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csiff special recognition
About BILL DUKE
Bill Duke is an Actor, Director and Producer in Hollywood with more than 40 years of experience on-screen and behind the camera. His acting credits include recent television and feature film roles. He's currently working on several film and TV projects. Bill's autobiography, “Bill Duke: My 40- Year Career on Screen and Behind the Camera”, was released in November 2018, he also authored “The Journey: Tale of Human Healing” and “Works of the Invisible Man”.
Throughout the course of his career, he has been recognized by prestigious leaders and institutions for his work in television and film. He was appointed to the National Endowment of Humanities by President Bill Clinton and the Board of the California State and Film Commission by Former Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger. He has also served on the Board of Trustees at the American Film Institute and as the Time Warner Endowed Chair in the Department of Radio, Television, and Film at Howard University. He was also recognized by his peers with a Lifetime Achievement Tribute from the Directors Guild of America’s African- American Steering Committee in 2010.
In May of 2022, Bill was honored at The Jonathan Foundation for Learning Disabilities Gala for being a living legend and humanitarian. On June 20, 2022, Bill was honored to be in the Kingdom Day Parade with Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti. In addition to working on creative projects in Hollywood, the multi-hyphenate superstar has added another sobriquet to his long list of titles...Digital Network Owner.
On May 9, 2022, the YOUNITE Network launched, and will morph into a global media force, with global initiatives in the works. Bill also created Duke Media Entertainment to bring quality "Edutainment" to audiences around the globe. He coined the word to symbolize entertainment that also includes an educational element for the audience. Formerly Yagya Productions, Duke Media has successfully produced critically acclaimed film and television content for more than 30 years. Additionally, Duke Media is in process of expanding its brand through the development of new media technologies, i.e. cellphone apps, games, and virtual/metaverse world experiences.
Since the early 70s, Bill Duke along with industry veterans Michael Shultz and Gordon Parks, have long paved the way for the furtherance of African American actors, writers, directors, and producers in the entertainment and technology industries. Giving back has been a large part of Bill's Hollywood legacy. He runs the Duke Media Foundation, which for the last ten years has prepared youth for the future by exposing them to specific new media and financial literacy tools. This will enable them to compete, survive, and thrive. The economy is experiencing a paradigm shift far beyond film and TV to media. Film and TV are still important parts of the entertainment landscape, however, new media content has become a dominant force to be reckoned with. Bill encourages students to explore and master new technology as it emerges and evolves. The Youth Media Camp is the inaugural project of the Duke Media Foundation. The camp is a training and educational program that teaches youth the trade and craft of media production which includes film and video production, screenwriting, producing, directing, editing, and the introduction to new social media platforms. In addition, the foundation teaches financial literacy, the distinction between the spending of a dollar and the use of a dollar
IG: @realbillduke; FB @BillDuke
panels
ABOUT Diarra "Uncle P Collazo"
Diarra "Uncle P Collazo" is a Entertainment Consultant with a degree in Music Entertainment Mgt. Over 30 years experience working in all facets of Entertainment and music industries. IG: @detroitrap FB: Unclep313
ABOUT PANELISTS:
- David Velo Stewart is an independent filmmaker and author. In 2021, David Velo Stewart launched the TRILLVISION entertainment app (IOS & Android) to create a collaborative community to support indie creators with distribution, creative feedback and branding. David is a CSIFF Award Jurist, and he is the founder of HHB Media (CSIFF2022 Media Partner) IG: @therealtrillvision
- Wally Fall is a filmmaker of Senegalese and Martinican descent who grew up in Martinique. After taking evening classes on video filmmaking and editing in London he gained much of his early experience in Europe, the Caribbean and Africa on many video and tv projects before working on his own ones around 2013 : a narrative short film shot in Paris and a documentary shot in Senegal. In 2016, along with fellow filmmakers, he founded Cinemawon, a film collective dedicated to creating new spaces to screen films mostly overlooked from the Caribbean, Africa and other Afro diasporic spaces. Since 2017 he's back in the Caribbean in Guadeloupe where he lives and works. In 2020 he directed Fouyé Zétwal, an experimental short film from a collaboration with his friend, the actress and writer Anyès Noël. IG:@walyman
- Gerelle Forbes is a creative arts specialist with over two decades of experience. She has been a musical director, songwriter, vocalist and radio/TV presenter and now manages productions for live events, radio, television and film with her own media company, Sthenic22. Trinidad and Tobago heritage.
