The 2013 RIIFF Festival Team:

Who's-Who Creating this Yars stiv

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Ashley L. Aldarando, Community Outreach Associate

Ashley is a senior at the Community College of Rhode Island. She has returned to Rhode Island after a term overseas in the Armed Services. A combat vet, Ashley also served a tour of duty in Afghanistan. Always having been a fan of film, Ashley found her self behind the camera documenting her deployment and her many travels including a month and half long backpacking trip through Europe. She decided to pursue her passion of film once her military obligations were met. She will be graduating in the fall and hopes to study Acting in California. Ashley grew up in New Bedford, Massachusetts and attended Charles E. Shea High School in Pawtucket, Rhode Island.

Ohad Amram, Programming Assistant

Ohad is rising senior at Hofstra University. Ohad is majoring in Film Studies & Production, and double minoring Journalism and English. Having been a staff writer for the Hofstra Chronicle since his enrollment at Hofstra, he has earned the position of "senior writer," for this upcoming school year. At the Hofstra Chronicle, Ohad writes for the Arts & Entertainment section where he utilizes his knowledge and interest on film. While a junior at Hofstra, Ohad interned at Tribeca Film in New York City. There he worked in distribution. As a cinephile and aspiring screenwriter, Ohad continues to immerse himself in any opportunity pertaining to film. Ohad's interest in film lie primarily in script analysis and film studies, however he has thoroughly enjoyed the few production courses he's taken. Upon graduating from Hofstra, Ohad anticipates on graduate school for screenwriting.

Andrea Rode Balwin, Public Relations & Social Media Associate

Andi is currently a graduate student at Syracuse University, where she is pursuing Master’s degrees in Public Relations and International Relations. Andi graduated from the University of Rhode Island in 2010, where she studied Global Business Management and German, and took film classes whenever she could fit them in her schedule. She spent two of her undergraduate years studying abroad in Europe, feeding her passion for travel and learning about foreign cultures. Upon graduation, Andi is looking forward to pursuing a career that combines her interest in Public Relations, the world, and film.

Nicholas Belt, University of Rhode Island, Development Associate

Steven Canavan, Filmmaker Relations Associate

Steven s going into his fourth year as a major in Creative Writing at Roger Williams University in Bristol, Rhode Island. He was born and raised in Bergen County, New Jersey, specifically the town of River Vale—a small suburb of New York City. He discovered his love for film and literature somewhere around the middle of his college career, sparking an unforeseen shift to the arts, following in the footsteps of his older brother—a jazz musician. An aspiring fiction writer, screenwriter, or art promoter in general, Steven enjoys literature, film, sports, traveling and music in his free time. Playing his drum kit in his basement in New Jersey, reading under the sun, and watching television and movies are his favorite ways to spend time. He is thrilled to be spending his summer living among the natural beauty in the nautical, historic town of Bristol, as well as promoting independent film with the Flickers: Rhode Island International Film Festival in the urban hub of Providence.

Graham H. Carter, Youth Jury Coordinator

Graham is a junior at the University of Southern California’s School of Cinematic Arts. Born and raised in Providence, Rhode Island, Carter first attended the University of Tampa in Florida immediately after high school. Having always hoped to live and work in Los Angeles in order to pursue his passion for film, he successfully transferred to USC in the Fall of 2012. Spending his time between Rhode Island and California, he has continued to stay involved with the film community of his home state, currently serving as the Programming Associate of the Flickers: Rhode Island International Film Festival. He is also the director of RIIFF’s 2013 Youth Film Jury, an assembled group of high school students who attend the Festival as an official judging panel and select winners of the Youth Film Jury Awards. His responsibilities at RIIFF also include sponsorship management and coordinating press releases. At USC, Graham is the Publicity Chair for the LGBT community-outreach organization, OUTreach; a co-host on the syndicated Trojanvision television talk show, Showcase; and an actor and writer on the Trojanvision student-produced teen drama, underGRAD. He also works as a Student Assistant at USC’s Library of Philosophy. His other interests include reading, writing, architecture, psychology, philosophy, and astronomy.

