Gary Farmer, Chair - SFiFF Advisory Board Chair Gary Farmer was born in Ohsweken, Ontario into the Cayuga Nation. He attended Syracuse University and Ryerson Polytechnic University, where he studied photography and film production. Gary is best known for his role as spiritual Native American guide, Nobody, in Dead Man. Gary reprised the role for a cameo in Ghost Dog: The Way of the Samurai. He was also the publisher of Aboriginal Voices magazine, and one of the Founders of the Aboriginal Voices radio network. He was nominated for Independent Spirit Awards for his roles in the movies Powwow Highway, Dead Man, and Smoke Signals. Gary is the creator and curator of SFiFF’s annual Indigenous Film Program. He currently stars in hit television series Resident Alien, The English, and Reservation Dogs.
Chris Eyre - Chris Eyre, the nation's most celebrated American Indian film director, was born in Oregon. An enrolled member of the Cheyenne and Arapaho Tribes of Oklahoma, Chris graduated from the University of Arizona and also the NYU Tisch graduate film program. Chris gained national attention in 1998 with his first film, Smoke Signals, which won the Audience Award and Filmmaker's Trophy at the Sundance Film Festival and became the first nationally distributed feature film that was directed, written, co-produced, and featured American Indian actors. People Magazine called him "the preeminent Native American filmmaker of his time." Chris later directed Skins, Skinwalkers, Edge of America, and Hideaway as well as television episodes of Law and Order, Friday Night Lights. He is Executive Producer and director of the AMC series Dark Winds now filming its second season.
Kirk Ellis - Kirk Ellis won two Emmys, a Golden Globe, a WGA Award, a Peabody and the Humanitas Prize for his work on the HBO miniseries John Adams. The miniseries won a record-breaking 13 Primetime Emmys in total, as well as four Golden Globe awards. Previously, Ellis received an Emmy nomination and won the WGA Award and Humanitas Prize for the ABC miniseries Anne Frank, which he wrote and co-produced. Miniseries on which he has served as writer and producer, including Into the West, and Life with Judy Garland: Me and My Shadows have received more than 50 Emmy nominations. Kirk Ellis is the writer and Executive Producer for Apple TV’s new miniseries Franklin starring Michael Douglas.
Alexandria Bombach - Alexandria Bombach is an award-winning director, cinematographer, and editor from Santa Fe, NM. Her recent work has focused on exploring ethics in journalism and advocacy, and challenging misperceptions of the refugee crisis. Her feature-length documentary, On Her Shoulders (2018), won Best Directing in the US Documentary Competition at the Sundance Film Festival, was nominated for two Film Independent Spirit Awards, and was shortlisted for the Academy Awards for Best Documentary Feature. Her first feature-length documentary, Frame by Frame (2015) premiered at SXSW and went on to win over 25 film festival awards. Alexandria is the founder of the Santa Fe Editing & Writing Residency, a 2019 Sundance Institute Momentum Fellow, and a 2019 Chicken & Egg Award Fellow. Alexandria’s newest film It’s Only Life After All is opening night at the 2023 Sundance Film Festival.
David Sontag -David Sontag is the Chairman Emeritus of the Board of EarthEcho International a leading environmental, educational non-profit founded by Philippe, Alexandra, and Janice Cousteau. He is Professor Emeritus of the Communications Studies Department at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and was, until 2011, the Wesley Wallace Distinguished Professor of Communication Studies and the Director of the Writing for the Screen and Stage Program in the College of Arts a degree program that he created for the University. David is an award-winning writer and producer and has written for Columbia Pictures, Universal, MGM, and Hollywood Pictures among others as well as CBS, NBC, ABC and Fox. He has also held important creative and executive positions at 20 Century Fox, NBC, CBS Films and ABC. David, a nominee for both the Writers' Guild and Humanitas awards.
Nicole Guillemet - Nicole Guillemet has worked in key positions in the film industry for thirty years. For over fifteen years she served as Vice-President of the Sundance Institute and Co-Director of the Sundance Film Festival. In 2002, she founded the Utah Film Center bringing the world of film to local audiences, emphasizing social content and artistic excellence. She is an Executive Producer of the Dhamma Brothers (2008) by Jenny Philips, Circus Without Border by Susan Grey, and Oscars nominated The Square (2013) by Jehane Noujaim. In 2005 she was awarded the Chevalier de l’ Ordre des Arts et des Lettres from the French Minister of Culture.