- Angelina Villapiano, also known as Miss Angelina, is a Puerto Rican artist that has an entertainment career spanning film, television, new media and music. She received her degree in Theatre from Northwestern University. She directed and produced the music web series "¡GLOBAILE!" that was featured on the television program "American Latino" and streamed in partnership with John Leguizamo’s NGL Media. She directed, wrote and produced the comedy web series "Pandemic and Chill" that was nominated for 3 awards in the Official Latino Film Festival including Best New Media.
ABOUT Maëlla Kancel
Sharing Caribbean narratives. This has been Maëlla Kancel’s motto since the launch of the Karukerament Podcast in 2019 to document the representation of the Caribbean in cinema and television. Maëlla is a CSIFF2022 Award Jurist and the founder of Karukerament Podcast (CSIFF2022 Media Partner)
IG: @karukerament
ABOUT PANELISTS:
- Richard Sénécal: Film and video director, cinematographer and editor with more than 30 years experience. All film genres : movies, documentaries, institutional films, TV advertisement, music videos.
- Monique A. Robinson is a multi-hyphenated artivist and healer, who uses the art of storytelling as a way to hold space for others. Her credits include: Fairview at the Berkeley Repertory Theater (Theater Bay Award Nominee for Outstanding Performance In a Featured Role, West Coast Premiere), Younger (Paramount), See You Yesterday (Netflix). She is also an award winning filmmaker and playwright. She is proud of her Jamaican and Afro-Cuban heritage. @niquerobinson; @monique.a.robinson.3
- Richard Joseph is an award winning independent filmmaker and screenwriter of Haitian descent from Brooklyn, New York. He started out acting in small roles in student films at NYU and Brooklyn College. Whilst acting in those films, Richard’s passion for filmmaking was ignited. He began his journey towards being a filmmaker by writing scripts and taking filmmaking courses and workshops. Richard has studied with Richard Kline (three’s company) and Independent filmmaker Ela Thier. He has acted and filmed with amazing Independent filmmakers such as Emmanuel Adinde, Evan Watson and Mike Brown. Richard’s major influences are Spike Lee, Charles Burnett, Julie Dash, Jim Jarmusch, Akira Kurosawa, Martin Scorsese and Stanley Kubrick. @Richlites; @RichLitesJoseph; @Harlemlovefilm; @Harlemlove
ABOUT Nadhege Ptah:
Nadhege is an award-winning actor, writer, producer, director, and dancer. Viewers can see her in a recurring role on SHOWTIME TV series City on a Hill. All Star Music Awards awarded her Best Actress of the Year for her performance on Showtime. With many of her own produced works or feature leads landing distribution in CBS, PBS, ABC, NBC, Comcast, FOX, etc., her own production company MAAT Films, is developing several projects. Nadhege is a CSIFF2022 Award Jurist.
