcy Heusel is Director of Digital Strategy at Picture Motion, an agency that specializes in building social action marketing campaigns for issue-based films. Her projects include American Promise, Bully, The Crash Reel, and Herman's House. Previously, Darcy was the Director of Programming and Marketing at Constellation.tv where she oversaw business development, client relations, social media and digital strategy. While there, she also directed new media events for The Vow, Magic Mike, and films from the Criterion Collection. Prior to Constellation, Darcy was Director of Acquisitions and Marketing at Screen Media Films where she acquired and oversaw distribution (Theatrical, DVD, VOD, Digital and more) and marketing for over 50 films including: Jig: The Irish Dancing Documentary, Rebecca Miller’s The Private Lives of Pippa Lee,White Irish Drinkers, 3 Backyards, and James Ivory’s The City of Your Final Destination. www.picturemotion.com

Kate Hurwitz, Distribution, digital distribution, press relations
Kate Hurwitz focuses on discovering and bringing in projects for sales representation at Cinetic Media. She previously worked for Cinetic's sister company FilmBuff in acquisitions, and started her career in HBO's publicity department. Kate graduated from Columbia University with a BA in English. Cinetic Media is a New York-based film and media company that, since its founding in 2001, has provided an exclusive group of entertainment clients with advisory services in every aspect of development and operations related to motion pictures. The firm specializes in film finance, sales, distribution, talent management, and corporate consulting, occupying a unique position in the film industry as representatives of marquee talent at the intersection of financing and distribution. www.cineticmedia.com

Eliza Licht, Social media, community outreach, developing audiences
Eliza Licht is Vice President of Community Engagement and Education at the PBS documentary series POV, overseeing the development and implementation of POV's national community engagement and education campaigns. She works with community organizations, educators, and public television stations to present free screenings of POV films and to develop and distribute accompanying educational resource materials to audiences nationwide. Since joining POV in 2001, she has expanded POV's community activities by nearly 400% and increased POV's educational efforts by over 600%. She has served on the Media That Matters Film Festival Jury. www.pbs.org/pov

Paul Marchant, Distribution, promotion, festivals
Paul Marchant is Director of Theatrical Sales at First Run Features, a distributor of documentary and specialty foreign films that has over the course of its 30 plus year history released such titles as the celebrated UP SERIES, the Oscar Nominated MOST DANGEROUS MAN IN AMERICA, and most recently, FAR OUT ISN’T FAR ENOUGH. Prior to working in film distribution, Paul served as Director and Programmer of the Atlanta Film Festival, Athens GA's Kudzu Film Festival & the traveling Short Attention Span Film & Video Festival. firstrunfeatures.com

Kate Tuss, Proposals, grants, written materials
Katie Tuss is the Grants Community Manager at QCA and oversees the NY State and New York City funded grant programs for artists and arts organizations in Queens. Katie has worked in museums and cultural organizations since 2003 and holds a BFA in painting and drawing from The Ohio State University. Prior to working at QCA Katie worked at the International Studio and Curatorial Program in Brooklyn and the Smithsonian’s Hirshhorn Museum in Washington, DC.

Chris White, Preparing work for television, website content, trailers and editing
Chris White is the Vice President of Programming & Production at POV, the PBS showcase for independent non-fiction film. He helps curate the series, oversees delivery requirements, produces and edits on-air content and short-form content streamed on the POV website, and he often works with filmmakers to cut down and re-structure their films for broadcast. As a freelance editor his recent projects include films on architects Daniel Libeskind, Ray Kappe and Rick Joy, and trailers for works-in-progress such as “Strong Island” by Yance Ford, and “The New Black” by Yoruba Richen. www.pbs.org/pov

*We only accept online registration and can not accommodate walk-in appointments. We apologize for any inconvenience.

QUESTIONS:
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