Speakers – Spring 2020

Maryann Brandon, DGA, ACE

Graduating from the prestigious NYU film school, Maryann Brandon began her career working on feature films in New York City. She worked onseveral films including The Cotton Club and A Chorus Line. A few years later she relocated to Los Angeles where a mutual friend suggested that she meet with a then up and coming writer/producer JJ Abrams for his new series entitled Alias, (she thought they’d be a good creative match). This proved to be the beginning of what has become a collaboration spanning almost 20 years.

While working as an Editor on Alias, she received a Producer credit for her exceptional work and Directed two episodes, and many hours of second unit Directing. Maryann has edited all of Abrams’ features, starting with his first, Mission Impossible III, Super 8, Star Trek, Star Trek Into Darkness, and Star Wars VII, The Force Awakens, Star Wars IX, The Rise of Skywalker, which has grossed a combined $3+ Billion in worldwide receipts, and brought Maryann her first Oscar nomination. She won a Saturn Award for her work on Star Wars

TFA and Hamilton awards for Super 8 and Passengers. Other Award consideration for Maryann’s work includes a Primetime Emmy Award nomination for Alias, and three ACE Award nominations, for Star Wars: The Force Awakens, Star Trek and How To Train Your Dragon. Other credits include Sony’s PASSENGERS and VENOM. Maryann was hired by DreamWorks animation to work as a consultant on all 3 Kung Fu Panda films, Monsters vs. Alien and How to Train Your Dragon. That work required her to make shot lists for every scene.

While JJ has kept Maryann quite busy over the years, she has worked with many other filmmakers on some iconic films like Grumpier Old Men, The Jane Austen Book Club, How to Train Your Dragon, A Thousand Acres, Endless Love, The Darkest Minds. She is currently at work on Venom Let there be Carnage. Due in theaters June 2021.

Cinematographer, JOKER

Larry Sher, ASC

Lawrence Sher, ASC is known for his work on Godzilla: King of the Monsters (2019), The Hangover (2009) and Garden State (2004). Most recently, he worked on the Academy Awards winning film, JOKER, directed by Todd Philips.

A Camera Operater, JOKER

Geoff Haley, SOC

Geoffrey Haley is known for his work on Furious 7 (2015), American Hustle (2013) and Star Trek Beyond (2016). He also worked as a camera operator for the films, Jumanji: The Next Level (2019), Avengers Infinity War (2018), and the Academy Awards winning film, JOKER, directed by Todd Philips.

Editor, 6 BELOW: Miracle on the Mountain, Sharknado 2, An American Carol

Vashi Nedomansky, ACE

Vashi defected from Czechoslovakia as a child during the Cold War and grew up in Toronto & Detroit. Following his career as a professional hockey player, he has been a professional film editor in Los Angeles since 2000.

Vashi has edited 11 feature films including “6 BELOW: Miracle on the Mountain,” the global phenomenon “Sharknado 2,” the comedy “An American Carol” for director David Zucker (Airplane, Scary Movie) & PTSD documentary “That Which I Love Destroys Me” for director Ric Roman Waugh (Angel Has Fallen, Snitch).

Vashi has cut over 50 national commercials for numerous brands including Nike, Volkswagen, Ford, NHL, EA Sports, Adobe, Medal of Honor, US Army, US Navy, US Marines, US Reserve & the US Air Force.

His company VashiVisuals has provided post-production workflow, consulting services and Premiere Pro training for numerous projects including: Deadpool, Gone Girl, The Good Doctor and House of Cards. Vashi has also trained fellow ACE film editors in transitioning to Adobe Premiere Pro including: Kirk Baxter, Angus Wall, Billy Fox, Don and Dean Zimmerman, Julian Clarke, Nicolas De Toth, Jon Corn, John Venzon, Joan Sobel, Bruce Green and many more.

Vashi has collaborated on projects with: Jerry Bruckheimer, Michel Gondry, John Landis, Dennis Hopper, 20th Century Fox, Universal Studios, Warner Bros. & Disney Studios.

Founder, The Futur

Chris Do

Chris Do is an Emmy award winning director, designer, strategist and educator. He’s the Chief Strategist and CEO of Blind and the Founder of The Futur— an online education platform that teaches the business of design to creative thinkers.

Founded in 1995, Blind has been a pioneer in the motion design field and has made hundreds of award-winning commercials, music videos and broadcast promos that combine design, typography, animation, live action and visual effects for screens and clients of all sizes.

His firm’s work has been recognized by national and international organizations such as: the Emmy’s, Effie Gold, Effie, Huffington Post, Lynda.com, Webbie, Communication Arts, London International Awards, One Show, British D&AD, AICP 20, Pictoplasma, How, 72 dpi, L.A. Weekly, Boards, Res 10, Type Director’s Club (20, 22, 23, 26), IDN, Addy Awards, BDA, Create, Stash (2, 12, 22, 24, 35, 43, 65), Creatie Augustus 2010, Motion Design, Asia Image, Brief, 365 AIGA Year In Design 26, Art Director’s Club, Motionographer, New York Festivals, B Brand, PPaper, I.D., and Print.

P|PW Program Manager -
CEO & Founder OF RHED Pixel, Inc.​

Richard Harrington

A certified instructor for Adobe and Apple, Rich is a practiced expert in motion graphic design and digital video. Starting his career out in the world of broadcast journalism, Rich has always had great interest in visual communications. His producing skills were also recognized by AV Video Multimedia Producer Magazine who named him as one of the Top Producers of 2004.  Rich is a member of the National Association of Photoshop Professionals Instructor Dream Team, and a popular speaker on the digital video circuit. He has been the Program Manager for the Post|Production World Conference since 2003.


Rich is an internationally published author. His book, Photoshop for Video, was the first of its kind to focus on Photoshop’s application in the world of video. He is also a contributing author for From Still to Motion, Video Made on a Mac, Final Cut Pro On the Spot and Professional Web Video. A Master’s Degree in Project Management fills out Rich’s broad spectrum of experience. Rich enjoys traveling and digital photography, as well as teaching his kids the joys of science fiction and comic books.


Check out Rich’s website below the sessions!

CEO/Founder, TSMA Consulting

Ryan Walker

CEO/Founder TSMA Consulting Ryan’s resumé spans a decade of digital marketing and media, including leading the west coast experiential team for Diageo, and running events for Oprah and Rodeo Drive clients through his prior business, Alchemy. He currently holds the title of Founder and CEO of the entertainment and media industry’s most recognized social media management firm, TSMA Consulting. Ryan travels the world educating professionals on targeting and capturing the attention of Millennial and Generation Z consumers through utilization of social media algorithms and content.