IG:@nadhegeptah
ABOUT PANELISTS:
- Tracey Baker-Simmons is a seasoned television and film producer. Her critically acclaimed content has been featured on TLC, Lifetime, Oxygen, WeTV, VH1, Bravo and many other networks. Baker-Simmons has produced national commercials, music videos, an independent film, Bio-Pic and the pop-culture phenomenon Being Bobby Brown, a TV series starring Bobby Brown and Whitney Houston. She lives in New York area and works under her own production company, Baker Simmons Media. IG: @tbakersimmons FB: Tracey Baker Simmons
- Rosalind Y. Jackson: Creative Executive for Edmonds Entertainment and President/CEO for WordyGirl Entertainment, a multi-media company specializing in TV/film production, script consulting, and podcasting. IG: @wordygirlent FB: WordyGirl Entertainment
- Khalimah Gaston hails from Jamaica, Queens in the Big Apple; but currently resides in the city of angels, Los Angeles, CA. She has been driven by her passion for the performing arts, storytelling, and film production from a young age. She honed her natural gifts with formal training of acting for film and theater at The New York Conservatory for Dramatic Arts (NYCDA). Since then, she's done a variety of work with Off Off Broadway plays, commercials, voice overs, web series, and feature films. She is also the founder and creator of Screening Room ATL | LA; a premier film screening event for independent films. She has produced content for Tubi, revolt, Emory school of ethics and her own film. She’s looking forward to where God will take her . Follow her @khalimahofficial
ABOUT Nadhege Ptah:
Nadhege is an award-winning actor, writer, producer, director, and dancer. Viewers can see her in a recurring role on SHOWTIME TV series City on a Hill. All Star Music Awards awarded her Best Actress of the Year for her performance on Showtime. With many of her own produced works or feature leads landing distribution in CBS, PBS, ABC, NBC, Comcast, FOX, etc., her own production company MAAT Films, is developing several projects. Nadhege is a CSIFF2022 Award Jurist. IG:@nadhegeptah
ABOUT PANELISTS:
- Magaly Colimon-Christopher is the Founder/Director of Conch Shell International Film Fest. (Her bio is available on our About page) IG:@magalycolimonchristopher
- Grace Stelk is a Dutch filmmaker from Surinam descent born and raised in the Netherlands. Rise Up! is her first film but won't be the last. Her main goal is to make people aware of the worlds colonial heritage, because she believes that when we know better, we do better. IG: @gracestelk
- Seitu Jemel Hart is the former CEO of the Will & Jada Smith Family Foundation's(WJSFF) Careers in Entertainment (CIE) a premier social impact initiative powered by WJSFF to create more access, opportunities and inclusion in the entertainment industry. IG:seitujemel FB: Seitu Jemel Hart
- Clinton Roache is the owner of JR Sterling Productions, the executive producer of the award-winning film Sweet Rind. He is also a writer, director and proud Jamaican. @sweetrindthefilm
SPECIAL SCREENINGS
About MADAN SARA
The Madan Sara documentary tells the stories of these indefatigable women who work at the margins to make Haiti’s economy run. Despite facing intense hardship and social stigma, the hard work of the Madan Sara puts their children through school, houses their families, and helps to ensure a better life for generations to co
About MADAN SARA
The Madan Sara documentary tells the stories of these indefatigable women who work at the margins to make Haiti’s economy run. Despite facing intense hardship and social stigma, the hard work of the Madan Sara puts their children through school, houses their families, and helps to ensure a better life for generations to come. This film amplifies the calls of the Madan Sara as they speak directly to society to share their dreams for a more just Haiti.
Running time: 50 minutes
Awards:
Berlin Indie Film Festival | Best Director, Short Documentary | Pi Bòn Direktè, Kout dokimantè
Independent Short Awards | Gold Award Best Women Short | Prim Lò a, Pi bòn kout dokimantè fanm
Paris Play Film Festival | Best Documentary Quarter Finalist | Pi Bòn Dokimantè, kadefinal
Best Istanbul Film Festival | Best Feature Documentary | Pi Bòn Dokimantè
Caribbean Tales International Film Festival | Best Documentary | Pi Bòn Dokimantè
Dumbo Film Festival | Semi-Finalist | Semi finalis
London International Monthly Film Festival | Honorable Mention | Patisipasyon Onorab
Athens International Monthly Film Festival | Honorable Mention | Patisipasyon Onorab
Hayti Heritage Film Festival | Official Selection | Seleksyon Ofisyèl
Montreal Independent Film Festival | Official Selection | Seleksyon Ofisyèl
Harlem International Film Festival | Official Selection | Seleksyon Ofisyèl
Haiti International Film Festival | Official Selection | Seleksyon Ofisyèl
Niagara Canada International Film Festival | Official Selection | Seleksyon Ofisyèl
Festival International du Film PanAfricain de Cannes | Official Selection | Seleksyon Ofisyèl
About ETANT DUPAIN
Etant Dupain is a journalist, filmmaker, and community organizer. He has worked as a producer on documentaries and for international news media outlets like Al Jazeera. Etant founded an alternative media project enabling citizen journalists to provide information in Haitian Creole.