Alton Walpole - Alton Walpole is an eclectic filmmaker with more than 30 years of experience as an editor, cinematographer and producer. For over a decade, he has been working primarily as a Unit Production Manager. As an editor, he translated archetypal and contemporary images into the cinema experiences of Koyaanisqatsi and Powaqqatsi. In the 1990s he was the supervising producer of "Baraka" and coordinated the international travel and location access. He was also supervising producer on Passion in the Desert, where he worked with leopards, and Hand of Fate, a documentary about clairvoyants around the globe. Recently, he was the Unit Production Manager on The Spirit, Crazy Heart, and The Book of Eli. Alton is a member of the Directors Guild of America and resides in Santa Fe, NM, where he owns Mountainair Films Inc.
Beth Caldarello - Beth Caldarello moved to Santa Fe from Los Angeles in 2015. There she was the Manager of Operations and special projects for AFI FEST. Beth's experience has ranged from working in the television industry for such shows as ER and Nip/Tuck, managing a fine art photography gallery, to producing films. She co-produced the short film AASHPORDHA (Audacity) that played the festival circuit winning the Audience Award at Indian Film Festival Los Angeles and assoc. produced the documentary film SEMBENE! that was in International Competition at Sundance. Currently, she is working as a freelance consultant for Film Festivals and Movies.
Kimi Ginoza Green - Kimi Green's professional career includes 23 years of philanthropic and community development leadership and management. She has served as Program Director for New Cycle Foundation and Director, Development and Community Sustainability for New Mexico Community Foundation. Green is a Consultant for non-profit development, serves on the Board of Directors for social and environmental justice non-profit organizations, as well as foundations and funder associations.
Sherry Broyles - Sherry Broyles has an undergraduate degree in Studio Art and a J.D. from Vanderbilt University. She has worked in the fields of law, political organizing, and grant administration. Most recently, she founded and served for six years as Executive Director of Inside Out Studio in Huntsville Alabama, a non-profit that provides studio and gallery space to adults with disabilities. Ms. Broyles has relocated from Alabama to Taos, New Mexico, and is excited to continue her work to promote greater inclusion in the Arts.
Marissa Juarez - Marissa grew up in New Mexico and has lived here most of her life. She holds a BA and MA in English from the University of New Mexico and a PhD in Rhetoric, Composition, and the Teaching of English from the University of Arizona. She teaches writing at Central New Mexico Community College in Albuquerque.
Paul Langland - Paul Langland is a New York based choreographer, dancer and teacher who for the last 38 years has been an innovator of many developments in performance. He has preserved and developed the legacy of the late dancer Allan Wayne through an ongoing system of teachings and performances. He has named this system Allan Wayne Work, which he has taught since 1979. His choreography has been presented in New York and world-wide. He was a Meredith Monk Vocal Ensemble and Company member from 1974-1985,has been a teacher and practitioner of contact improvisation since 1973, and has worked with many wonderful directors and choreographers. He is delighted to live in Santa Fe with his husband, painter Colin Cochran.
In Memory: Xavier Horan - Xavier worked in the post sound industry for over 10 years with some of the leading directors, producers, and studios in the industry. As a former sound supervisor at Sound Delux for 10 years, Xavier worked as a sound supervisor, sound editor, and ADR supervisor, where he helped build the creative sound elements for some of the most memorable top box office movies. Some of Xavier's accomplishments within sound started in music where he worked with some of the biggest bands in the world, including The Rolling Stones. Xavier worked on many blockbuster films including Fast 5, Fast and Furious, The Fast and the Furious: Tokyo Drift, Bourne Ultimatum (Oscar Winner), Blood Diamond, Its Complicated, and American Gangster.
Jacques Paisner, Artistic Director - SFiFF Artistic Director, Jacques Paisner is the Vice President of the Board of Directors for the Santa Fe Railyard Community Corporation. He is the former Director of Programming at Jean Cocteau Cinema. Jacques serves on the Advisory Board for California American Indian Film Festival, and he is a former Santa Fe Film Commissioner. Jacques was born in Minneapolis, grew up in Santa Fe, and is a 1998 graduate of Santa Fe High School, and received a BA degree in Philosophy in 2003 from the University of New Mexico. He is the producer on the forthcoming feature film from indie auteur Jon Moritsugu, the writer/director of the 2009 feature film, Rejection and the author of Albuquerque Blues (2007). He currently lives in Santa Fe with his dog.