Website:https://tsmaconsulting.com/

Partner at Foundry General Counsel

Seth C. Polansky

Seth C. Polansky, a contracts, intellectual property, and start-up specialist, founded the professional firm Seth Polansky LLC in 2005. Through both this firm and his corporate experience, he has enjoyed a diverse and rewarding practice. In addition to working with private corporations, government and state agencies, he has counselled small businesses and artists in securing copyright, trademark and other intellectual property protection, and aided them in navigating contracts. He has also served as an Adjunct Professor of Contract and Procurement Law at the University of Maryland University College. In his spare time, Seth is a programmer and bass player for his band blindtillnow, and works as a producer, composer, sound designer or location mixer/sound recordist on independent films. For more information on Seth, visit sethpolanskylaw.com.

Motion Designer at SternFX

Eran Stern

Eran has established a track record in helping designers to improve their skills with visual effects and motion graphics. He created a handful of online courses for LinkedIn Learning. Also acted as the Head of Motion Graphics Department in Shenkar for more than 12 years. You can find him right on the verge between geekiness and coolness.

Certified Instructor (Adobe and Apple) and Certified Private Pilot / Commercial UAV Pilot

Luisa Winters

Luisa Winters is an Adobe Premiere Master Instructor, an Adobe Certified Instructor, and an Apple Certified Trainer. She is an accomplished videographer, editor, 3D animator, and graphics designer. Her compositions have been seen on broadcast TV as well as in private video productions. She has created and edited scores of video and web projects for dozens of corporate, government, and educational, commercial, and private clients. An accomplished nonlinear editor and instructor, Luisa has conducted training sessions and master classes for Adobe After Effects, Photoshop, Adobe Premiere Pro, Flash, Dreamweaver, Captivate, and Encore DVD. A Private Pilot and a UAS Pilot, Luisa has led sessions and workshops in almost every U.S. state and in several countries across the world. She has been a featured speaker at NAB and other national and international conferences every year since 2005.

EDITOR | RHED PIXEL, INC

Francis Torres

Francis Torres is an avid videographer, drone pilot, and 360° VR photographer. He has over 8+ years of video editing experience, and is an FAA Part 107 certified drone pilot and a Google Trusted photographer. His work has been featured on TV shows such as Waterfront House Hunting, Outdoors Maryland as well as many independent films, and has worked with clients such as the Baltimore Ravens and Under Armour. He is currently a full-time videographer at RHED Pixel, and runs a small one-manned production company called FT Visuals that specializes in 360° VR photography, aerial video/photography, and video production.

Director / Producer / Editor

Kelley Slagle

KELLEY SLAGLE is a multimedia content strategist, producer, and creator with a 20+ year unique career journey. She is a customer education, corporate training, and product marketing specialist who works with non-profits and tech startups, as well as an award-winning independent filmmaker with her company, Cavegirl Productions.

Recent films include the 2019 feature documentary EYE OF THE BEHOLDER: THE ART OF DUNGEONS & DRAGONS and the 2024 feature documentary IGNITING THE SPARK – THE STORY OF MAGIC: THE GATHERING

Along with fellow producer Rachel Longman, Kelley co-hosts WE FIX IT IN PRE, an industry video podcast on making pre-production the most important part of your production timeline. She is also a LinkedIn Learning instructorDocs in Progress Fellow, and a Producer’s Guild of America member.

Website:cavegirl.com

Director of Product Marketing, BorisFX

Nick Harauz

Nick Harauz is a Director of Product Marketing at Boris FX. With over 19 years of experience as a certified trainer for Adobe, Avid, and Final Cut Pro, he is an expert in post-production workflows and techniques, as well as a passionate advocate for creativity, post production and innovation. You can find several courses produced by Nick directly on Linkedin Learning.

At Boris FX, Harauz helps lead the content marketing strategy and execution for Continuum, the award-winning suite of plug-ins for editors and motion graphics artists. He also speaks on creativity and is writing his second book Finding Creativity in Uncertain Times. Harauz has worked as an editor and motion graphics artist for clients such as Proctor and Gamble, Virgin Mobile, and Blackberry. He has also directed and filmed celebrities such as Lady Gaga and Richard Branson, and co-edited the documentary My Father and the Man in Black.

Entrepreneur / Marketing Consultant / Speaker

Rhea Allen

Adjunct marketing professor, marketing expert, industry leader, popular podcast host, and national keynote speaker/presenter, Rhea Allen has nearly 20 years of experience as a Culture + Branding Expert. She’s the Co-founder, President/CEO of an award-winning creative and digital marketing/ad agency, Peppershock Media, the host of The Marketing Expedition Podcast (ranked among the top 10% most popular podcasts globally), the founder of The Marketing Expedition Community, and TheMarketingExpedition.com, a premium online subscription-based resource for Fortune-none to Fortune 100 companies. Peppershock has performed professional marketing and creative production services all over the world. She and her crew will often hire freelancers to add to her team and work with creatives from many different mediums, capabilities and talents based on their client’s needs. She has a distinct style in which she provides encouragement, coaching, and feedback to promote a supportive environment that facilitates the creative process. By taking advantage of many varying perspectives and strengths, Rhea and her team are able to empower their clients to pursue their goals of successful personal and/or professional brand creation. Rhea and her husband Drew Allen, who is also the co-founder of Peppershock Media, have two teenage boys and they enjoy the great outdoors and everything their community has to offer.

Motion Designer & Creative Director

Kyle Hamrick

Kyle Hamrick is an Emmy-winning motion designer, video editor, Adobe-Certified software trainer, and all-around After Effects & Premiere nerd who loves sharing knowledge. A workflow & efficiency fan who always enjoys a new challenge, Kyle hops between creating everything from live arena visuals, animated gifs, efficiently-built templates and IMAX documentaries. He’s also a mediocre guitarist, a lover of dinosaurs and Lego, and a big believer in using creative skills for good.

Immersive Guru / Storyteller

Al Caudullo

The multiple award-winning career of Al Caudullo’s has spanned over 30 years of video production, including excellence in HD, 3D, 4K UHD, and now 360VR. His career highlights include –ground-breaking work in Virtual Reality with projects for Sir David Attenborough’s Micro Monsters Exclusive series for OculusTV, GatesNotes.com, DiscoveryVR, UNICEF, and Getty Images 360, to name a few.


In education, Caudullo continues to open new frontiers in learning with the accredited Immersive Storytelling Course for CSU, California State University, and the Entertainment Alliance. In China, Singapore, France, London, and Hollywood, California, Al has conducted both 3D stereoscopic and Immersive VR courses and seminars. His awards include the “3D Excellence Award” at the 3D Expo China and IMAX Awards. At Mahidol University in Bangkok, Thailand, he created and led the first 3D Stereoscopic University level Filmmaking course.

Freelance Colorist

Warren Eagles

Warren is a freelance Colorist based in Australia. He has an extensive 28-year career with experience in all forms of color correction. Starting out as a photographers’ assistant in London’s West End straight from school, he knew from an early age that he wanted to be involved in a visual industry. Moved to top Soho post house Visions in 1987 where he started as a Colorist working on a mixture of long and short-form projects.


