CELEBRATING A 10-YEAR ANNIVERSARY

 AIFF is pleased to welcome three new judges that will join the Selection Committee for 2020. They are Belal Taheri of Iran, Sandip Pratihar of India, and Shahrzad Dadgar of Iran/Jacksonville, FL. With submissions growing beyond 2,000 films a year, there was a need to increase the Selection Committee that now totals sixteen members. We welcome the expertise of these judges and appreciate the local as well as international representation we have on the Committee. It is indeed a daunting task to view the numerous films and select those that will comprise the Film Festival. These judges are tasked with keeping the mission of the Festival at the fore of their decision-making process as well as evaluating for content and technical achievements. We thank those judges that have been with us since the inception of the Festival’s organization in 2010, to those that have joined along the way, and we look forward to working with new members of the team. Now meet the new judges!

Shahrzad Dadgar is an award-winning filmmaker and photographer from Hamedan, Iran. Dadgar earned a Bachelor of Science Degree in urban engineering from Azad University in Hamedan, Iran before pursuing a film career. As an artist, Shahrzad's work focuses on promoting understanding of women's empowerment, and women who have suffered from sexual issues. Shahrzad has received the coveted Golden Gazzale from the Persian Int’l Film Festival in Australia, the Best Inspirational Women in Film award from the Festigious Film Festival in Los Angeles, and Best Script award from the Cervaignano Film Festival in Italy. Dadgar is now attending Jacksonville University’s College Of Fine Arts in Florida on a talent scholarship grant and continues to make independent films.

Sandip Pratihar is an independent filmmaker from the small village of Tajpur in India. He enjoys working on surreal subjects, dramas, and documentaries. Sandip is also a screenplay writer, having written eight feature film scripts. He believes that film is a medium where people can enjoy time together, where they can discover both their joys and sorrows. His continuing endeavor is to make the kind of films where the lost and unwelcome voices of our world will reach the people.

Belal Taheri is an Iranian independent filmmaker and content distributor professional at Cineport media, an online submission platform that assists filmmakers and festivals. Belal has been a jury member for more than 56 international film festivals, Edinburgh, Oxaca, Jaipur, Euro, Ethnografilm, Mediterranean, and the Cannes Film Festivals to name a few. He is also the founder and director of the Cineport International Film Festival. 

Judges that will continue with us this year are:

Akasa Stephe Angba is an African filmmaker, producer, director, and editor from Nigeria, with over 15 years of experience as an independent film practitioner, film teacher and consultant. He studied film at the National Film Institute Jos, where he earned a professional diploma before moving ahead to earn a Bachelor’s Degree, all in film production. He was technical director for the Africa Movie Academy (the parent body of AMA Awards) and has coordinated and lectured on film across the continent of Africa through the Film in a Box-training Program organized by the Africa Film Academy. These trainings have been held in South Africa, Malawi, and Nigeria amongst other countries. He has also worked with the Nigerian government through the Independent Electoral Commission to ensure a violent-free 2015 national election using audiovisual content. He has complete productions for renowned NGO’s like Action Aid and Save The Children International, producing documentaries/audiovisual campaigns against child malnutrition in northern Nigeria. Over the years, his work as an independent filmmaker includes documentaries, feature films, short films, television films and series, add campaigns and music videos. He has worked on projects like ‘GRA Women’, a popular television series in Nigeria produced by PMO Global, ‘DAISY’, a feature film starring Nigerian and Ghanaian leading actors, and music videos like ‘FOR YOU’ by the famous gospel musician Dorcas Bentu. Akasa is a man passionate about culture and art, most importantly the business of it all.

Lawrence Benedict is a graduate of the National Theatre School of Canada, has studied at the American Academy of Dramatic Arts, New York, and is a veteran of the Stratford Shakespeare Festival of Canada. He has performed on stage in over 42 full Equity productions, and in TV and film in both United States and Canada. In Los Angeles, he founded “Angus Lake Productions” where he learned most behind-the-camera disciplines while producing promotional video for studios such as Universal and directors such as Steven Spielberg. He has edited Disney trailers and a full-length feature he edited, "Forgiving the Franklins," became a Sundance Selection. Lawrence has taught at Banff School of Fine Arts, UCLA Extension and Screen Actors Guild. He is author of “The Video Demo Tape” – published by Focal Press, and “How to Shoot Better Camcorder Videos; Help from the Hollywood Pros.” Lawrence currently performs improv with “The Playground.”

Kate Bernhardt is an accomplished, innovative and creative marketing and communications professional with deep experience in content creation and management, marketing innovation, brand strategy, broadcast and Internet media, marketing campaigns, client and stakeholder management, event planning, team management and development, and translating industry best practices to build brands and drive business success.  A consensus-building leader, Kate has an energetic work style, strategic as well as tactical and a unique ability to successfully blend industry knowledge with management and content expertise. Kate is the Communications and Media Consultant for KB Media & Marketing and lives in Arlington, MA.

