(he/him)

Documentary filmmaker Atin Mehra’s uncanny ability to connect with individuals from behind the lens led him into filmmaking where his own struggles with abuse and discrimination drew him to stories of marginalized individuals and communities. He and his wife and filmmaking partner, Mae Thornton have been producing social justice and impact driven films together for over 15 years at Orange Kite Productions. BEING MICHELLE (2022) is Atin’s directorial debut for which he is a 2022 Firelight Media Impact Campaign Fund Grantee.

(she/her)

Dro Watson is an LA based educator, filmmaker, and artist. Though filmmaking has always been Dro’s first love, they work in all types of mediums, from puppetry to ceramics to bookmaking, mostly as a way to explore representations of mental health, transness, and the self. Their work has won awards and screened both in the states and overseas. Above all, Dro just wants to have a good time.

(he/him)

Omar S. Kamara is a first-generation Sierra Leonean American, Virginia native, and graduate of the College of William and Mary and AFI. His debut feature film, AFRICAN GIANTS, won the Audience Award at the 2024 Slamdance Film Festival. His previous short film, MASS AVE, won the Grand Prize at the DGA Student Film Awards, and is currently streaming on HBO Max. In addition to winning the Franklin J. Schaffner Fellow Award at AFI, he was selected as an inaugural Resident for the Rideback Rise BIPOC Content Accelerator as well as a filmmaker for the Rising Voices Program to write and direct a short that will premiere at Tribeca in 2024.