NYWIFT Blog

WIFT Around the World: Postcard from MIPCOM Cannes

NYWIFT member Panayiota Pagoulatos returned to Cannes a second time this year to attend MIPCOM, where she was pleased to find celebrations of women and diversity in entertainment, and to preview several exciting new TV series.

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Women Producers at the 2022 New York Film Festival

NYWIFT member Judith Davis offers snapshots from the 2022 New York Film Festival, focusing on three of the hottest films produced by women: Tár, Till, and The Inspection.

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NYWIFT Member Spotlight: Arlette Thomas-Fletcher

NYWIFT member Arlette Thomas-Fletcher is a multi-talented filmmaker and production executive. She has handled every creative and technical aspect of media production during her decades-long career, writing, directing, and producing her own projects and those of others. Arlette is a published author and has several books on Amazon, including her children’s book Dreamer’s Journey, which was just released. She is currently working on an animated series called The Cat Faced Cat.

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The Ecuadorian Film Festival in New York Announces Lineup

Maravilla, the New York-based organization dedicated to raising awareness of Latin America through films and the arts, announces its seventh edition of the Ecuadorian Film Festival in New York (EFFNY), with the support of media partner Telemundo and includes Queens Museum, Nuyorican Poets Café, the Barrymore Film Center, and fiscal sponsor New York Women and Film & TV.

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Meet the New NYWIFT Member: Alfreda Howard

Welcome to NYWIFT, hair & makeup artist Alfreda Howard! Fre Howard is the proud owner of Faces By Fre, LLC, Makeup Artistry and is on the Board of Directors of Philadelphia WIFT. Her most recent credits include Makeup Department Head for Netflix’s "Free Meek", Season 13 of "Mystery Science Theatre 3000," and national commercials including a Smartwater spot with Pete Davidson. She has also designed makeup and wigs for several operas! Howard spoke to us about special effects makeup, advocacy & education, and how the pandemic shaped her career.

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Meet the New NYWIFT Member: Fay Gartenberg

Let’s give a warm NYWIFT welcome to new member Fay Gartenberg! Gartenberg is an Assistant Editor and a member of the Motion Picture Editor's Guild (IATSE Local 700). Their projects span across narrative film, documentary film, scripted television, and finishing. Prior to working in the film industry, they provided video therapy for patients and families at Mount Sinai Kravis Children’s Hospital. Gartenberg talked to us about their favorite projects, latest binge-watch recommendations, and approach to work/life balance.

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WIFT Around the World: Getting to Know WIFT Austin

When I saw that Alicia Eastes, the founder of Women in Film & TV Austin, recently joined New York Women in Film & Television (NYWIFT) as a Dual Member, I had to know more! What followed was a wide-ranging email conversation with Alicia and WIFT Austin Board Members President Laura Annalora and Vice President Chiara McCarty about the Texas film industry, the pandemic, and what it’s like to build your own Women in Film & Television organization from the ground up.

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Meet the New NYWIFT Board Member: Emelyn Stuart

NYWIFT is thrilled to welcome new board members to our leadership team for the 2022-2023 season! Powerhouse entrepreneur Emelyn Stuart, one of our newest NYWIFT Board Members, is the owner and founder of Stuart Cinema & Café in Brooklyn, which in addition to being a screening space will offer distribution deals to independent filmmakers and be a resource hub for artists. She was named Best Producer at LA Web Fest for her series 12 Steps to Recovery, and her feature Life Is Too Short premiered to sold out audiences in New York during its debut screening and in 2017 it was awarded Best Feature Film domestically and internationally at various film festivals.

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How I spent my Covid ‘way-cation’

NYWIFT member makeup artist Jennifer Snowdon reflects on how her plans were waylaid by COVID, which also gave her ample time to reflect, re-imagine, and re-shape her business into an exciting new form!

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Meet the New NYWIFT Board Member: Shruti Ganguly

New York Women in Film & Television is thrilled to welcome new board members to our leadership team for the 2022-2023 season! Globetrotting new NYWIFT Board Member Shruti Ganguly is an award-winning filmmaker and writer based between New York and Oslo. Ganguly was a member of the Obama Administration’s ECCO committee of 30 leaders and creators in entertainment, chairing its Asian Caucus, and is on the Creative Council for Emily's List. She has produced films that have premiered at Sundance, Venice, Tribeca, Telluride, and Berlin, and is currently writing for Secret Daughter for Amazon Studios, which will star Priyanka Chopra and Sienna Miller.

