FFC Leadership

Board of Directors

Abby Sun is the International Documentary Association’s director of programs and editor of Documentary, a quarterly print and digital magazine. In 2024, she researched media policy to support documentary films in the public interest as a Shorenstein Documentary Film Fellow at Harvard Kennedy School. Abby has bylines in Film Comment, Filmmaker, Film Quarterly, Notebook, and Sight & Sound and received a fall 2022 Warhol Foundation Curatorial Research Fellowship. She is a co-founder of Distribution Advocates and serves on the board of directors of Mezzanine, a non-profit building audiences for independent films in Los Angeles, and the arts advisory council of the Princess Grace Foundation.

Aymar Jean "AJ" Christian is the Margaret Walker Alexander Professor of Communication Studies and Director of the Media and Data Equity Lab at Northwestern University and 2024-25 Visiting Scholar at Harvard University’s Berkman Klein Center. He is the author of Open TV: Innovation Beyond Hollywood and the Rise of Web Television (NYU Press, 2018) and the forthcoming Reparative Media: Cultivating Stories and Platforms to Heal Out Culture (MIT Press, 2025). Dr. Christian co-founded OTV | Open Television, a distribution platform for intersectional television. OTV programs have received recognition from the Television Academy (Emmy Awards), Webby Awards, Streamy Awards, Gotham Awards, among others.

Barbara Twist is the Executive Director of the Film Festival Alliance, a nonprofit for festivals and the people who run them. She has extensive experience in distribution and exhibition. Her previous work includes Vidiots, Art House Convergence, Europa International, and others. Barbara is one of the organizers of IND/EX, the largest gathering of independent Exhibitors and Distributors in North America, and has been a key force behind exciting discussion series and new initiatives to address the distribution crisis - including most recently The Popcorn List, highlighting exceptional films that have yet to secure distribution after a festival premiere.

Brian Newman, founder of Sub-Genre, consults on film and media content strategy, distribution and marketing for some of the top brands in the world. His company guides companies through the process of leveraging entertainment to showcase their values, have greater impact, and to stand out from the crowd. Current and former clients include: The Climate Pledge (Amazon), Hilton, Indeed, John Deere, Lowe’s, Oatly, Patagonia, Purina, REI, SmugMug, Stripe, Sundance, WeTransfer, and Yeti Coolers. Brian has served as CEO of the Tribeca Film Institute, president of Renew Media (the Rockefeller Fellowships), and executive director of IMAGE FIlm & Video in Atlanta. During his career, he has served on the board of Media Impact Funders (formerly GFEM), AIVF, Rooftop Films, Muse Film & Video and many other organizations focused on advocacy for the field. Brian also produces independent films, and writes a popular weekly newsletter on film.

Jeffrey Kusama-Hinte is a Golden Globe® winning, Academy Award® and Emmy Award® nominated, producer working under the banner of Antidote Films, the company he founded in 2000; he has also directed two documentaries. He is currently working as an acquiring book editor at Bold Type Books, an imprint of the Hachette Book Group, and resides in Brooklyn New York, with his spouse and two children. He is a member of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences and serves as Chairperson of the Board of Trustees for Type Media Center and as Treasurer of Board for Circuit Arts.

Jon Reiss is a filmmaker, author and media strategist who wrote the book Think Outside the Box Office. His company, 8 Above, creates custom audience-building strategies, theatrical experiences and digital release campaigns for independent films. He helped create and run the IFP/Gotham Filmmaker Lab for ten years and recently created the 8 Above Distribution Lab to teach filmmakers how to distribute and market their films. He just launched an eponymous Substack. Jon got his start in ﬁlmmaking and distribution at the documentary collective Target Video where he not only shot seminal bands such as Black Flag, Iggy Pop, Throbbing Gristle, The Cramps, but was one of the ﬁrst to conceptualize and execute video tours throughout Europe, carting 500 pounds of video deck and projector across 15,000 miles.

Keri Putnam is a producer, advisor and board member. She was the 2023-2024 Walter Shorenstein Media and Democracy Fellow at the Shorenstein Center for Media, Politics and Public Policy at Harvard Kennedy School researching the challenges and opportunities facing independent film in the U.S. Herproduction company Putnam Pictures produces high-quality, distinctive film and television from visionary creative voices. She is a director of AMC Entertainment and a board member, consultant, and advisor to private media companies and nonprofit organizations. Putnam’s previous jobs include CEO of Sundance Institute from 2010-2021, President of Production at Miramax Films, and Executive Vice President of Production at HBO.

