Board of Directors

2026-2027 Board of Directors

 

Kim Jackson, President

Kim Jackson, co-founder of Evotion Entertainment, is a celebrated creative producer whose work has received Gotham, Spirit, and NAACP Award nominations as well as the Grand Prize at the Deauville Film Festival. Jackson’s films have been selected for opening night at New Directors/New Films at MoMA, the London Science Museum and featured in competition at several notable festivals including Sundance, Cannes, Rotterdam and Deauville.

Jackson is a member of the PGA, the Artist Academy at Lincoln Center, Producers United, Women Independent Producer and is currently serving as the Chair of the Board of Directors for New York Women in Film & Television.

 

 

 

 

Sibyl Reymundo-Santiago, VP of Special Events

With a career spanning over three decades across the United States and Asia, Sibyl Reymundo-Santiago has built a distinguished body of work in film, television, and stage production, collaborating with major studios including MyxTV, Regal Films, Star Cinema, Metro Style, and ABS-CBN, as well as global brands such as Google, YouTube, and Target—reflecting a broad and impactful presence across the media landscape.

As President of Sitting Cat Productions, Sibyl has led the release of multiple award-winning films, including the feature SAM—executive produced by Mel Brooks and starring Morgan Fairchild, Tom Pelphrey, and Bryan Batt; the U.S. production of Antoinette Jadaone’s Alone Together, featuring Philippine superstar Liza Soberano; and the thriller Follow Her, directed by Emmy Award–winner Sylvia Caminer and starring Luke Cook, Mark Moses, and Dani Barker.

A multi-award-winning actor, as well as an accomplished producer and director, Sibyl currently serves on the Board of New York Women in Film & Television, where she is the Vice President of Special Events. Her professional affiliations include SAG-AFTRA, Actors’ Equity Association (AEA), the British Academy of Film & Television Arts (BAFTA), Women Independent Producers (WIP), Producers Without Borders, and the Producers Guild of America (PGA)—where she is a founding member and former Co-Lead of the AAPI Working Group. Sibyl’s contributions have been recognized with numerous honors, including being named one of The Outstanding Filipino Americans in New York – Arts & Culture at Carnegie Hall, receiving the Community Collaboration Award from Women in Action & Media, and most recently, being included among the 75 Most Influential Filipino Americans of 2025.

She is currently developing multiple feature projects, an in-progress documentary that has earned her the prestigious p.g.a. mark, and her own original series. Sibyl also serves as Executive Director and Head of Programming of the SOHO Creative Lab Foundation and of the SOHO International Film Festival (SIFFNYC), marking her 16th year at its helm.

 

Emelyn Stuart, Treasurer

Emelyn Stuart is a visionary entrepreneur, creative strategist, and passionate advocate for inclusivity in the arts. As the owner of the first Afro-Latina-owned movie theater, Stuart Cinema & Cafe, she has carved out a vital space for diverse voices in the industry. When she isn’t building movie theaters or overseeing her popular Ocktober Film Festival, Emelyn can be found on Capitol Hill in Washington, DC, lobbying on behalf of movie theaters and filmmakers. Emelyn embodies the belief that art has the power to transform society, and she is committed to uplifting the voices and stories that deserve to be heard.

 

 

 

 

Maria C. Miles, Secretary

Maria C. Miles, Esq. is the founder of an entertainment law practice with offices in New York. Maria’s practice focuses on all areas of entertainment and media law, including, film (both documentary and narrative), television (scripted and non-scripted), literary publishing and new media. Her clients consist primarily of independent film producers, directors, writers and talent. Prior to starting her own practice, Maria was general counsel for a multi-media digital start-up working on a diverse range of subject-matter areas including a webseries and editorial content, corporate and financing transactions, technology development and licensing, employment and intellectual property (including a large catalogue of trademarks, copyrights and patents) both in the US and abroad.

Prior to her role as in-house counsel, Maria was associated with a large law firm where she served as counsel to numerous award-winning actors, writers, producers, television hosts, authors and multi-platinum recording artists, sports teams, and corporations in the fashion and retail industries related to their entertainment and intellectual property matters.