Now, moved by the strength of his mother and the women known as the Madan Sara who make Haiti’s economy run, he created his first personal film.
IG @mr_dupain
FB @MadanSarAyiti
About WITH WONDER
Born out of Director Sharon Lewis’ own muted struggle with not fitting into neat racial/Queer/Christian boxes, With Wonder takes an intimate look at the journey of members of the Queer, Christian community of color and their attempts to answer the question: Can you be both Christian and Queer? In this feature length docum
About WITH WONDER
Born out of Director Sharon Lewis’ own muted struggle with not fitting into neat racial/Queer/Christian boxes, With Wonder takes an intimate look at the journey of members of the Queer, Christian community of color and their attempts to answer the question: Can you be both Christian and Queer? In this feature length documentary, we hear from and see diverse members of the LGBTQI+ community, including high profile Queer activists and clerics, in places like Jamaica, New York, London, and Los Angeles. They each have their own unique ways of amplifying their voices and finding their way back to spiritual health, despite the shaming tactics of some Christian institutions. With Wonder is a love letter to God from the BPOC LGBTQI+ community.
Running time: 74 minutes
Screenings & Awards:
Audience Choice Award, Reelworld Film Festival, 2021
Official Selection, Out on Film Atlanta LGBT Film Festival, 2021
Official Selection, Black Alphabet Film Festival, 2021
Official Selection, OUT Kenya Film Festival, 2021
Official Selection, Toronto Black Film Festival, 2022
Official Selection, Halifax Black Film Festival, 2022
Official Selection, Calgary Black Film Festival, 2022
Official Selection, Inside Out Film Festival, 2022
Official Selection, Conch Shell International Film Festival, 2022
Official Selection, Weengushk International Film Festival, 2022
Official Selection, OUTSOUTH Queer Film Festival, 2022
About SHARON LEWIS
Sharon Lewis' focus in her directing career is to tell entertaining stories with a unique cinematic flavor and heavy-hitting performance. She has been nominated for 3 Canadian Screen Awards (CSA) and recently won a CSA for Best Direction for a Factual Series. Sharon's feature film debut, Brown Girl Begins (2017), is an Afro-futurist sci-fi tale of a young black woman who saves her community through her connection to Caribbean spirits.The film continues to play on Hulu, Amazon, and HBO, was recently named “one of the top 15 Black Sci-Fi Films” by Ranker.com and was nominated for a Canadian Screen Award for Best Screenplay. Sharon's first feature documentary, Disruptor Conductor (2019), is about the first openly-gay, black orchestral Conductor in Canada and it won “Best Documentary” at both Black Alphabet Film Festival 2020 and G International Film Festival 2021. Sharon’s recent TV directing credits include award-winning Death She Wrote for CTVDrama, Merry Liddle Christmas Wedding for Lifetime, Netflix's Ginny & Georgia, and NBC's Law & Order: Organized Crime, hit CBC series’ Murdoch Mysteries and Diggstown. Her latest feature documentary, With Wonder (2021), is about the LGBTQI+ community's grappling with the question: can you be Christian and Queer?
Sharon was born in Toronto, Canada and trained in Los Angeles, but she still has strong ties to her Jamaican/Trinidadian roots and works hard at giving voice to black people and people of color in all the projects she has the privilege of directing and producing.
IG & FB @thesharonlewis
About DEVOTION
Filled with despair by the loss of her mother in a car accident, 11-year-old bi-racial Alice finds it hard to accept that her father Grant wants to start a new life. This father/daughter story raises a question for each of them: Will Grant take responsibility for what he has done and put Alice's needs before his own? Can Ali
About DEVOTION
Filled with despair by the loss of her mother in a car accident, 11-year-old bi-racial Alice finds it hard to accept that her father Grant wants to start a new life. This father/daughter story raises a question for each of them: Will Grant take responsibility for what he has done and put Alice's needs before his own? Can Alice find it in her heart to forgive him? The intimacy of 'Devotion' provides a moving portrait of a bi-racial girl's struggle to find her voice.