Sanjay Sharma is the founder and CEO of MARGINAL, an indie studio focused on popular storytelling genres from outsider voices in film, television, audio, animation, interactive and web3. Since launching four years ago, the studio has been nominated for or won Gotham, NAACP, Indie Spirit, Imagen, and GLAAD Awards. Sharma previously helped lead two digital media companies, All Def Media, based on the iconic Def Jam Records; and Machinima, the first YouTube MCN, ushering in the “creator economy," which was acquired by Warner Bros. Sharma began his career at the U.S. Department of Justice and then as a technology lawyer. He is a Phi Beta Kappa, summa cum laude, graduate of Columbia University where he studied History & Film, and a graduate with distinction of Stanford Law School, after which he clerked on the 9^th Circuit Court of Appeals. Sharma teaches entrepreneurship at Stanford University; is a co-founder and Board Member of Gold House; and is the Chairman of the Board of CAPE.

Staff & Volunteers

Jax Deluca is a cultural strategist with over two decades of leadership across public service and nonprofit arts organizations. Currently, she is the interim director for the Future Film Coalition, a newly formed national alliance dedicated to safeguarding and strengthening the independent film and media sector in the United States. In her previous role as the Director of Film & Media Arts at the National Endowment for the Arts (2016–2025), she oversaw a federal funding portfolio, spearheaded national initiatives, such as the Independent Media Arts Group (IMAG) in partnership with Sundance Institute and BAVC Media, and produced research offering critical insights into creative technology practices, field-wide infrastructure needs, and high-level challenges facing the indie film sector. She is a recipient of a Documentary Film in the Public Interest Fellowship at The Shorenstein Center on Media, Politics and Public Policy at the Harvard Kennedy School (Fall 2025).

Arushi Khare has worked with literary magazines and film nonprofits in roles spanning marketing, membership development, research, and editorial work. She is a recent graduate of Wesleyan University, where she studied in the College of Letters and minored in Film Studies. Her interests lie at the intersection of these fields, focusing on the cultural and institutional dimensions of storytelling and the role of media in shaping public discourse. At FFC, she is excited to advance research and advocacy initiatives as a Project Coordinator.

Austin Lee Brown works with film and media organizations on project financing, fundraising strategies, and research and development. Austin has served as the Director of Advancement Strategy at Sundance Institute. Prior to joining Sundance, he worked at Film at Lincoln Center, Museum of the Moving Image, and Denver Center for the Performing Arts. Austin previously founded one of the first queer film festivals in the state of Kentucky.

Rebecca Celli is a documentary film fundraiser, creative consultant, producer, and curator, and formerly Director of Development at Chicken & Egg Films and Director of Sales & Acquisitions at Cargo Film & Releasing. Over the last decade, Rebecca has written about film in the New York Times, Agnes Films, and Precog; served on juries and review panels at Chicken & Egg, NewFest, Tallgrass Film Festival, Human Rights Watch Film Festival, DOC Institute, and Maryland Institute College of Art (MICA); and curated programs with Duplex, P·P·O·W Gallery, and BOFFO in Fire Island. She is a Consulting Producer of 2025 Sundance Film Festival World Cinema Grand Jury Prize-winner Cutting Through Rocks (dirs. Sara Khaki and Mohammad Reza Eyni).

Branch Organizers*

*This list is currently in formation.

Artist Support Organizations Branch

Dominic Asmall Willsdon is Executive Director of the International Documentary Association. He was formerly a curator and director at international museums of modern and contemporary art.

JT Takagi (she/her) is an award-winning independent film maker, sound recordist and the executive director of Third World Newsreel (www.twn.org). TWN is a progressive alternative media center, working to advance storytelling and media arts for cultural and social justice. It works in educational distribution, exhibition, preservation, production and training. JT’s own films are primarily on Asian/Asian American and immigrant issues including Bittersweet Survival, Homes Apart: Korea; and The Women Outside, which aired nationally on PBS. As a sound engineer, she has recorded numerous public television and theatrical documentaries, including Power (Yance Ford, Netflix 2024), Black Panthers: Vanguard of the Revolution (Stanley Nelson), the Emmy winning Strong Island and many others. She also teaches at the New School and City University of NY and serves on the boards of organizations working for peace and social justice.