Maria is an Adjunct Professor at The Feirstein Graduate School of Cinema, The School of Visual Arts and NYU Tisch. She serves on the Board of New York Women in Film & Television and President of the Board of the Hellenic Film Society USA. Maria is admitted to practice in the State of New York, The United States District Court, Eastern & Southern Districts of New York, and The United States Supreme Court.

 

Luchina Fisher

Luchina Fisher (she/her) is an Emmy award-winning director, producer and writer on a mission to tell stories that move the world. Her short documentary THE DADS, about five fathers of trans kids bonding on a weekend fishing trip, won the 2024 Daytime Emmy Award for Outstanding Short Form Program. The film was executive produced by Dwyane Wade and acquired by Netflix. Her directorial debut, MAMA GLORIA, about a Black trans elder activist, was nominated for a 2022 GLAAD Media Award and broadcast on PBS. She is also the director of the award-winning short documentary TEAM DREAM, executive produced by Queen Latifah, and the award-winning feature documentary LOCKED OUT, about the barriers to Black homeownership. Her latest feature documentary THE DADS follows some of the same fathers from her Emmy Award winning short. Her new project about the unsung history of Black queer presence in music was the winner of the 2023 PitchBLACK Film Forum. Luchina has directed two scripted short films and written and produced several nationally broadcast documentaries.

Her honors include a GLAAD Special Recognition Award, Roger Ebert’s Golden Thumb and numerous film festival prizes. Luchina began her career as a journalist, writing for People, the Miami Herald, The New York Times, The Oprah Magazine and ABC News. She is a 2026 inductee into the North Carolina Media and Journalism Hall of Fame. Her work has been supported by Chicken & Egg, the Gotham, Firelight Media, the National Endowment for the Humanities, Dok Leipzig, Black Public Media, the Field Foundation, Sisters in Cinema, Brown Girls Doc Mafia, the Queen Collective and Women Make Movies.

Luchina is committed to guiding the next generation of storytellers and teaches documentary filmmaking at Yale University and is a visiting professor at Fairfield University. She is a member of the Television Academy and NATAS and proudly serves on the board of NYWIFT.

 

 

Toni R. Isreal

Toni R. Isreal is a senior arts and entertainment executive with extensive experience in brand strategy, tourism, group sales, and live theatrical production. She currently serves as Group Sales Assistant Manager, Tourism / GSBO Broadway.com at John Gore Organization, where she supports Broadway and touring productions through strategic partnerships, revenue-driven initiatives, and national representation.

In addition to her executive leadership role, Toni is the Founder of REALEMN Productions, a Broadway and tour-focused production company centered on partnerships, audience development, and producing. Known for her collaborative leadership style and business-forward approach, she brings a results-driven mindset to every project—aligning creative excellence with audience growth, market expansion, and organizational impact.

Toni has built a growing and respected producing slate that spans theater, film, television, and music. Her credits include a co-producing role on the HADESTOWN Tour and London (ReACT) and LA’s The Secret Garden. In film, The RS Collective serves as Co-Executive Producer of VIVA VERDI!. Her theatrical work includes Joe Turner’s Come and Gone and WANTED: The Legend of the Sisters Clarke (currently in active raises). Television projects are in development, with music projects forthcoming.

Toni is deeply committed to industry leadership and advocacy. She serves as a Board Member of New York Women in Film & Television and REAL WOMEN (DMV), and is a Co-Founder of The Industry Standard Group (TISG). She is a 2023–2024 Broadway League Associate Member, a Commercial Theater Institute (CTI) Graduate, and a recipient of the Award for Excellence in Economic Empowerment from the National Coalition of 100 Black Women (Central New Jersey Chapter).

 

Neyda Martinez

Neyda Martínez Sierra is a three-time Sundance Institute fellow, educator, filmmaker, producer, curator, and cultural leader whose work advances the intersection of arts, media, social justice, and cultural equity. She was named a Sundance x Adobe Woman to Watch in 2024 and is a fellow of the Sundance Documentary Producing Program, the Mellon Initiative for Inclusive Faculty Excellence (2023–24), and the Heilbroner Capitalism Fellowship at The New School for Social Research (2022–23). Her work uses storytelling and creative practice as tools for civic engagement, historical memory, and creative resistance.