Running time: 80 minutes
Awards:
Devotion (2005) won the Star! Audience Award at Toronto's Reel World Film Festival in 2005 and Best Feature at the San Francisco Black Film Festival's Urban Kidz Program in 2005. In 2008, Wilkinson won the Director's Guild of Canada's Emerging Television Director Award from Women In Film and Television Toronto.
About DAWN WILKINSON
Dawn Wilkinson was born in Montreal and raised in Toronto and is a graduate of the University of Toronto and the Canadian Film Centre’s Director's Lab and Short Dramatic Film Program. Dawn directed the award-winning feature film “Devotion” and short films: “Instant Dread”, “Dandelions”, “Wilderness”, and “Girls Who Say Yes”. Since being awarded the WIFT and DGC Emerging Television Director Award, Dawn has directed many of Canada's top drama series including “Heartland”, “Murdoch Mysteries”, and “Degrassi” which was nominated for a DGC AWARD for Best Family TV Series, and comedies “Sunnyside” and “Kim’s Convenience” which was also nominated for a Best Directing DGC Award.
In addition to being a member of the Directors Guild of Canada, and the Writers Guild of Canada, Dawn is a member of the Directors Guild of America and has gone on to directed a number of hit television series. Some of the shows she has directed include: "Empire", "How to Get Away with Murder", "All American", "All American: Homecoming", "Locke & Key", "Nashville", "Dynasty", "Greenleaf", "Riverdale", "Power Book II: Ghost", and the STARZ series "Step Up: High Water" (Season 3) in which Dawn served as executive producer and director for numerous episodes.Dawn received rave reviews for Hallmark’s TV movie "A Nashville Christmas Carol” which was filmed during the height of the global pandemic.
In 2022 Dawn Wilkinson directed the BET+ Original film "Block Party" which is the first ever Juneteenth Family Comedy. The film is the first of its kind to have a theatrical, streaming, and linear release in the same month of its release.
IG @directordawn
FB @dawn.wilkinson.1485
masterclasses
Mastering Indie Filmmaking
The secret to powerful on camera performances
The secret to powerful on camera performances
In this engaging masterclass students will discuss the steps of indie film production.
"Even if you don’t have a project you are looking to produce right now, come with your dream project and we will walk through the process of making your dream true. " - Marquis
About Master Instructor:
MARQUIS SMALLS
Marquis Smalls is an award winning Produ
In this engaging masterclass students will discuss the steps of indie film production.
"Even if you don’t have a project you are looking to produce right now, come with your dream project and we will walk through the process of making your dream true. " - Marquis
About Master Instructor:
MARQUIS SMALLS
Marquis Smalls is an award winning Producer with over 18 years experience creating content for the web, cable networks, streamers and film festivals worldwide. Marquis is most known for feature length documentaries HATING OBAMA which premiered on the STARZ network and BACK TO NATURAL which is currently on RevoltTV. His narrative webseries and short films such as The Married Bachelor and Harriet Returns have won him awards and industry acclaim.
The secret to powerful on camera performances
The secret to powerful on camera performances
The secret to powerful on camera performances
SPIRIT CHANNEL THROUGH THE WINDOWS OF THE SOUL.
In this interactive acting workshop students will explore how to ignite and transfer thoughts and intentions for powerful on camera acting.
(Participants will prepare a brief one person piece which will be provided by Ms. Taylor).
About Master Instructor:
REGINA TAYLOR
REGINA TAYLOR Actress/W
SPIRIT CHANNEL THROUGH THE WINDOWS OF THE SOUL.
In this interactive acting workshop students will explore how to ignite and transfer thoughts and intentions for powerful on camera acting.