Sahar Driver is a founding Co-Executive Director of Color Congress. She is a veteran documentary impact strategist, field builder, and researcher. Her career has focused on social and cultural transformation through nonfiction storytelling. She has led impact campaigns and strategy for over two-dozen documentaries, independently and with Active Voice. She has designed and led impact training and grantmaking programs to support impact producers and filmmakers of color with Firelight Media. She worked with Doc Society to update the second edition of their Impact Field Guide and wrote the 2019 Impact Hi5 case studies. Today she is on the Doc Society Inc US Board of Directors, the Picture Motion Advisory Board, and was a 2022 Intercultural Leadership Institute Fellow and a 2021 Rockwood / JustFilms Fellow. In 2020 she authored the Ford Foundation commissioned report: Beyond Inclusion: The Critical Role of People of Color in the U.S. Documentary Ecosystem.

Distribution & Sales Agents Branch

Christie Marchese is the founder and CEO of Kinema Kinema is a global streaming and screening event platform that leverages the power of community and social interaction to distribute films and series. She was previously the founder of the impact entertainment agency Picture Motion that was acquired in 2024. Prior to joining Picture Motion, she led impact efforts for Righteous Pictures, developed digital strategy for the social action group at Participant Media, and managed program coordination and social media for Norman Lear’s nonprofit, Declare Yourself. Christie is also the co-author of The Distribution Playbook and has won several industry recognitions, including being named one of Fortune’s Rising Female Founders in 2023 and Fast Company’s Most Creative People in 2021. She’s currently on the board of Subject Matter, The Redford Center, and The Reinvent Stockton Foundation, and on the Capacity Council for Brown Girls Doc Mafia.

Deborah McIntosh is the Co-Head of WME Independent and a Partner at William Morris Endeavor, where she leads a team of 10 agents specializing in film financing, distribution deals, and building production plans that leverage local incentives and soft money. She also consults for high-net-worth individuals and production companies looking to invest in feature films. McIntosh has been instrumental in financing and selling acclaimed titles such as A Real Pain, The Lost Daughter, Theater Camp, Flora and Son, Passing, Monkey Man, Tully, and Whiplash.

Dori Begley currently serves as the Co-CEO of Magnolia Pictures. Joining the company as Director of Acquisitions in 2007, she oversaw more than a decade of buys for Magnolia Pictures, Magnet Releasing, Magnolia Home Entertainment, and MAGNIFY, eventually moving on to oversee all departments. Begley began her career in 2000 with Sony Pictures Classics working on an eclectic slate of award-winning titles from renowned filmmakers around the world. Begley is an Executive Branch member of The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, Vassar College graduate, and resident of Fort Greene, Brooklyn.

Exhibitors Branch

Dr. Cara Ogburn joined Milwaukee Film in 2011 in a seasonal capacity before joining the full-time, year-round education staff in 2013. Since then, she has held many titles at Milwaukee Film and in 2020 was named Artistic Director; in this role she leads the organization’s artistic vision and strategy as well as the programming teams for its annual festivals and two year-round cinemas. Cara is the immediate past president of the Board of Directors of the national Film Festival Alliance and is engaged with various national efforts to strengthen our field.

Filmmakers Branch

Marjan Safinia is an Iranian documentary filmmaker whose films examine identity, community, and social justice. Most recently, with Grace Lee, she produced and directed And She Could Be Next (POV’s first series) about women of color transforming American politics. Until 2018, Marjan was the longest-serving President of the International Documentary Association. She serves on the Boards of Chicken & Egg Pictures, Color Congress, and the Academy’s Documentary Branch. She is a co-founder of Beyond Inclusion and a co-host of The D-Word. She considers herself a good troublemaker, and is a regular juror, programmer, speaker and connector of all things documentary.

Mary Jane Skalski’s career spans over 25 years as a producer specializing in taking projects from inception thru release. Her credits include American Animals, The Station Agent, The Visitor, Win Win, Mysterious Skin, Wilson, and Hello I Must Be Going. She started her career at Good Machine and currently is part of Echo Lake Entertainment.

Susan Margolin is an award-winning producer and pioneer of digital film distribution with over 25 years of experience in independent film and media. She co-founded New Video/Docurama Films in 1992, growing it into a leading distributor of independent documentaries before its sale to Cinedigm in 2012. During her tenure, she released over 400 critically acclaimed films, including Kirby Dick and Amy Ziering’s The Invisible War and D.A. Pennebaker’s Don’t Look Back. In 2016, Margolin founded St. Marks Productions, producing award-winning features including HBO’s A Tree of Life: The Pittsburgh Synagogue Shooting and the Academy Award-shortlisted Desperate Souls, Dark City and the Legend of Midnight Cowboy. Her other producing credits include Nancy Buirski’s A Crime on the Bayou and The Rape of Recy Taylor, as well as Billy Shebar’s Monk in Pieces and Alexandra Codina’s Paper Children. Margolin serves on the boards of Chicken & Egg Pictures and Manhattan Neighborhood Network, and on the advisory boards of New York Women in Film & Television and the Documentary Producers Alliance. She is a member of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, BAFTA, and the Producers Guild of America.