As a producer and creative collaborator, her credits include Decade of Fire and Lucky. She is currently producing The People v. Austerity, Bartolo, and an untitled documentary on poet, feminist, and human rights advocate Alaíde Foppa. Her work explores the relationships between culture, power, identity, and collective memory.

Martínez Sierra is the guest curator of Laberinto: Conciencia Espiritual, a major solo exhibition by Diógenes Ballester Rodríguez at the Museo de Arte de Puerto Rico, on view through November 8, 2026. The exhibition examines the artist’s decolonial framework of Arteología through immersive and multidisciplinary forms. She is Associate Professor of Professional Practice in Media Management in the Systems and Social Futures department at Parsons School of Design, The New School, and holds a Master of Public Administration from Columbia University.

 

 

Okema T. Moore

Okema T. Moore is an Emmy- and NAACP Image Award–nominated, ABFF-winning director, producer, and writer committed to bold, emotionally resonant storytelling across platforms. A Brooklyn native and proud multi-hyphenate, she began her career as a performer before moving behind the camera, where she has become a dynamic creative leader in branded, scripted, and unscripted work.

Her films have screened at Tribeca, Outfest, and Reel Sisters. In 2024 and 2025, Okema wrote and produced the EBONY Power 100 Awards and served as lead producer on the Oscar-qualified, NAACP Image Award–nominated short Chocolate with Sprinkles. In 2025, she directed Ally Bank’s Money Roots campaign and earned her first directing award at the American Black Film Festival for her short Laundry, along with four additional Best Director wins and six other awards for the film.

Her unscripted credits include Netflix, OWN, BET, Marvel/Disney, and STARZ, where she developed the GLAAD- and Humanitas-nominated Down in the Valley. A member of Sigma Gamma Rho Sorority, Inc., she serves on the boards of NYWIFT and is a member of AICP, AWD and NY Television Academy, advocating for equity and access across the industry.

 

 

Audrey Rosenberg

Audrey Rosenberg is a Peabody-Award-winning and Emmy-nominated filmmaker known for her ability to cultivate talent, develop material and champion projects from inception through to release. She has recently been focusing on writing and directing in both the documentary and narrative space. Audrey has a unique ability to remain outside the Hollywood system while also working within it to promote authentic storytelling and to advocate for projects that deserve visibility. Audrey co-founded Invisible Pictures, a NY-based woman-led production company. For Invisible, Audrey was lead producer and co-writer on the award-winning HBO Original documentary KATRINA BABIES that premiered at Tribeca 2022 in competition and aired on HBO August 2022. She produced the award-winning film BULL, which premiered at Cannes 2019, Executive Produced the series SOUL CITY (with directors Coodie&Chike) which premiered on Topic in April 2020, and produced the feature LONG WEEKEND, which was released by Sony in March 2021. Audrey is an EP on Sandi Dubowski’s highly anticipated SABBATH QUEEN which world premiered at Tribeca 2024 and has had a worldwide theatrical release. Other credits include EP (with Steven Soderbergh) on the Emmy-nominated HBO documentary HIS WAY, and EP on HBO’s Emmy-winning BY THE PEOPLE: THE ELECTION OF BARACK OBAMA (with Edward Norton). Audrey was part of the producing team on Douglas McGrath’s INFAMOUS (starring Sandra Bullock, Daniel Craig, and Toby Jones). She produced Sean Gullette’s award-winning feature, TRAITORS, Co-EP’d Dawn Porter’s award-winning TRAPPED and was Consulting Producer for Raoul Peck’s multi-award winning and Academy-Award nominated I AM NOT YOUR NEGRO. Audrey’s films have been exhibited at prestigious festivals including Cannes, Venice, Sundance, Tribeca, Toronto, Telluride. She is a member of the Television Academy, Producer’s United, and serves proudly on the board of NYWIFT.