Liesette Bailey, Executive Director - SFiFF Executive Director, Liesette Bailey was born and raised in Santa Fe and received her BA at the University of New Mexico in 2012, honors summa cum laude in History. Liesette was the New Mexico coordinator of Martin Luther King III's Realizing the Dream Poverty Initiative in America. She has worked for Recursos de Santa Fe and Royal Roads Tours. Liesette is the former Director of Marketing/Programmer at Jean Cocteau Cinema. She directed the Southwest Literary Center's Women Writers' Conference, as well as working with the planning and development of the First Annual UNESCO International Conference on Creative Tourism. Liesette produces Film Talk Weekly on KTRC and santafe.com.
Stephanie Love-Riner, Festival Director - SFiFF Festival Director, Stephanie Love-Riner graduated from the Penny Stamps School of Art and Design at the University of Michigan, honors magna cum laude in Studio Arts. She has lived in Santa Fe since 2013, pursuing a passion in the arts that has attracted her to work for art galleries and local magazines, before joining the Santa Fe International Film Festival in 2018. Stephanie has participated in student film projects and as an extra in locally shot films like Ideal Home.
Derek Horne, Director of Shorts Programming - In addition to programming the short films for the Santa Fe International Film Festival, Derek Horne is the Director of Programming for the Annapolis Film Festival. Previously he was the Director of Programming for the Hot Springs Documentary Film Festival and the Tampa Bay Int’l Gay & Lesbian Film Festival. He has programmed a dozen other festivals from coast to coast including Newport, RI to Newport Beach CA. Derek started his festival career in the Filmmaker Services Department at the Sundance Film Festival. Derek has also worked in film acquisitions with Shortbuzz.com, iCast.net, and Atom Films. Derek was the founding editor of Kodak’s student filmmaking magazine and has also written for IndieWire and FilmInk. For 11 years he was the inaugural Film Coordinator at Chapman University’s film school and currently he is the Distribution Coordinator at USC’s School of Cinematic Arts.
New Mexico shorts are programmed by committee.
Jena Braziel, Submission Coordinator & Guest Service Director - Jena Braziel graduated from the University of New Mexico, with a BA in Media Arts in 2014. She was born in Steamboat Springs, CO and moved to Santa Fe, NM in 7th grade. Jena has been with SFiFF since 2012. Jena has been to New York, Paris, and Milan fashion week as an assistant buyer and Operations Manager for Workshop. Jena is also Marketing Coordinator at Meow Wolf.
Nathan Hollis, Festival Coordinator Nathan is a filmmaker and artist living in Saint John, NB Canada. He received his MFA at the Screen Academy Scotland in Edinburgh, Scotland in 2014. His first feature, Harry & Avis played numerous festivals and won multiple awards, including the Audience Choice Award at Santa Fe International Film Festival in 2015. He is currently in post-production hell on his second feature HEATWAVES.
Blake Lewis, Headquarters Manager - Blake Lewis was born a Southern "peach" in rural South-Eastern Georgia but raised in Northern New Mexico for the majority of her life. As a graduate of the University of New Mexico, Blake has built her community and network throughout the state and throughout the country by participating, volunteering, and producing various events and functions. Blake has also been involved in film and photography for over 10 years; from being in front of the camera, as well as behind it. Learning her way around sets by first becoming an extra/stand-in, she then worked her way into various projects, including, documentaries, feature films, independent films, and music videos, as well as advertising photography as a producer, casting assistant, stylist, and set dresser.
Zheng Nathan Nie, Associate Programmer - Zheng “Nathan” Nie is a writer-director from China. Since he started at Michigan State University in 2008 as an undergrad in Media Arts, he's been developing his filmmaking skills across many disciplines. In 2017, upon graduating from the UCLA MFA Directing program, he won the UCLA Directors Spotlight Award with his thesis film, “A Proper Burial,” which was screened at the DGA theater. In 2018, his film, “House of the Lonesome Human Beings,” won Best Screenplay at Dam Short Film Festival. “The Way Home,” a short film he wrote, was selected by numerous top-tier festivals, including Shanghai International Film Festival and Santa Barbara International Film Festival. “Submerged,” a short film he wrote, directed, and photographed, currently has more than one million views on Youtube.