(Participants will prepare a brief one person piece which will be provided by Ms. Taylor).
About Master Instructor:
REGINA TAYLOR
REGINA TAYLOR Actress/Writer/Director. Ms. Taylor in her TV Role as Lily Hpaer in “I’ll Fly Away” received a Golden Globe Award for Best Performance by an Actress. 3 NAACP Image Awards and two Emmy Award nominations.
Her numerous acting credits include: “All Day and A Night”(Netflix); Council of Dads (NBC) and “Love Craft County” (HBO), Red Line (CSB), “The Good Fight” (CBS), “The First Lady” (Showtime), "Blue Bloods" (CBS) and more.
CRAFTING A COMPELLING PERSONAL NARRATIVE
The secret to powerful on camera performances
CRAFTING A COMPELLING PERSONAL NARRATIVE
Whether you are meeting with development executives, show runners, or producers, the most important question you will undoubtedly be asked is“What is your story?” This is your opportunity to make a memorable impression and personal connection with the person sitting across from you.
In this interactive, hands-on workshop you will enga
Whether you are meeting with development executives, show runners, or producers, the most important question you will undoubtedly be asked is“What is your story?” This is your opportunity to make a memorable impression and personal connection with the person sitting across from you.
In this interactive, hands-on workshop you will engage in a series of exercises designed to help you convey your uniqueness, identify the defining moments that drive your work, and craft an unforgettable personal narrative.
About Master Instructor:
FRANCE LUCE BENSON
Award-winning playwright/screenwriter, including the Lily’s 2021 Lorraine Hansberry Award, NYSCA’s Individual Artist Award, two-time Bay Area Playwright’s Festival semi-finalist, Dramatist Guild Fellow, and Sony Pictures Television Diverse Writers Fellow. Staff writer for Viacom/CBS(Bass Reeves), Zoetrope Grand Prize for screenplay Caroline’s Wedding; Alfred P. Sloan Award for screenplay Healing Roots.
PRODUCT DEMOs
Learn about the features of FinalDraft 12
In this demo you will learn more about how Final Draft12 can help you brainstorm, visualize, outline, report, tag, collaborate and customize your writing environment like never before.
Final Draft’s screenwriting software “the choice for studios and production companies worldwide.
Final Draft is a C
Learn about the features of FinalDraft 12
In this demo you will learn more about how Final Draft12 can help you brainstorm, visualize, outline, report, tag, collaborate and customize your writing environment like never before.
Final Draft’s screenwriting software “the choice for studios and production companies worldwide.
Final Draft is a CSIFF2022 Larimar Award Sponsor
Learn about the features of
ShotPutPro
In this demo you will be seeing a walkthrough of the 2022 version ShotPut Pro. With numerous new features and changes, this update of ShotPut Pro truly streamlines your workflow
Since 1991, Imagine Products has helped digital video professionals (and beginners) back up, view, organize, share, transcode
Learn about the features of
ShotPutPro
In this demo you will be seeing a walkthrough of the 2022 version ShotPut Pro. With numerous new features and changes, this update of ShotPut Pro truly streamlines your workflow
Since 1991, Imagine Products has helped digital video professionals (and beginners) back up, view, organize, share, transcode and archive their irreplaceable work.
Imagine Products is a CSIFF2022 Larimar Award Sponsor
And more
afTERPARTIES
Meet filmmakers and film lovers in our OPENING NIGHT & CLOSING NIGHT Afterparties where Samuel Archer's curated playlist of dance-inspiring collection of Caribbean music will bring an uplifting and fun end to a wonderful Conch Shell IFF day.
About Curator:
Samuel E. Archer lives in the U.S. and is a celebrated songwriter, arranger, music producer, recording engineer, filmmaker, and author. Samuel has taught music in Tobago and the U.S. He holds a Music Business Bachelors of Science Degree from Full Sail University. He has worked on recordings spanning from 1989 to present which includes a catalog of his independent musical works. Additionally, Samuel founded a Digital Marketing Company, Samsdigital.net, and an online entertainment and music publication, Muzilog.