The chance came to go to Australia in 1999 for a 3-month contract…he is still there! Now a Resolve owner/operator he runs his own shop and splits his time between grading there and freelancing in Australia and around the globe. His credits include commercials for Qantas, Ford, Mitsubishi, Revlon and Tooheys, mainstream UK and Australian dramas and documentaries including the first Australian DI movie ‘Blurred’ and Guy Ritchie’s cult movie ‘Lock Stock and 2 Smoking Barrels’.

CEO & Founder of J Greenberg Consulting

Jeff Greenberg

Jeff I. Greenberg has nearly two decades of experience as a Post-Production consultant and Master Instructor (trainer for other trainers) for Adobe, Apple, and Avid, specializing in the areas of editorial, workflow, compositing, sound, color grading and compression. Jeff is the owner of JGreenberg Consulting and for a decade was the Principal Instructor for Future Media Concepts. Consistently voted as one of the top seminar speakers/interviewers, audience’s feedback includes depth of subjects covered, approachability and student-centered teaching that helps keep them up to date on industry standards. Jeff teaches seminars at events such as NAB, IBC, CES and Inter BEE. He’s the chair for the Editors Retreat, an annually held exclusive getaway for editors.

Content Director

Valentina Vee

Valentina Vee is a director, cinematographer, and editor living in Los Angeles, making content for branded campaigns and shows all over the world. Her clients include Nike, AT&T, National Geographic, Dell, L’Oreal, MTV, Chevrolet, Mashable, Fujifilm, and Adobe. She specializes in creating compelling stories with positive messages as well as consulting with companies on how to make authentic, well-executed videos for their audiences.

Her Discovery docuseries focused on youth empowerment, “GIMME MO,” was nominated for an Emmy. She is Aputure’s Resident Pro cinematographer and an Adobe Max Master trainer, teaching Adobe Premiere Pro and After Effects at top industry conventions. Find her on Twitter @valentinavee and Instagram @valentina.vee

Award-Winning Writer / Director / Editor / Author

Maxim Jago

Maxim is a media technology trainer, filmmaker, futurist, and author of multiple books and training series including the official Adobe Premiere Pro Classroom in a Book, and Adobe Audition Classroom in a Book. He has recorded over 2,300 tutorials exploring post-production, including many official videos for Adobe Premiere Pro, Avid Media Composer, and Grass Valley EDIUS.


Maxim has directed many short films, the feature-length documentary ‘Trust Me: Working with Richard Foreman’, and the forthcoming supernatural-thriller feature film ‘It’s Haunted’. His films have won Best Director, Best Actor, and Best Supporting Actor awards. He has guest directed for RADA, the Director’s Guild of Great Britain, and the Pit-Bull Snyder Actors Studio in Hollywood. A regular speaker at film festivals and conferences around the world, founder of The Creative Community, and The Creativity Conference, Maxim has mentored many newcomers to the film industry and is based in the UK.

Media Entrepreneur / TV Host / Writer / Multimedia Producer

Darley Newman

Recognized in Forbes for her “PBS Travel Empire,” Darley Newman is an entrepreneur, TV host, writer and producer. Through her production companies, she has channeled her passions for travel and storytelling into successful multi-platform series and distinctive media brands. She is the creator, producer and host of Emmy Award-winning “Equitrekking” and “Travels with Darley” on PBS, Amazon Prime, Ovation TV and networks in over 85 nations. In addition to six Daytime Emmy Award nominations, she’s received the North American Travel Journalist Award, the Inspiring Woman Award from Women in Philanthropy and Leadership, and two Telly Awards. A pioneer in emerging media, she teams up with travel, outdoor and hospitality brands, as well as global non-profits, to reach both business and consumer audiences using immersive video and social media. Having led production teams in over 30 nations and 26 states, she’s been charged by an elephant in Botswana’s Okavango Delta, gone free diving in South Korea and explored by mountain bike the WWI ‘red zone’ of northeast France.

Global Media & Entertainment Industry Management at NVIDIA

Rick Champagne

Rick Champagne leads Global Media & Entertainment Industry Management for NVIDIA. In this role, Rick works closely with customers and industry partners in the Film, TV, and Broadcast industries to promote the advancement and adoption of new technologies. With a long history of managing products such as the Autodesk 3ds Max and Maya Entertainment Creation Suites, Softimage, Mudbox, and Painter, Rick has been in the service of Artists and Technologists for over two decades. Rick maintains close ties to industry as a member of the Visual Effects Society, HPA, Royal Television Society, and as a Board Member of Infinity Festival, and as an Outreach Committee Member of ASWF. Rick holds a Master’s degree in Business Administration.

Producer / DP / Educator

Jem Schofield

Jem Schofield is a producer, DP and educator, and the founder of theC47 (a full-service production company that provides video production, filmmaking & consulting services). He started this journey as a wee lad with his first real camera (a used Pentax K-1000). It was a great start to his education and journey in content creation & storytelling. He now spends most of his time producing content, educating others, and otherwise being borderline obsessed with cameras, production, and the craft of lighting.
theC47 specializes in creating effective, brand-driven studio & location-based educational content for its clients and also focuses on remote production solutions which have become increasingly more important in the production landscape in the past few years.

Current and past clients include AbelCine, Apple, Inc., ARRI, Canon, Corus Entertainment, LinkedIn Learning, MAC Group, MZED, NBCUniversal, NPR, PBS, Riverbed Technologies, Scottish Enterprise, Sony, TED, The Vitec Group, Walmart Films, Westcott, YouTube & Zeiss. 

Jem is also an equipment design consultant to many manufacturers in the film and television industry. He designed theC47 DP Kit & theC47 Book Light Kit (geared towards corporate, in-house, and small to no crew productions), which is based on FJ Westcott’s Scrim Jim Cine system. 

His in-depth training courses such as “Cinematic Video Lighting”, “Advanced Cinematic Video Lighting” and “Corporate Event Video: Producing Company Meetings and Presentations”, are currently available on LinkedIn Learning.

For more information about Jem & his whereabouts visit www.theC47.com or visit his YouTube Channel at www.youtube.com/thec47 where he posts ongoing educational content focused on the tech & craft of video production and filmmaking related to Small to No Crew production.

Website:thec47.com

Editor / Writer

Scott Simmons

Scott Simmons was born in rural West Tennessee and didn’t really realize that movies and television had to be made by actual people until he went to college. After getting degrees in both Television Production and Graphic Design he was in one of the early graduating classes at the Watkins Film School in Nashville, Tennessee. During that time at Watkins he discovered editing. While most of his classmates in film school wanted to be directors, Scott saw real career opportunities in post-production and took a job as an assistant editor after completing film school. Not long after that he became a freelance editor. With nearly 20 years of experience in all areas of post-production Scott has worked both as a freelancer and on staff at a post-house. He has edited a diverse number of projects ranging from music videos, to live concert productions, to commercials, to documentaries and everything in between. When not working in the edit suite Scott teaches other about editing and writes about post-production at The Editblog on ProVideoCoalition.com, a blog which he has published for over 10 years.

