Engages, Educates, and Empowers
New Filmmakers
Film industry professionals teach and mentor students, young and old, to step out of their comfort zone and tell their stories. We unleash untapped creativity and encourage a new generation of working filmmakers to transform the culture of the industry.
amaris mitchell
Amaris is a writer, film director, connector, and coach to grassroots organizers within and outside the nonprofit realm. She is also Cinema Ed's former Director of Community Affairs as well an award-winning mentor. Early in her career, Amaris worked as a Production Assistant for Food Network shows Cooks vs. Cons and Carlos' Bakery, both shot in New Jersey. As a great communicator and connector, Amaris got her big break into scripted TV through an artist mixer hosted by Creative Capital. She landed a Writers' Production Assistant (PA) position on STARZ P-Valley. As a Writers' PA, Amaris assisted renowned playwright and show-runner Katori Hall, a host of writers, and fellow support staff in helping develop a play into a television series. As a new series with a story based around dancers centralized in the Mississippi Delta, the first season took two years to develop. While working as an assistant, Amaris is a member of Newark Women in Film, where she wrote and directed her first short film 'An Uber Ride.' The film was nominated for Best Short Film at the 2020 Newark International Film Festival. It was a pathway for Amaris to recruit and practice filmmaking with friends, family, and local artists in the area.
Marcus Peterzell
Marcus is an industry leader in entertainment marketing who has successfully built and led award-winning agency teams both independently and within Omnicom, one of the largest advertising holding companies. Most recently Marcus was a partner and EVP of Entertainment at Ketchum PR as well as co-lead of their VR Practice, winning dozens of accolades including four Cannes Lions and a PRSA Silver Anvil. In 2019 Marcus launched Passion Point Collective, a new boutique agency that provides brands with next-generation entertainment marketing services and solutions. Marcus has a unique background that includes stints as a production executive for over 20 TV series and specials including the first cable strip to feature Larry David and Joy Behar on Lifetime, and the first authorized music documentaries for the Emmy award-winning series “Biography” for A&E. He has created dozens of award-winning branded entertainment campaigns for brands including Gatorade, Stub-Hub, Mt Sinai, Nestle, Pernod Ricard, Mastercard, and CES. Marcus has unparalleled music relationships that began with him guiding this year’s Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductees The Cure to their first number one album and single in the U.S in 1992. Marcus went on to create over 90 break-through music campaigns for artists including Ariana Grande, Little Big Town, Bon Jovi, and Sara Bareilles.
ANGELA MATUSIK
An award-Winning content producer and brand leader, Angela has been creating stories for Fortune 500 companies, global media brands, and innovative clients for over two decades. The founder of A.M. Stories, she helps brands ranging from pharmaceuticals to entertainment companies thread the needle of their narratives, bringing stories of impact and purpose to life across platforms – from sites to social to direct-to-consumer newsletters. Before launching her consulting agency, she was the head of corporate brand, content and creative at HP, Inc. She is the producer several award-winning documentary series, including History of Memory, Dear Future Me, Generation Impact, and most recently The Big Idea, with MIT Solve. Before her work with brands, Angela was a journalist, editor, and leader at global media brands, including InStyle, People, and NBC. Angela is known for History of Memory (2019), The Big Idea (2023) and Dear Future Me (2020).
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