Yalian Li, Associate Programmer - Yalian Li received her Master of Fine Arts in Film and Television Production from the USC Film School in 2021. Her previous short films have been shown in over thirty film festivals, including the DeadCenter Film Festival, Riverrun International Film Festival, Dances with Films, Flicker Rhode Island International Film Festival, and Santa Fe International Film Festival. Her films were also made available on Shorts TV and other streaming services.
Cora Golden, Associate Programmer - Cora Golden graduated from the Norman Jewison Film Program at the Canadian Film Centre as well as CFC’s Prime Time TV Program for writers. She is co-author of the award-winning book, ‘Design in Canada,’ and sole writer/producer of a two-volume series of books, ‘Masters of Jewellery Design in Canada’. After more than 15 years as a journalist/editor of Toronto-based national publications, she is currently completing a hybrid, novelized screenplay.
Illy Diaz, Associate Programmer - Illy is a queer Afro-Caribbean multidisciplinary creator, administrator, writer, and researcher. She has been involved in various capacities in film and arts curation for over ten years. Previously she was the Director of Programming for the Grand River Film Festival and has served in many film selection committees throughout Canada and the United States. She holds a BA in Film Studies, MA in Anthropology, and is completing a PhD.
Jeffrey P. Crowley, Associate Programmer - Jeffrey is a NY based filmmaker and film programmer. He has programmed, managed, coordinated, and screened for a variety of film institutions and festivals, most notably Jacob Burns Film Center, Metrograph, Alamo Drafthouse Yonkers, AFMI’s Arab Film Festival, Indie Memphis, and Rooftop Films. His feature debut, Night Light, is an award winning period drama. The third of four Crowley-siblings, Jeffrey is a graduate of SUNY Purchase’s Art History and Playwriting & Screenwriting programs, and in his free time, he’s pretty handy with a yo-yo.
Castle Searcy, Publicist - Based in Colorado with time spent in San Francisco and the Deep South, Castle Searcy is the co-founder and owner of Denver's award-winning Tootsies the Nail Shoppe, a freelance design/branding expert and documentary film producer. Castle serves as the Festival Dailies Manager for the Denver Film Society, Design Chair for Denver Startup Week. She received her MBA from the University of Denver and BA in Psychology from the University of Colorado at Denver.
Bryce Warren, Tech Consultant - Bryce Warren is a film tech specialist know for his work leading technical teams at film festivals worldwide, as well for his various videography and editing work - graduating early Magna Cum Laude from Santa Fe University of Art and Design with a BFA in Film Production. Though his passion and love for filmmaking began at just 13, he continues pushing forward a career in the film industry, remaining eager to diversify his skill set and take on a wide variety of innovative challenges.
Suzanne Ostyn, Volunteer Coordinator - Suzanne's work as an Archaeological Field Director first brought her to New Mexico in 2009, but she didn't call Santa Fe home until 2019. Before joining the SFiFF staff, she attended the festival as a Sponsor guest, then Volunteer. Suzanne loves watching movies, but also learning about the creative processes behind the camera, like cinematography, screenwriting, and film scoring. Her personal projects include a photo-journal documentary, a weekly music program on community radio (KMRD), and a wearable "souvenir" line based on her love of the macabre and the desert. Find her at a brewery, a concert, or hiking with her dog, Hopper.
Allie Salazar, Graphic Designer - Allie Salazar is a Santa Fe/Albuquerque based Graphic Designer who creates works for local and out of state businesses and personal requests. When not designing you can find her traveling to far away lands, listening to music, attending local events, or tucked away in her studio working on personal projects.
Eileen O'Brien, Moderator - Eileen O'Brien has over twenty years of professional experience in directing membership programs, film festivals, as well as work in production on independent and studio films, network and cable television programs. She has also written, directed and produced marketing videos, television pilots and programs, live events, theater productions and consulted on independent film marketing and distribution. Eileen has also directed, programmed, managed, coordinated, and consulted on major film festivals including Cannes, Sundance, Savannah, and Denver International. She is currently a membership consultant, festival programmer, and guest speaker/interviewer.