VP, Marketing & BD, Insta360

Michael Shabun

Michael Shabun is Vice President, Marketing & BD for Insta360 and leads North American marketing strategy, partnerships and video production efforts. Michael is passionate about using new camera technology to simplify visual storytelling and passing that knowledge onto new users.

Website:insta360.com

Founder, Noseman Productions

Athanasios Pozantzis

Athanasios Pozantzis has been making visuals for the advertising industry since 1989, and began teaching Adobe Illustrator a year later. Since then, he has tutored numerous digital artists in his motherland, Athens, Greece, and his adopted home of London, on Adobe software and Cinema 4D. It should be noted that most of his students ended up switching careers, becoming Yoga or Pilates instructors, and one of them became an unsuccessful real estate agent.

His main focus is still on converting briefs into images and animations, an undertaking that has definitely NOT won him an Emmy Award, although he did receive a Grand Epica in 2005.

He picked up Cinema 4D in 1997 and never looked back. He now resides in Toronto, from where he runs his company “Noseman Productions”. Closely affiliated to Maxon as an Alpha & Betatester, Thanassis calls himself a “Cinema 4D fan boy,” and he is one of the very few Maxon Certified Instructors on the globe.

Website:noseman.org

Senior Producer, We Fix it in Pre

Rachel Longman

Rachel Longman is a Senior Producer specializing in multimedia video production. Rachel has produced a wide range of content, including National Television commercials, Public Service Announcements, Educational Training, multi-camera field and studio productions. There’s no one who knows real-world workflow like Rachel!

Photographer / Marketing Professional

Frederick Van Johnson

Frederick Van Johnson is a photographer and marketing professional with over 20 years of experience working with many of the Fortune 500 companies that dominate the photography industry. A former United States Air Force Combat Photojournalist, today he is founder and Editor-in-Chief of the This Week in Photo (TWiP) podcast network, and former Chairman of the board for Brooks Institute. Frederick’s USAF unit was among the first in the US military to receive, and put into daily action, digital imaging technology and software. As a result, he was awarded the prestigious Air Force Commendation medal for his key role in facilitating the US Air Force transition from film-based imaging to digital. He is the “This Week in Photo” (aka TWiP) podcast and general manager of all related properties — TWiP remains one of the most popular photography media properties. Frederick left the military to study visual communication at the University of California, and Brooks Institute of Photography in Santa Barbara, California — where he ultimately became Chairman of the Board of Trustees. While at Apple, he was key in the development of iPhoto, Apple’s revolutionary photo management application. He went on to Adobe Systems, where he helped manage marketing for Lightroom and Photoshop. Today Frederick lives in northern California, and continues to travel, podcast and practice photography whenever possible. He has also been spotted making aerial photographs with his drone.

Creative Director and Adobe MAX Master Trainer

Ian Robinson

Ian Robinson is a creative director and trainer specializing in motion graphics and visual effects. Working in broadcast for over 20 years with such clients as Discovery Channel, National Geographic International, PBS, and Google. As an author and trainer, Ian has been working with Adobe Learn developing After Effects training both online and in-application. He is also the co-founder of the online learning website Creative111, an author for LinkedInLearn- ing, and has written books for Peachpit and Adobe Press. When he’s not designing or teaching, you can often find him exploring the rocky mountains of Colorado.

Website:https://creative111.com/

Author / Artist / Educator / Entrepreneur / Photographer / Video Editor

Rod Harlan

Content creator Amy DeLouise creates high-impact nonfiction digital content and consults with leading brands on storytelling and digital content workflow. With more than 400 productions to her credit, her clients include Microsoft, S&P Global, Fulbright Association, Jewish Federations of North America and the National Association of Chemical Distributors. Amy is a leader in the field of short form digital storytelling and has garnered more than 40 creative excellence awards – Tellys, Peer, New York Festivals, Aurora, CINE Golden Eagle, and Woman of Vision Leadership Award from Women in Film & Video. A popular LinkedIn Learning author with titles on video production and business, Amy has authored two Focal Press books: The Producer’s Playbook: Real People on Camera and Nonfiction Sound & Story for Film and Video: A Practical Guide for Filmmakers. Amy founded #GalsNGear, a community amplifying an advancing women in tech and screen media. She has a B.A. in English from Yale University. For more resources and tips from Amy, visit her website at www.amydelouise.com or follow her @brandbuzz on Twitter and @adbbrandbuzz on Instagram.

Partner, Designer & Developer, Codify Design Studio

Chris Converse

Chris has over 25 years experience in graphic, animation, and interactive design, with a unique focus on both design and development. He earned his BFA in Graphic Design at the Rochester Institute of Technology (R•I•T), and has continued to study the landscape of design and its crossroads with various technologies. In addition to design and development, Chris has been a featured speaker in over 275 industry-related events, conferences and webinars, including Adobe MAX, NAB, Post Production World, How Design Live, AIGA, CreativePro Week and Adobe Video World. Find more of Chris’ events at codifydesign.com/events

Photographer

Kevin Ames

Kevin Ames is among the first generation of ENG photographers in television. His video career started the same day the station he was working for tore out their film processor. He has worked in local news, commercial production, scripting advertisements as well as being the voice of a CBS affiliate.


Kevin’s career moved into still photography. He has had a decades-long career in studio photography both with film and as a very early adopter of digital capture. He revisited his love of video with the Canon 5D Mk II. He’s been providing still and video photography to his clients ever since.

Award-Winning Writer / Producer / Director

Abba Shapiro

Abba Shapiro is an Adobe and Apple Master Trainer, certifying university and training center instructors to teach Adobe Premiere Pro. Abba is an award-winning writer/producer/director. He has worked for a wide range of commercial, corporate and federal clients, including: USA Today, NASCAR, The Associated Press, NASA, Univision, Major League Baseball, Showtime, Viacom, The Discovery Channel, and CNN. Over the past 15 years Abba has created on-line training courses covering everything from Video Editing and Color Correction to how to shoot, light, and edit an interview. His courses air on CreativeLive, LinkedIn Learning, and RippleTraining. He is also the author of several video editing books. Abba also is a regular speaker at several international broadcasting conferences including NAB, IBC, InterBee, Photoshop World, and AdobeMAX. Some of the courses he teaches include, Video Editing, Scriptwriting, and all aspects of Video Production. When Abba is not bouncing around the globe teaching and consulting, he is probably following his passion, chasing light and shooting photos

UAS Instructor, Director of Educational Programming, Sundance Media Group

Douglas Spotted Eagle

Douglas Spotted Eagle is a giant in the video and audio industries, having received Grammy, Emmy, DuPont, Peabody, and many other awards. Douglas is a primary instructor and industry consultant for Sundance Media Group and VASST, authoring several books and DVDs and serving as an advisor and guide for videographers, software manufacturers and broadcasters. Douglas is a well-known musician and a world-travelled speaker/instructor. Douglas now focuses his energy and experience within the UAV/sUAS industry.