Media, Communications, & Engagement Branch

Alice Quinlan is a co-founder and partner at the social impact firm Red Owl, which works with filmmakers and changemakers to leverage the power of strategy, storytelling, and collaboration on the local, national and global level. Prior to co-founding Red Owl, Alice led community engagement and education efforts at PBS’ POV.

Eliza Licht (she/her), founder and managing partner at Red Owl, has been working in the social-issue documentary field for nearly 25 years as an audience engagement strategist, impact producer, and television executive. She previously spent 17 years building and expanding the community engagement and education department at the PBS documentary series POV, where she spearheaded broadcast campaigns for more than 250 films. Eliza has served on juries for DOC NYC, the Hot Springs Film Festival, and the Riverhead Film Festival, and on funding panels for the National Endowment for the Arts, Black Public Media, and the Pew Center for Arts and Heritage.

Jessica Schneider, co-founder of Eleven Thirteen Collective (ETC), is a seasoned media and digital strategist with a track record of developing impactful communication campaigns and audience engagement initiatives for films of all genres. She has worked on more than 100 film releases, amassing a deep understanding of audience development, distribution, and promotion strategies that help media makers find and engage audiences. She has led successful digital advertising campaigns for Academy®, Emmy, Peabody, and BAFTA Award-winning projects and holds a master’s degree in digital media design.

Rachel Allen is a seasoned PR professional with over a decade of experience working in film publicity. She is currently the Executive Vice President, Publicity at indie studio Bleecker Street Media. Previously she was Director of Publicity at prestige PR company Cinetic Marketing, where she worked on accounts for NEON, Netflix, MUBI, HBO, Amazon, Apple TV+, NatGeo, IFC Films, Kino Lorber and others. Prior to Cinetic, Rachel was a publicist at Film at Lincoln Center, where she handled PR for the organization’s year-round programming and festivals including New York Film Festival and New Directors/New Films; Film Forum, where she was repertory publicist; and Strategy PR/Consulting, where she worked on campaigns including Richard Linklater’s Boyhood and Joel and Ethan Coen’s Inside Llewyn Davis. She is a graduate of Barnard College of Columbia University with a degree in Film Studies, and currently lives in Brooklyn.

Scott Macaulay is a film producer and co-founder and Editor-in-Chief of Filmmaker Magazine. His producing credits with his New York-based production company, Forensic Films, include Kitty Green’s, The Assistant; Peter Sollett’s Raising Victor Vargas; Alice Wu’s Saving Face; Harmony Korine’s julien donkey-boy; and Tom Noonan’s Sundance Grand Prize-winning What Happened Was….

Members At-Large Branch

Brandon Butler is a copyright lawyer and expert on the lawful use of archival materials. He is also Executive Director of the Re:Create Coalition, a broad-based coalition of nonprofits dedicated to the defense of fair use and balanced copyright law. Brandon is the Law and Policy Advisor to the Software Preservation Network, and is an Advisor to the American Law Institute’s Restatement of the Law, Copyright. He is on the editorial board of the Journal of Copyright in Education and Libraries and is the author of a variety of journal articles and book chapters about copyright and fair use.

Humza Syed is a New York based Producer and Finance Manager at Level Forward, a public-benefit entertainment company. He has co-produced a multitude of films which have screened and won awards at festivals like Sundance and Tribeca, and supported films in co-production markets at Berlinale. He particularly specializes in production finances, budget management, financial incentives, tax credits, etc.

Jonah Zeiger is a film industry leader who helped shape Chicago into one of the 4th largest production hubs in the U.S. As Deputy Commissioner of the Chicago Film Office from 2022 – 2024, Jonah oversaw the two highest-spending years in Illinois production history—guiding a surge that brought $1.75 billion in combined expenditures, $4+ billion in economic impact, and a slate renowned for daring original content that thrills global audiences and garners critical acclaim. Jonah forged transformative partnerships with organizations like Sundance, IND/EX, and Filmscape, aligning civic leadership with creators, studios, exhibitors, and global media stakeholders.