TEAM
DIRECTOR - KATIE MATHEWS
Katie Mathews is a filmmaker, researcher, & educator whose work explores the gray areas and transitional moments of modern life. Her recent narrative short film Dark Moon (2022) was a Vimeo Staff Pick and her non-fiction short Signal and Noise (2021) won a Special Jury Prize at New Orleans Film Festival. Previously she produced feature documentary Mossville (2019), which won the Human Rights Award at Full Frame and aired nationally on PBS. She is the 2022 recipient of the Princess Grace Award for Film.
PRODUCER - DARCY MCKINNON
Darcy McKinnon is a documentary filmmaker based in New Orleans, whose work focuses on the American South and the Caribbean. Recently released projects include Commuted (PBS, 2024), Algiers, America (Hulu, 2023), Under G-d (Sundance 2023), Look at Me! XXXTENTACION (SXSW, Hulu, 2022) and The Neutral Ground (Tribeca, POV, 2021), recipient of LEH Documentary of the Year 2022. Her work has been on POV, Reel South, LPB, Cinemax and Hulu, and has screened at Sundance, Tribeca, SXSW, CPH:DOX and more. Darcy is an alum of the Impact Partners Producing Fellowship and the Sundance Institute Creative Producing Fellowship, and a recipient of American Documentary’s Creative Visionary Award in 2023.
PRODUCER - JENNY MERCEIN
Jenny Mercein is an actor, teacher, director, and writer currently living in New Orleans, where she is the Head of Undergraduate Acting at Tulane University. Acting credits include “NCIS: New Orleans,” "30 Rock," "Blue Bloods," "Unforgettable," "Law & Order" and extensive theater credits spanning the country. Along with KJ Sanchez, Jenny is the co-creator of the acclaimed documentary theater play X's and O's, about football and traumatic brain injury (Berkeley Rep and Baltimore Center Stage). Jenny received her B.A. from Yale and her M.F.A. in Acting from The University of Washington.
EXECUTIVE PRODUCER - ABBY EPSTEIN
ABBY EPSTEIN's first documentary, V-Day: Until the Violence Stops premiered at the 2004 Sundance Film Festival and received a Primetime Emmy Award and a Gracie Allen Award. She has been directing films for over fifteen years with her producing partner Ricki Lake including the award-winning feature docs, The Business of Being Born, and Weed the People. Abby produced the documentaries Breastmilk and The Mama Sherpas and is most recently directed The Business of Birth Control, released in 2022. Prior to working in film, Abby directed Broadway theater, including RENT, The Vagina Monologues and Hedwig and the Angry Inch.
CO-PRODUCER - KATIE PHAM
Katie Pham is a first generation New Orleanian, and provides operational, producing and archival support at Gusto Moving Pictures. Recently released projects include Associate Producer on Commuted (dir. Nailah Jefferson, New Orleans Film Festival 2023), Under G-d (dir. Paula Eiselt, Sundance 2023), The Neutral Ground (dir. CJ Hunt, Tribeca 2021). She is the Co-Producer on Roleplay (dir. Katie Mathews) and currently supporting production on The Gardeners (dir. Crystal Kayiza), Chinatown Down South (dir. Nancy Lauland), and The First Plantation (dir. Jason Fitzroy Jeffers). She also has experience in film festival operations, at festivals including the New Orleans Film Festival and Overlook Film Festival.
DIRECTOR OF PHOTOGRAPHY - PAAVO HANNINEN
Paavo’s work as a cinematographer has been seen around the world at festivals including Sundance, Rotterdam, Clermont-Ferrand, and Rooftop Films among many others. His work has been supported by grants from the Austin Film Society, the New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Foundation, and the Threadhead Cultural Foundation. He has been involved as cinematographer or director on work that has been featured on New York Times Op-docs, Washington Post, Huffington Post, Complex, NPR, and Rollingstone.com among other outlets.
SOUND RECORDIST - LEDEREK ROCQUE
Derek Rocque is a New Orleans based Field Production Sound Recordist. Born and raised in Southern California, he earned a BA at Cal State Fullerton studying Communications with an emphasis in Radio/TV/Film. Rocque made the move to New Orleans shortly after earning a BFA in Communication Design from Louisiana Tech University and now pursues film projects that highlight cultural diversity and seek to achieve social justice in society.
EDITOR - ROBIN SCHWARTZ
Robin Schwartz is a film editor whose feature credits include, FATHOM, winner of a news and doc Emmy; OVER THE RAINBOW, chosen for Film Comment's Selects; and Emmy nominees LEGION OF BROTHERS, and THE GREAT INVISIBLE, a SXSW Grand Jury winner which she co-edited. She was also co-editor on THE BIGGEST LITTLE FARM: THE RETURN. Her previous narrative work includes the Sundance film RESULTS, directed by Andrew Bujalski. She is a recipient of the 40 under 40 award for emerging talent in Documentary from DOC NYC, and a JACKSON WILD editing award finalist.
EDITOR - KRISTEN NUTILE, ACE
Kristen Nutile, ACE, is a documentary editor and filmmaker based in New York City. Most recently, Kristen edited the film TURN EVERY PAGE, directed by Lizzie Gottlieb and released by Sony Pictures Classics. In addition, she holds editing credits on FATHOM (AppleTV +), ART & KRIMES BY KRIMES (MTV Documentary Films), ADRIENNE (HBO), LOVE, GILDA (Magnolia Pictures), THE PLACE THAT MAKES US (PBS), DEEP RUN (Netflix), EVERY DAY IS A HOLIDAY (PBS). She edited UNFINISHED SPACES, which won an NY Independent Spirit Award and is part of the permanent collection at Museum of Modern Art. Kristen also edited WARRIOR WOMEN, which was nominated for a Peabody in 2020, as well as HEROIN(E) which was nominated for an Academy Award, a Peabody Award and went on to win an Emmy Award.
CONSULTING PRODUCER - FALLON YOUNG
Fallon Young is a Philadelphia based fundraiser, impact strategist and organizational leader driven by a passion for resourcing artists and social justice storytellers. They are currently Vice President of Partnerships & Strategy at Exposure Labs, the social impact film company behind Chasing Ice, Chasing Coral and The Social Dilemma. Prior to joining Exposure Labs in 2022, they served as Executive Director for the New Orleans Film Society, which produces the Oscar-qualifying New Orleans Film Festival and a suite of career development programs for diverse Southern directors and producers, and at the helm of SOMArts Cultural Center, a multidisciplinary artist support organization in San Francisco.
ASSISTANT CAMERA - CAMERON WOODLE
Cameron Woodle is a film editor and director from Los Angeles, California. His short films including his thesis project, I AM ONE OF THE PEOPLE, have received acclaim at festivals such as the International Social Change Film Festival and The New Orleans Film Festival. With a B.A. in Digital Media Production and Communication from Tulane University and a fascination with film editing, Cameron Woodle creates impactful stories with an emphasis on visceral storytelling.
ASSOCIATE PRODUCER - ANERI PATEL
Aneri Patel was born and raised in Houston, Texas. She is a full-time student at Tulane University, studying Marketing, Communications, and Dance. On Tulane’s campus and in the New Orleans community, she works to amplify the voices of artists of color and devotes herself to projects that showcase cultural diversity and seek social justice.