Skydiving since 2006 and instructing UAS since 2012, Douglas is an accomplished aerial photographer who thrives in the adrenaline-filled world of fast-action videography. Appointed as a Safety and Training Advisor in the aviation world, he is a risk management/mitigation subject matter expert. Douglas is an audio and imaging pro with numerous awards for his productions; with an intimate knowledge of the FAA FARs and FSIMs, Douglas’ vision is to incorporate his years of imaging and aviation experience into best-practices for everything drone/UAV/UAS. Douglas is a frequent (and dynamic!) speaker and consults on UAV cinematography, public safety implementation of UAS, commercial and infrastructural UAV applications, UAV risk management, night UAS flight, aerial security systems, and 107 training to ensure pilots clearly understand the FAA laws.

Content Producer I Post Consultant I Technical Trainer

Anthony Bari

Anthony is an Emmy-award winning technical supervisor, workflow consultant, director, documentary filmmaker, video editor, and U.S. marine veteran. With an extensive background developing workflows for major broadcasters internationally. His production background consists of documentary, sports, promotional, commercial, television, and branded content campaigns. Anthony has played a role in all parts of the process from pre-production through post. Often being the communication down stream from all levels of users to vendors through workshops and technical education.

Writer / Producer / Visual Artist

Gary Adcock

Few exemplify the changing technological landscape in digital cinema more than Gary Adcock. With a unique understanding of on-set technologies and their relationships in post-production has allowed him to act as a guide in the evolving relationship between acquisition, edit, and delivery. Gary is one of the co-authors and tech editor for the original version of the Data Handling Procedures and Best Practices guide used by IATSE Local 600 (Cinematographer’s Guild). Gary has been a speaker on cinematography and the related technologies at events around the world, and has presented on various topics at the National Association of Broadcasters Las Vegas convention continuously since 1999, as well as presenting on a diverse array of subjects at NAB Shanghai, IBC Show, Interbee and Broadcast India. His knowledge and capabilities keep him in demand as both a consultant and technical writer for a wide array of manufacturers and publications. You can follow Gary on Twitter and Instagram as @garyadcock or read his blog at garyadcock.com

Business Development Manager | The Third Floor

Lara Cawsey

Lara Cawsey’s career across multiple platforms including film, series and location based entertainment spans over a decade in locations around the globe. Her expertise runs the gamut from development to production and includes recent stints on Gemini Man and the Pirates of the Caribbean franchise. Her role in New Business at, THE THIRD FLOOR, puts her at the forefront of emerging technology, as she strategically aligns engineers, developers, and storytellers to help facilitate film, television and immersive productions. Her advocacy of new production technology has made Lara a sought after conference speaker including recent engagements at NAB, SXSW and RealTime Conference.

Founder | Notion Theory

Kristian Bouw

Kristian Bouw is the founder of Notiontheory.com, an award-winning XR agency recognized for building immersive AR and VR experiences. As a developer and technologist himself with over 8 years of product development experience, Kristian has worked alongside national government, non-profit, and Fortune 500 companies to build meaningful experiences that solve real problems. His work has been featured in national publications like Bloomberg, Fast Company, and he regularly speaks around the US on the impact and benefits of emerging technologies at institutions including MIT, Harvard, and NYU. Kristian’s passions lie in human-computer interaction and the applications of emerging technology to training, education, marketing and collaboration.

CEO | Loly.io

Adryenn Ashley

Adryenn is a social influencer with a global reach of over 100M who has mastered the art and science of going viral on social media by starting conversations that matter. Most recently, she’s parlayed that ability to lead difficult conversations in public forums and combined it with her background in Sex Ed to create the first blockchain consent platform to make dating better. Loly.io matches based on sexual compatibility rather than simple geoproximity and photo and includes consent, leading to better experiences in real life, not endless messages that lead nowhere.

As a high-tech priestess and big data geek (forensic accountant, asset protection specialist, among other areas of expertise), Adryenn is also a superconnector. Whatever you need, the contact is probably already in her phone. Adryenn got her start as an actor and television producer, and has led a wide range of reality and talk show programming. A basher of glass ceilings, she was one of the earliest supporters of #GALSNGEAR and efforts to diversify voices at tech events.

Website:loly.io

Workflow Architect, Frame.io

Patrick Southern

Patrick has been editing for 12 years. His most recent work has won him an Emmy (2016) and provided countless hours of content for fellow editors to stay on the bleeding edge of the industry. He currently lives in Los Angeles with his wife Emilie and enjoys telling dad jokes in spare time when he’s not using it for hiking or visiting Disneyland. 

Cinematographer, Producer and Apple Certified Trainer, Capture.ink

Lee Herbet

Lee Herbet is a filmmaker and educator. Through his company, Capture.ink, he and his team have helped some of the biggest brands in the world tell their stories. He loves teaching and delivers workshops all over the world. He writes for a number of online photography and video sties on topics ranging from reviews to “how to” articles. He is also a certified Final Cut Pro Master Trainer. 

Co-Founder, Lone Suspect

Vincent Masciale

Vincent Masciale is a director, producer, and co-founder of Lone Suspect, a production company based in Los Angeles. He has directed two feature films, television pilots, a digital series and comedy sketches for Funny or Die, and spent 10 years as an editor for companies like TMZ, National Geographic, Discovery, Fox, VH1, and MTV. Masciale has directed and worked with some amazingly talented actors over the years; Jason Alexander, Patton Oswalt, Jane Lynch, Daniel Stern, Tony Hale, Jon Heder, and Gary Cole, to name a few. He’s currently in post-production on his latest comedic feature, Faith Based, starring Alexander, Margaret Cho, David Koechner, and Lance Reddick. Masciale’s first feature Fear, Inc, a horror-comedy starring Abigail Breslin, premiered at the Tribeca Film Festival in 2016.

Producer, BBDO LA / Creative Director, Advocate and Thought Leader

Storm Smith

Storm Smith is a producer at BBDO Los Angeles, with a focus on supporting the management on Diversity Inclusion and Accessibility. She’s also the first Deaf woman to have been recruited by BBDO through the agency’s Creative Residency program, offering multicultural young professionals an introduction to advertising via residency at BBDO. Storm joined BBDO Worldwide in 2017 as an art director. Her storytelling work immediately helped shine a positive light on critical societal issues such as people with disabilities, gender equality and people of color. For example, she worked on the “It’s Time to Redefine” campaign as part of International Women’s Day, which sought to change the online dictionary definition of woman.

She’s also worked closely with the Ford Foundation on Roadmap for Inclusion report and thought leaders in the industry to push for greater change in the representation of diversity and disability in the media. Collaborations have included working with Academy Award winner Marlee Matlin, Tony Award nominee and Marvel’s Eternal’s actress Lauren Ridloff for the Deaf non-profit organization and Harlem Globetrotter Crissa Jackson on behalf of her advocacy for young girls in sports and more.