Alice Bouvrie brings over 20 years of experience in the film industry to her role as documentary Producer and Director. She holds a Master’s Degree in Film Production from Boston University, a Master’s Degree in Intercultural Relations from Lesley University, and is a graduate of the DGA Producers Training Program in New York. She is an active member of the Director’s Guild of America, and an active member and former board member of Women in Film & Video/New England.  In 2005, she was a Filmmaker-In-Residence at WGBH, Boston, and in 2011 won a Massachusetts Cultural Council Fellowship. Bouvrie worked as an Assistant Director on feature films, TV series and specials, commercials and industrials for seven years before producing documentaries as an independent in 1993, forming Mineral King Productions. Alice resides in Arlington, MA.

Barbara Costa is a freelance project manager and multimedia producer of predominantly science subjects for online courses, websites, public television documentaries, educational videos and museum programs, and exhibits. She has produced interactive computer-based exhibits for the Louisville (KY) Science Center and Science City in Kansas City, MO. For nine years, Costa worked in documentary production at the NOVA series (PBS). Barbara is currently overseeing development and marketing for Spy Pond Productions and lives in Arlington, MA.

Paul Dervis has been teaching drama in Canada at Algonquin College as well as the Theatre Conservatory Ottawa School of Speech & Drama for the past 15 years. Previously, he ran theatre companies in Boston, New York, and Montreal. He has directed over 150 stage productions, receiving two dozen awards for his work, directed six films, and written over two dozen plays.

Elizabeth DiNolfo graduated with a degree in journalism from Boston University and has worked professionally for over a decade as a documentary filmmaker. She served as assistant camera person, writer, producer and director while working for Northern Light Productions in Boston, DBA Television in Belfast, Northern Ireland, and freelance in New York City. Liz had the opportunity to work on documentary, educational and commercial projects in Europe, Africa and across the U.S. Her work is credited in numerous films and videos including, “Eyes on the Prize,” “There But for the Grace…,” “Lily Tomlin: In Search for Signs of Intelligence,” ”Heart on the Line,” and “Wild Women Don’t Have the Blues.” She lives in Arlington with her husband and two daughters, has been active with the Arlington public schools, and currently works at Brandeis University.

Alice Markowitz of Arlington, MA is currently consulting in communications, visual storytelling, and social marketing for mission-driven companies and non-profit organizations. A three-time Emmy Award winner, Alice’s career began in broadcast journalism--producing, directing and writing PBS documentaries for national broadcast on multiple series including NOVA, Blackside's This Far by Faith, and Healing and the Mind with Bill Moyers. Alice earned a bachelor’s degree from Vassar and a Master’s in Education from Harvard before becoming a Henry Luce Foundation Scholar in Asia.

Nuno Sá Pessoa is from Lisbon, Portugal. He began his studies in cinema and television at Universidade Moderna, Lisboa and went on to graduate from the European Film College in Denmark. Nuno directed his first independent work with two feature-length documentaries following, in which he did both cinematography and editing. He has worked in California where he edited a total of three feature-length documentaries directed by Kenneth Payton. Having moved back to his native Portugal, Pessoa co-founded Skookum Films.

Phil Pritchard was born in Epsom, Surrey, England and graduated from Mountview Theatre School in London. He appeared in the title role 'A Kitten for Hitler' (2007) directed by the legendary British Film director Ken Russell and in 'The Scouting Book for Boys' (2009) directed by Tom Harper and ‘Woman in Black: Angel of Death’ starring Thomas Turgoose & Holiday Grainger. On stage, he appeared in the West End production of 'A Little Night Music' directed by Trevor Nunn at The Garrick Theatre and as Henry Higgins in 'My Fair Lady' at the Cambridge Arts Theatre. After UK national tours of 'Lark Rise to Candleford' and 'To Kill A Mocking Bird' (York Theatre Royal), he was cast in the International Tour of Beatles Biopic 'Backbeat' (2013) written by Ian Softley (Trap for Cinderella) and Stephen Jeffries (The Libertine, Diana) and directed by 5-time Tony Nominee David Leveaux. Produced by Karl Sydow and Paul Elliot the West End show toured to Toronto & Los Angeles. In the USA he appeared in the film 'Tattooed Love' (2015) with Edy Ganem (Devious Maids) Laura Flannery (American Horror Story), Marlon Moreno (El Capo). Pritchard serves on several film festival selection committees.