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Interview with Sigourney Weaver, Star of “The Good House”

Tammy Reese interviews award-winning actor Sigourney Weaver about her latest role in "The Good House!" "The Good House" follows Hildy Good (Weaver), a New England realtor and descendant of the Salem witches, who loves her wine and her secrets. Her compartmentalized life begins to unravel as she rekindles a romance with her old high-school flame, Frank Getchell (Kevin Kline), and becomes dangerously entwined in one person’s reckless behavior. Igniting long-buried emotions and family secrets, Hildy is propelled toward a reckoning with the one person she’s been avoiding for decades: herself.

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Meet the New NYWIFT Member: Achiro P. Olwoch

Please join us in welcoming Achiro P. Olwoch to the NYWIFT community! Olwoch is a queer artist in exile from Gulu in Northern Uganda, currently living in New York. She is an award-winning writer, director, and producer with several series and shorts to her name, and is currently writing a novel and two memoirs. Her play The Survival recently had its debut performance at Lincoln Center, produced by the National Queer Theatre. She spoke to us about living in exile, her artistic journey, and her resilience.

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Meet the New NYWIFT Board Member: Kia Brooks

NYWIFT is thrilled to welcome new board members to our leadership team for the 2022-2023 season! We sat down with new NYWIFT Board Member Kia Brooks who, as Deputy Director of longtime NYWIFT partner The Gotham Film and Media Institute (formerly IFP), is no stranger to the NYWIFT community! Brooks created The Gotham’s Owning It program that supports women and non-binary media makers and entrepreneurs who break boundaries in the media and entertainment industry, and developed the Expanding Communities program, which provides resources, community space, and industry access to individuals with Disabilities and BIPOC and LGBTQIA+ creators.

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Meet the New NYWIFT Member: Isi Laborde

We are thrilled to welcome new NYWIFT member Isi Laborde! Isi is a Brooklyn-based actor (AEA, SAG/AFTRA). Her film roles include Return to Montauk, directed by Academy Award-winner Volker Schlöndorff, and Jay-Z’s music video “Smile,” directed by Grammy-winner Miles Jay. She has had TV appearances in Facebook TV's Strangers and Paramount's Younger. Theater credits include The Bacchae at La Mama Experimental Theatre Club and Skip to My Lou at Theater for the New City. Isi spoke to us about her craft, how she kept up her creativity during COVID, and her dream role!

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Meet the New NYWIFT Member: Ekaterina Korshunova

Let’s welcome new NYWIFT member Ekaterina Korshunova! Ekaterina (or Kate for short) attended Moscow’s RUDN University where she graduated with a degree in journalism. Kate currently works as a freelance social media coordinator and producer. She has filmed and produced promotional videos for many local businesses as well as major brands. She spoke to us about her move to the US, her teaching philosophy, and her dreams for the future.

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Meet the New NYWIFT Member: Ching Juhl

Welcome, new NYWIFT member Ching Juhl! Ching is a Chinese American filmmaker, video journalist, and music educator who has directed, filmed, edited, and produced three feature films, promotional videos, and hundreds of shorts. Her feature documentary My Yang Gang Diary, which she shot entirely on an iPhone 11, won Best Feature Film Award at Toronto Documentary Film Festival in 2021. Ching spoke to us about the benefits of shooting on iPhone, the intersection of music and filmmaking, and the friends who brought her to NYWIFT.

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Meet the New NYWIFT Member: Elizabeth Ramjit

Let’s give a warm NYWIFT welcome to new member Elizabeth Ramjit! Elizabeth is an accomplished film/video editor with 10 years of experience in film and tv production and advertising. Elizabeth loves bringing awareness to current events and pressing world issues, to inspire important conversations among her audience. She’s always interested in new opportunities to explore new avenues of content, and enjoys brining her unique perspective to her collaborators’ projects. Elizabeth spoke to us about what stories inspire her, her dreams for the future, and why she could be #YourFavoriteFemaleEditor.

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Meet the New NYWIFT Member: Kelly Reagan

Welcome, new NYWIFT member Kelly Reagan! We are so happy to introduce Kelly, who has so much to offer our community. She is a four-time Emmy-nominated producer and writer who has a deep history with major networks like Nickelodeon and Oprah's OWN. She has worked on many projects as a senior writer and producer, including one featuring great names like Michelle Obama (and she even received a letter from the First Family after filming together). We’re thrilled to have her join New York Women in Film & Television and can't wait to see what she does next.

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