Storm’s tireless efforts to promote diversity, accessibility and inclusion have earned her a prestigious award from the City of Los Angeles, as well as numerous publications featured in PopSugar, Billboard, Muse by CLIO, Campaign, TV Guide, Adweek, AdAge and more.

Head of Operations, 090 Media / Founder Macbreak Weekly

Alex Lindsay

Alex Lindsay has been involved in almost every part of media production from coding to audio, video, film, web, AR/VR and live-streaming. After working on Star Wars at Lucasfilm and Industrial Light and Magic, he built a global training organization and now uses that experience to help others engage their communities online.

Content Creator / Educator / YouTuber

PhotoJoseph

PhotoJoseph is a content creator and educator — he’s been shooting since the age of seven, teaching and presenting on stage to audiences around the globe for 30 years, and runs an online resource for video, photo and live-streaming education at photojoseph.com and YouTube

Following an eight-year tenure at Apple as the lead presenter, producer and photographer for the Professional Applications Division, he stepped out on his own in 2009 to pursue all things photo and video. Today you can find PhotoJoseph shooting video productions for global brands, speaking at international trade shows, hosting online events for industry leaders, and consulting on all topics production-related. PhotoJoseph is an American living in Slovenia, straddling the east-west timezones.

You can find PhotoJoseph online as @PhotoJoseph just about everywhere… mainly X (Twitter), Facebook and Instagram!

Writer / Producer

Doug Daulton

Doug is a writer/producer based in Spokane with over twenty years of experience working with a wide variety of storytelling platforms, including feature films, podcasts, and multi-camera live streams. His portfolio includes projects for Google, YouTube and Salesforce. His work as a storyteller has taken Doug around the world, covering subjects at the highest levels of industry, entertainment and government.

Bokeh, his first feature film, was selected for IFP’s Independent Film Lab, acquired by Screen Media Films, screened at the 2017 Santa Barbara Film Festival and enjoyed a theatrical run in the spring of 2017. It is now available on all major VOD platforms. Currently, Doug is developing several projects including a transmedia documentary about the adventures and sacrifices of a once top-secret cadre of American fighter pilots.

Website:https://dougdaulton.com/

AbelCine

Megan Donnelly

Megan Donnelly joined the AbelCine team in 2015 as the company’s first Camera Technology Specialist based out of Chicago, eventually relocating to LA. Prior to joining AbelCine, Megan was the Technical Manager at Fletcher Camera and Lenses / CineVerse in Chicago, where she provided technical and workflow support for multiple features and television series. She also developed the curriculum for the International Cinematographer’s Guild Digital Loader Workshops, which she taught nationwide.

Megan is an accomplished Director of Photography for commercials, music videos, and narratives. One of her television pilots was a finalist in the New York Television Festival in 2013, while another television pilot won the Chicago Television Pilot Competition in 2014. Most recently one of her commercials won a Midwest Emmy in 2014. View her work at megandonnelly.net.

Originally from Mesa, Arizona, Megan Donnelly graduated summa cum laude from the University of Arizona with a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in Media Arts with a concentration in Cinematography.

AbelCine

Nic Somera

Nic Somera became a Camera Technology Specialist in early 2017. He has been with AbelCine since 2013 when he joined the Burbank office as a Retail Sales Agent.

Nic has a freelance production background working as a Camera Operator, 1st Assistant Camera, DIT, and Gimbal Technician. His experience on set and on location has given him a strong perspective in the areas of camera rigging and camera movement. He was one of the first AbelCine employees to be trained with 3-axis electronic gimbals, like the FreeFly Systems MōVI, and has continued in that theme of cinematic movement by adding Steadicam Bronze level certification to his skill set.

Nic holds a BS in Film Studies from Full Sail University, where he graduated as valedictorian.

AbelCine

Rey Reyes

Rey was born and raised in The Bay Area, CA. His professional experience in the entertainment industry started in 1996, both in front of and behind the camera. He has had the privilege of studying under the tutelage of the world’s most renown instructors and working professionals in several aspects of entertainment.

Rey’s work includes independent and theatrical features, live broadcast, commercials, industrials, and music videos. He is the former Steadicam® Director of Technical Sales & Services and Lead Instructor of Bronze and Silver workshops for all of the Americas. His experience training and consulting operators spans a multitude of clients in the motion picture and television industries, including ABC, NBC, CNN, FOX, ESPN, NFL, Disney, DreamWorks, Marvel, Netflix, HBO, Showtime, and more.

Rey’s passion for Steadicam and its historical lineage is a “continuous commitment to explore and share the knowledge, ingenuity, and artistry of this craft”.

Camera Technology Specialist

Ian McCausland

As one of the original staff members of AbelCine, Ian McCausland was integral to the formation of the company’s rental department back in 1990. Ian reprised this role in 1997 when he moved out West to launch the rental department of AbelCine’s Burbank operation. He currently serves as a Camera Technology Specialist and Trainer.
 
Most recently, Ian shot and edited a short-form documentary about vintage travel trailers called Aluminum Skins, which was screened at the 2009 Phoenix Film Festival.
 
Ian holds a BA in Film from New York University’s Tisch School of Arts. His credits include the 1999 Black Sabbath concert video, The Last Supper, and the 2008 Smashing Pumpkins documentary, If All Goes Wrong.
 
Ian holds an open water certification from the National Association of Underwater Instructors (NAUI).
 
AbelCine

Geoff Smith

Geoff Smith joined AbelCine in 2015 as a Camera Technology Specialist with a focus on workflows from capture to post-production. He as been a technical editor of AbelCine’s blog since 2017.

Geoff has a background in technology from web development to content management at companies like VMware, Lucasfilm and Silicon Graphics (SGI). Prior to joining AbelCine, he worked on an independent feature as a DIT and Assistant Editor. A passionate photographer, his editorial and fine art work has been published in newspapers and magazines, as well as exhibited in New York City and online.
Originally from New York, Geoff graduated from California State University, Chico earning a Bachelor’s Degree in Communication Design with an emphasis in Media Arts.

Visualization Supervisor | The Third Floor

Sophia Yu

Sophia, Texas-born and raised, first saw the incredible world of possibility in cinematic animation after playing Uncharted 3: Drake’s Deception. After graduating from the animation program at Savannah College of Art & Design, she jumped into a variety of2D and 3D animation jobs in commercials and games before landing at The Third Floor in 2016. With a strong sense of cinematography and level-headed attitude, she rapidly embraced the world of previs/postvis and was propelled to the supervisor position after 3 years of deep immersion in film world. Between being flown out to Atlanta to work on set as a previs artist, taking a 6-month long directing masterclass at The Third Floor, helping organize a class on the 12 film languages with story master Bar Gavigan, and running a company film shoot as AD, her combined experiences give her a well-rounded appreciation of the filmmaking process. Her credits include blockbuster hits like Deadpool 2, Captain Marvel, and Avengers: Endgame.