 

 

Tonya Thomas

Tonya Thomas is Deputy Director of Black Public Media (BPM), where she helps drive organizational strategy, cultivate cross-sector partnerships, advance fundraising and community engagement efforts, and support initiatives that expand opportunities for independent filmmakers and creative technologists. She is also the founder of JoLa Films, Inc., where she launched and leads a TV and media-focused youth work readiness program. In collaboration with the Bridgehampton Child Care and Recreational Center and Black Public Media, she curates an annual short film series for the Hamptons Black Film, Art, and Culture Series (formerly the Black Film Festival) in Sag Harbor, New York.

Tonya’s career spans television and film, philanthropy, higher education, nonprofit leadership, and public media. Her previous roles include National Director of Programs at the Tourette Association of America, Associate Program Officer at The New York Community Trust’s Long Island office, and Director of Partnership Development and Programming at SUNY College at Old Westbury. Earlier in her career, she worked in television production, including on Rolonda and The Montel Williams Show, and served as Marketing Research Manager at Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation.

Her leadership has been recognized by Long Island Business News with its Diversity in Business Award. A longtime NYWIFT member, Tonya is passionate about expanding opportunities for storytellers, building meaningful partnerships, and connecting creative work with communities. Tonya holds a B.S. from Boston University and an M.S.W. from Fordham University. She is a member of the Long Island (NY) Chapter of The Links, Incorporated, an associate member of Jack and Jill of America, Nassau County Chapter, and serves on the Board of the Rockville Centre Education Foundation.

 

Marsha S. Brooks, Esq., Legal Counsel to NYWIFT

Marsha S. Brooks is a partner in the New York City law firm of Brooks & Distler. She has worked primarily in the areas of entertainment and intellectual property law for over 30 years. Brooks represents producers, writers, directors, rights owners and “for profit” and “not-for-profit” institutions in the fields of legitimate theatre, motion picture, television and “new” technology. She is general counsel for the National Alliance for Musical Theatre and New York Women in Film and Television, Inc. Brooks served as co-Vice Chair of the Theatre and Performing Arts Division of the ABA Forum on the Entertainment and Sports Industries. Brooks has been a guest lecturer on a variety of subjects in the areas of intellectual property and arts-related law at, among others, Stanford University School of Law, Columbia University School of Law, Fordham Law School, New York University School of Law, Hofstra Law School, Commercial Theater Institute, Symposia of the American Bar Association’s Forum on the Entertainment and Sports Industries, Showbiz Expo East and Duke University.

 

 

President’s Circle

Leslie Fields-Cruz, Executive Director, Black Public Media (CHAIR)
Alexis Alexanian, Producer
Laverne Berry, Law Office of Laverne Berry
Grace Blake, Producer
Mirra Bank Brockman, Director/Producer
Marsha S. Brooks, Esq., Brooks & Distler (Legal Counsel to NYWIFT)
Beth Dembitzer, Producer/Director, Social Cinema
Alice Elliott, Director/Producer
Patricia Fili- Krushel, Executive
Harlene Freezer, Capstone Entertainment
Ellen C. Geiger, Frances Goldin Literary Agency, Inc.
Carey Graeber, Great Plains Productions
Terry Greenberg, Producer, Short and Sweet Productions
Lisa Hackett, Leftfield Entertainment
Wendy Keys, Producer
Terry Lawler, TLC Company
Alexandra Levi, Element Financial Group
Susan Margolin, St. Marks Productions
Annetta Marion, Director
Eileen Newman, President of Eileen Newman Consulting
Joy Pereths, Essential Media LLC
Simone Pero, Producer, For Impact Productions
Terrie Pologianis, A+E Networks
Marquita Pool-Eckert, Eckert Associates
Diane Robina, TV Guide Network
Wendy Sax, Producer
Marcie L. Setlow, Setlow Media
Claire Shanley, Producer
Diane Sokolow, Sokolow & Company
Caren Spruch, National Director, Arts & Entertainment Engagement, Planned Parenthood Federation of America
Patrizia Von Brandenstein, Production Designer
Ellen Zalk, Fractional Chief Operations Officer
Jamie Zelermyer, Producer