Bernice Schneider is an award-winning documentary film editor. She received her Master of Science in Visual Studies at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology’s Media Lab under the direction of Richard Leacock. Bernice has edited numerous films for PBS’s American Experience, Frontline, Nova Science Unit, American Masters, and Independent Lens. She edited the feature-length independent documentary film, Rebel, about the politics of national memory as viewed through the lens of the secret life of a Latina confederate soldier. Another feature, Angkor’s Children, focuses on a grassroots movement to reinvigorate the arts in post-genocide Cambodia. Angkor’s Children has screened nationally and internationally, including within Cambodia at the Bophana Film Center. She edited Alice Bouvrie’s film A Chance to Dress, winner of the Arlington International Film Festival’s Best Short 2015. She also completed A Perfect Crime: the Leopold and Loeb Story for American Experience in 2016. Most recently, she completed the editing of Laurel Chiten’s documentary, Just One Drop which premiered in London in 2017. Her films have screened at prestigious museums, both nationally and internationally. Bernice also worked in the field with national correspondent Charlene Hunter-Gault for PBS’s NewsHour in Kenya, South Africa, Haiti, and Somalia, where she edited stories on political and cultural change in the developing world. She has received honors and awards for her work including a Wallis Annenberg scholarship for women filmmakers, a CINE Golden Eagle, the Biographical Video Award, and an N.E.A. Regional Fellowship. Bernice also teaches editing at Emerson College and lives in Cambridge, MA.

Eric Stange, executive producer and founder of Spy Pond Productions in Arlington, is a writer, director, and producer of documentary television programs on history, science, and technology. His work has appeared on PBS, The Discovery Channel, National Geographic and the BBC. He specializes in both short and long format projects that combine rigorous research with innovative visualization techniques and imaginative storytelling. Eric has been a recipient of the Charles Warren Fellowship in American History from Harvard University. He is a member of the board of Common-Place, the leading academic website for studies in early American history, writes a column for American Heritage magazine on the history and new media, and is a visiting fellow with the Woodrow Wilson National Fellowship Foundation. Before becoming a filmmaker Stange was a print journalist and wrote primarily about art and culture for newspapers and journals including the Boston Herald, Boston Globe, New York Times, Atlantic Monthly, Chronicle of Higher Education and other national publications.

Marga Varea of Arlington, MA is the founder and lead impact producer at Twin Seas Media, an outreach and distribution agency for independent documentary films and film festivals. With 20 years of experience in the film and television industries, Marga has a deep understanding of the filmmaking process from concept to distribution and a deep love for non-fiction. Marga develops creative outreach, engagement and communications strategies that raise the visibility of independent documentary films.  She designs and implements multi-platform, thorough impact and distribution campaigns for non-fiction media that questions the status quo and illuminates some of the most important issues of our times.  

Yahia Zakaria is a Film/TV Producer and Project Manager with a Bachelor’s in Cinema Directing from the Art Academy in Egypt. Yahia has more than ten years’ experience as a filmmaker and has supervised production and post-production for feature films, documentaries, TV commercials, TV shows, short films, and video clips. His last job was Head of Production at Era Media (Digital Agency) in Kuwait. He established and supervised Era Media’s Cairo office where he is currently freelancing and looking for new challenges.

Judges for the High School Student submissions are:

Saoirse Loftus-Reid is a Sophomore at the University of Edinburgh in Scotland. She’s originally a student at Lexington High School and was the winner of the AIFF Microsoft Special Award in 2018 for her short film The Art Collector. Her work has been showcased in a variety of film festivals including the All-American High School Film Festival in New York City, Kerry Film Festival in Ireland, Fort Lauderdale International Film Festival in Florida, and the San Diego International Kids Film Festival in California. She has won two regional awards for short-form fiction and long-form non-fiction and received three honorable mentions for her work with the non-profit organization Rubbish to Runway at the Student Production Awards in the National Academy for Television Arts and Sciences New England/Boston Chapter in her senior year of high school. As a freshman in college, she was nominated to the National Student Production Awards. She currently studies Business with Marketing, is an active member of the Edinburgh University Television Society as the Post Production Officer and was Director and 2nd Camera Operator at the Edinburgh University Filmmaking Society.

Shuyi Wang is a documentary filmmaker now living in Arlington. She is originally from Chengdu, China. Shuyi received her M.A. in Broadcast Journalism from Emerson College and is currently a producer/director of HuaPlus TV Boston, the largest overseas Chinese online video platform, headquartered in New York. Her latest work, “Awaken the Dragon Together”, a short-format documentary about Massachusetts first dragon boat team for cancer survivors, featured and screened as a finalist of HUA International Short Film festival at Los Angeles, London and Tokyo in 2017 and the Arlington Int’l Film Festival in 2018. Her previous work has appeared in NBC, New England Center for Investigative Reporting, edX, HKS Hauser Center for Nonprofit Organizations at Harvard University, MIT Digital Learning and

CCTV-4

The AIFF Organizers are extremely proud to be working with such a professional team that is dedicated to our mission of offering a unique opportunity for cross-cultural education, promoting understanding of the many cultures represented in our town and beyond and recognizing that such diversity enriches our communities. We believe that this annual international film festival highlights core values and aspirations we share with our culturally diverse neighbors and with all members of the global human family.