President, We Make Movies

Aubrey Mozino

Aubrey Mozino is the President of the tv/film community We Make Movies (wemakemovies.org). After 20 years working as a professional actor, Aubrey realized how performers (and small businesses!)  are now expected not only to be in front of the camera, but also be multi-hyphenates who can develop, shoot and distribute their own video content. Through We Make Movies, Aubrey has helped creatives produce over 350 short films, a dozen features and countless web series, commercials and sketches.  Recently Aubrey developed a curriculum on smartphone filmmaking that shows how you have the power of a professional production studio right in your pocket. She’s been teaching this workshop around the country and empowering creatives to take back control of their careers and make the movies THEY want to see.

Global Senior Vice President of Innovation at Frame.io

Michael Cioni

Michael Cioni is one of the most well known international voices for workflow technologies in the cinema space. After winning 4 National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences Emmy® awards, Michael founded and served as President and CEO of Light Iron, a workflow-centric post production company.  After Light Iron was acquired in 2015 by the largest international camera rental group, Panavision, Cioni served as SVP of Innovation and became the product director of Panavision’s Millennium DXL 8K large format camera ecosystem. A frequent speaker on workflow and camera systems at many international industry events, Cioni is also an active Academy member, as well as a member of the American Society of Cinematographers, focusing on research, development, mentoring, and the education of all people in the media and entertainment space.

Director of Production, Kin

Brad Jones

Brad Jones is an award-winning editor/writer/producer/director with over twenty years of experience in the film and television industry. He is currently the Director of Production at Kin, a digital entertainment studio specializing in unscripted women’s lifestyle entertainment. He started his career as an independent producer of music videos for such artists as Creature Feature, Combichrist, and Mindless Self Indulgence. Since then, he has directed and edited countless short-form entertainment videos for the digital space. Currently he oversees production and post-production for numerous ongoing series for social media platforms.

Producer / Commercial Drone Pilot

Mike Sobola

A Producer and Part 107 Commercial Drone Pilot with three EMMY Awards, Mike is also a Private Pilot whose love of flying led him into aerial UAS (drone) cinematography. He has since logged more than 1000 flight hours piloting drones including multiple missions in restricted and controlled airspace including the Washington, DC Flight Restricted Zone.

Mike has presented at previous PPW Live! Conferences and has also been a guest lecturer on drone topics at the Maine Media Workshops in Rockport, Maine, and Randolph Macon Academy in Virginia, and a presenter at the NY City Drone Film Festival and InterDrone. He is a Managing Partner at Mid-Atlantic Drones with his business partner, Luisa Winters.

Sr. Technical Director / Art Director, LPGA Creative Group

Brad Boyd

After a career as an award-winning photographer, starting back in the early ‘90s, Brad Boyd joined the LPGA in 2004. 

He now leads the LPGA Creative Group as Art Director and Sr. Technical Director. In these capacities, he oversees the work of both the graphic design and video content production teams. He also oversees the development of all the creative and video production workflows for the teams at LPGA headquarters in Daytona Beach, FL, as well as their various offices and events around the world. This includes teams in London, England and Seoul, South Korea, as well as their tournaments in the United States and around the world.

Workflow Specialist

Jeff Fortune

A workflow specialist, content producer, and Final Cut Pro loyalist. Jeff has been a Final Cut Pro trainer since 2006, and has developed customized Final Cut Pro workflows for clients across the country. From Indie films to live television to corporate scenarios, Jeff helps his clients create workflows based off of their specific situation. In addition to Final Cut Pro, Jeff also has a passion for media asset management, and works with systems like CatDV, and axle ai. Since 2017 Jeff has worked with the LPGA as a post production consultant, and freelance editor/content producer

Media Psychologist

Dr. Cohen

Dr. Cohen is a Media Psychologist and a film/video editor based in Long Beach, California. In 1998, he graduated with a BA in Film and Anthropology from Colorado College, where he also hosted a seminar on the use of film in therapy from Dr. Gary Solomon who was pioneering Cinematherapy™. In 2007, he received a Master’s in Science in General Psychology from Walden University. In 2013, he furthered his education and received a doctoral degree in clinical psychology from Pacifica Graduate Institute.

Dr. Cohen trained as an editor during his internship at an ABC news affiliate and later at a training facility in Burbank, California. Trained as an Avid and Final Cut Pro editor, he both consulted and worked on several high profile projects with filmmakers such as Patrick Swayze and Emmy Award-winning documentary filmmaker, Doug Pray. He was also an university instructor starting in 2010 and taught courses on introductory psychology and positive psychology.

His clinical experience so far has been with dual diagnosis chemical-dependent populations as well as DCFS and families who were court-ordered. Within those populations, he has worked with many different kinds of disorders within the DSM, including those diagnosed with trauma, mood disorders, and anxiety disorders. Dr. Cohen has presented his dissertation research on film based therapy at many conventions, universities, and hospitals. He is also the author/co-editor of the groundbreaking book, “Video and Filmmaking as Psychotherapy: Research and Practice.”

Website:https://yourdigitalstorytellingproject.com/

Instructor & Speaker, MotionVFX

Stanislaw Luberda

Stanislaw R Luberda is an instructor and speaker for MotionVFX — creators of Plugins, and templates for Final Cut Pro and Apple Motion.

Stan is an Adobe and Apple trainer to several Fortune 500 companies across the US, and previously a Broadcast Television Motion Graphic artist and Editor at PBS Wisconsin. Working in Live and scripted television is where he received a regional Emmy nomination for directing a short animation using Unreal Engine.

Dedicated to training, Stan created AV-Ultra on YouTube to continue offering free training in Final Cut Pro, Apple Motion, Premiere and After Effects via tutorials. When not creating tutorials, Stan works on short films and animation and recently won the the best film in Milwaukee’s 48 hour film competition.

Sam Mestman

Sam Mestman is the lead contributor for FCP.co, the CEO of We Make Movies, and the founder of LumaForge.  He’s had all the jobs and done all the things… but and more than anything… he’s a guy who likes making movies, telling stories, and making the film industry faster, better, and cheaper.  His current passion is teaching the world video literacy through the We Make Movies Smartphone Studio Program.  You can follow him on IG/Twitter at @sammestman.  You can see his film community at @wemakemovies or www.wemakemovies.org.

Founder and Owner, MotionVFX

Szymon Masiak

Szymon Masiak, founder and owner of MotionVFX – the original home of Apple Motion Templates and Final Cut Pro Plugins. Szymon has over 25 years of experience in visual effects and motion graphics. Before starting MotionVFX, his career was involved in commercials, computer games and feature films. MotionVFX is the market leader in the production of templates and plugins for Apple Motion and Final Cut Pro X. The company has been setting trends and pushing the boundaries of motion design for Apple software since the beginning. They are known for innovative solutions and raising the quality levels for the industry’s standards. Their portfolio includes hundreds of thousands happy customers including major studios and tv stations.