Jess Miga, ScriptzBiz Coordinator

Jess is a recent graduate of the University of Rhode Island, where she received BA's in both English and Film Media. While at URI, Jessica received numerous awards for her academic achievements, including the M. Beverly Swan Endowment and a prestigious Academic Excellence Award. Since she was a child, Jessica has had an enduring passion for writing; currently, she is hard at work on a feature-length screenplay and a young adult novel, among other projects. Jessica's year-long internship with Barrow Street Inc., a nonprofit poetry press, has further inspired her to pursue a career in the publishing industry. These factors combined have led Jessica to Emerson College, where she will begin her master's degree in Publishing and Writing this fall.

Caity Mylchreest, Development & Grant Associate

Cait is a junior at Brown University majoring in Literary Arts and Modern Culture and Media and handles Creative Writing at Flickers. She began a life-long love affair with film and literature in her hometown of Holland, Pennsylvania, where from an early age she wrote her own stories and created short films (mostly spinoffs of Harry Potter) with her friends When other eight-year-olds were watching The Rugrats, Cait could be found curled up on a couch absorbed in an Alfred Hitchcock marathon, who to this day remains her greatest artistic influence. In her Creative Writing studies at Brown, Cait focuses primarily on fiction and screenwriting and currently serves on the executive board of Brown University Motion Pictures (formerly Brown University Student Television), a student film organization that writes, produces, and directs all its own films, as the screenplay coordinator. She writes for several campus publications, including a newly launched satire news TV program, The Bearly News. In the future, Cait aspires to a seat in a dank, dirty television writers’ room hanging out with some loveable, like-minded individuals.

In addition to her love of film, Cait is an avid fan of classical music and has played the violin since the age of five. In her free time, she teaches violin and viola professionally to elementary through high school-aged students. She performs with The Brown University Orchestra, which just completed a tour of Ireland this past spring.

Xuan Nguyen, Financial Associate & Volunteer Coordinator

Xuan who also goes by Susan, is a current junior at Roger Williams University. Born and raised in Dalat, Vietnam, she first learned about filmmaking and its language, and also found her chance to study abroad in the United States while attending high school at APU International School in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam. As a potential Finance major, Xuan is also taking classes of a Film Studies minor in order to pursue a career in both fields. As Treasurer of RWU Film Production Club and a member of the Curation and Festival Production Class, Xuan wants to make use of her understanding, her love in filmmaking, and her experience growing up being exposed to both Western and Eastern movies to help internationalize the opportunities for filmmakers to share their products.

Nickolas Palermo, Assistant to the Executive Director

Nick is a junior at Roger Williams University and is the first Film major at the school, he also minors in Latin American History and Business. Nick also started and runs the Film Production Club on campus which is an organization dedicated to creating short films. Additionally Nick works for the non-profit organization called FIMRC which is the Foundation of International Medical Relief of Children which is dedicated to providing pediatric and maternal care to people in developing countries. Nick is currently working on a documentary for the organization that encompasses all of their sites across the world and shows the work they do. He also interns at the Rhode Island International Film Festival and for the organization’s Kid’s Eye Camp teaching children how to produce short films. Nick is an aspiring film maker and has a passion for the medium he continues to work hard in field for hopes of one day being one of the world’s greatest story tellers.

Brett Treacy, Program Guide & Marketing Associate

Brett is a junior at Georgetown University with a Marketing major and an English minor focused in film studies. Driven and eager to gain experience, he has held numerous part time jobs, working in a variety of positions including Social Media Assistant, Assistant Manager, and his personal favorite, barista. This summer, he is working with the Rhode Island International Film Festival as a Programming and Media Relations Associate. On campus, Brett serves as the Events Director and a radio personality for Georgetown Radio as well as a research assistant for an upcoming book on consumer electronics. Recognized as a film enthusiast, he takes on freelance film projects in his free time, and is currently writing a screenplay for his first short film. Born and raised in Seekonk, Massachusetts, Brett is a New England native and appreciates the region for all it has to offer aspiring filmmakers. Upon graduation, he plans to move to either Los Angeles or New York to pursue a career in the film industry, with the hopes of one day succeeding behind the camera.

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