Manager / Executive Producer, SuperMeets

Dan Bérubé

Dan’s editing roots began on a splicing block and a Steenbeck at Emerson College in Boston, MA, where he studied Film. Founder of the Boston Creative Pro User Group, Dan is world traveled with more than three decades of production and editing credits/experience. He is owner and executive producer of the time-honored, inclusive SuperMeets – the ultimate community events for creatives within the media and broadcast industry to foster interaction, fresh ideas, decisive collaboration and empowerment in social settings that are educational, exciting and downright fun.


Dynamic thinking to reach new milestones fuel Dan’s passion to build Community. He resides in Manchester, New Hampshire with his wife Katie and together owns Jupiter Hall, an award-winning all arts creative space and listening room. They create and deliver opportunities for all artists, performers and creatives working with digital media and other innovative formats to share stories, culture and vision. Dan is strongly committed to building bridges through the arts that unites people across economic and class divides, and to nurture connections with business partners, organizations and individuals vital to direct, positive economic impact and collective mindsets.

Apple Distinguished Educator

Steve Douglass

Steve Douglass is an Apple Distinguished Educator who has taught New Media at Lake Forest High School on the North Shore of Chicago since 2005. Steve created showNtell as an effort to democratize the video storytelling process he learned while at ESPN producing highlights for SportsCenter, Baseball Tonight and ESPNews. ShowNtell was first an iOS app, and is now a fully customizable process and structure based on what Steve learned from producing over 10,000 student videos. It has enabled students to tell their personal story authentically to their specific audience. This was proven at a regional level through the Chicago Summer Stories program and now with remote learning, it can transform student learning around the world. 

Cody Cloe

Cody’s life motto, “There’s always a way”, has branded him the go to techie for many major musicians and influencers worldwide. Over the last 15 years, Cody has conducted more than 3,000 workshops on innovative technologies, focusing on Apple based workflows.

Currently, Cody is developing Apogee’s new gaming division and consulting on the production of multiple shows and live concerts as part of Apogee’s Work From Home initiative. In addition, Cody writes original music being licensed on major shows and networks including, ABC, TBS, CMT, History, Cartoon Network, Discovery, Netflix, E!, National Geographic, Comedy Central, Lifetime, etc.

Kin Media

Sam Mollo


My first experience with Apple was the Apple II Plus that my father purchased for his company in 1980. At the time, the purchase came with lessons in Basic. My father said, “I think these computers are going to be the future, do you want to take this class”? I later moved on to the IISi and IICi and then my first tower, the 840AV. I first began editing in 1994. I was in a band at the time, and though, with this new computer (840AV), we could make our own music videos. The band never made it, but I ended up starting a small post production company (DigiVision) with the drummer. We worked mostly on DRTV commercials, marketing and training videos. In that time I learned Adobe Premier, After Effect (Aldus at the time), photoshop, digital dark room(gone) morph(gone), audio sessions and DVD authoring. Jumped to Media 100 (remember that one?) in 1999 and prepared for Y2K. 6 years into the new millennium, we moved over to Final Cut Studio. In 2009 when Apple introduced the SDK for the iPhone, I learned the objective-c programming language and made about a dozen .99 cent apps. By 2011 our company was defunct and I started working at Kin where I have been for the past 9 years.

CTE Media Instructor, Apple Distinguished Educator, PowayUSD

Ross Kallen

For over 20 years Ross been working in the Digital Media industry. He designed and implemented the career pathway program in Digital Media for Career Technical Education in Poway Unified School District located in San Diego, CA. His program has gained national, state and international recognition for innovative approaches to student learning as well as outstanding student achievements. Since having the honor to be selected as an Apple Distinguished Educator since 2001, Ross has worked on various projects within the Apple Education team, including creative video projects involved in presenting key education strategy meetings with school districts. He has also presented and collaborated with national, state and local technology and education conferences like CUE, ACTE, ISTE, T+L, and often brought his students along to share their experiences and expertise with educators.

His students have won numerous prestigious awards at every level ranging from the National Television Academy, iVIE Awards, Santa Barbara International Film Festival, and the American High School Film Festival among many others. They have also had direct collaborations with various organizations such as the Apple, the John Lennon Bus, RTNDA, NAB, T+L, and NFCB among others to create content as well as to lead workshops.

Internationally, Ross has also had the opportunity to present at the Digital Olympic forum for the 2008 Olympiad in Beijing, P.R.C. and work with ADE’s on the Global Awareness Institute in Europe. He is also one of the early developers of the Student Television Network national conference with over 2500 student attendees each year.

With the goal of continuing to help students and young professionals develop their abilities as visual storytellers, whether it be journalists or filmmakers, Ross has been instrumental in challenging how his students view the world through a lens. The goal of programs such as this is to ultimately maximize their potential through developing engaging and authentic narratives, providing powerful tools and creative ideas, and preparing them for professional careers with industry standard equipment and collaborative environments.

Ross has a strong background in production workflow, system design, editing and has produced various industrial videos, podcasts and short films.

He has produced projects for companies like Apple Inc., EF Education, Diamond Audio Technology, ISTE, and the MA Dept. of Education.

Ross also works as a musician and audio engineer as well, working with Pro Tools, Sound Track Pro, and Logic.

Dr. David Paschane

Dr. David Paschane is a trusted advisor to government and business leaders, especially in Washington, DC. His doctorate is in Medical Geography, an older field of applied science, where human contexts are examined and modified to advance health and control diseases. Over the past 2 years, he has worked closely with federal and state agencies, tribal and regional governments, and innovators in health technologies and emerging service designs. He is committed to the development of health resiliency strategies, in response to disasters, changing economies, and emerging cultural-political dynamics. 

President/Founder, Marketing Essentials International

Skip Cohen

Skip Cohen is President/Founder of Marketing Essentials International, a marketing consulting firm specializing in projects dedicated to education, primarily in photography. He also serves as CMO for Platypod. He’s been actively involved in the photographic industry his entire career and previously served as President of Rangefinder/WPPI and earlier, President of Hasselblad USA. Prior to Hasselblad he was with Polaroid for 17 ½ years.

He founded SkipCohenUniversity.com in January, 2013. The site is a resource center for aspiring and working professional photographers. It’s now home to thousands of blog posts on business, marketing, technique, guest posts and podcasts.

He’s a writer, educator and consultant. He wrote for many years for Shutter Magazine, Resource Magazine and Digital Industry Reporter, and co-hosts “Mind Your Own Business,” “Beyond Technique” through Photofocus.com and the “Tamron Recipes” series with Chamira Young. His “Why?” podcast featuring the backstories behind over 120 images, each from a different artist has been considered ground-breaking. He’s a regular speaker and workshop instructor at several key conventions every year and has business and marketing modules with both Creative Live and Lynda.com.

He has co-authored six books on photography, The Art of Wedding Photography, The Art of the Digital Wedding, The Art of People Photography, Don Blair’s Guide to Posing and Lighting Body Parts, Wedding Photography from the Heart and GoingPro, released in 2011.