Stephanie Stender – Director
Stephanie Stender is an award-winning director, producer, and screenwriter. Her works have been screened at film festivals around the world, from Australia to the UK, at such prestigious independent theaters as the Alamo Drafthouse in Austin, and on television – from PBS to the WB. Still Right Here, the music video she directed and produced for Melissa Ferrick, premiered on the front page of The Huffington Post and won Fan Favorite and Best Pro Pop/Rock Video at the Right Out TV Music Video Awards. Stephanie graduated from Hollins University at the top of her class with a B.A. in Film and Photography and English with a concentration in creative writing. In 2007, she received her M.F.A. in Film Production from Boston University. Since then, she has directed numerous narrative films, commercials, and music videos, as well as documentaries including Bingo Nation which premiered at Big Sky Documentary Film Festival. Her works, both on the page and on the screen, are characterized by a stirring blend of dark humor and breathtaking visuals, with a focus on women and queer issues. In 2001, she founded Doorstop Productions, an all-women’s film production company, with five fellow female filmmakers. Doorstop’s intrinsic purpose is to allow women interested in directing, writing, and producing films a creative, safe, and nurturing environment to do so. Throughout her career, Stephanie has worked on various Emmy award recognized shows, from WordGirl to Antiques Roadshow, and was nominated three times as the Co-Executive Producer of America’s Test Kitchen and Cook’s Country and was Executive Producer of Milk Street TV and Radio for two years. She is finishing production on her feature-length documentary All Stars: The Changing Face of Drag. A member of the Alliance of Women Directors, she was selected as a 2014 TV shadowing candidate, where she was mentored by award-winning director Gail Mancuso, and was a 2018 participant of the AWD Industry Support Program. She was also selected as an Emerging Filmmaker Fellow by the Smithsonian and NEH for the 2017 History Film Forum.
Annie Wilson – Producer
Annie Wilson is a Boston-based producer and concert photographer. She graduated from Colby College with a BA in English Literature and a minor in Japanese. Pushing the boundaries of Colby’s documentary filmmaking class, Annie, along with two of her bold classmates, filmed the short documentary “Sex Positive,” about feminist pornographer and world-class oboist Bobbi Starr. Currently, Annie is producing a feature-length documentary on drag culture, a comedic web series starring ImprovBoston cast members, and a Méliès-style short film featuring mermaids. Annie has also photographed numerous concerts from Joan Jett and the Blackhearts to Metric and interviewed bands from Paramore to the Used.
Emma Clair – Producer
Emma Clair is a producer focused on films and television shows that explore concepts of identity through an authentic lens, including the feature-length documentary All Stars: The Changing Face of Drag. She is a Beloit College graduate with a B.A. in Media Studies. She has worked with the Beloit based production company, Ethos Films, and as a cinematographer for Retro Redux Entertainment.
Stephen Hussar – Director of Photography
Stephen Hussar is a Boston-based cinematographer and photographer. With 28 years in the business, Stephen’s cinematography work has been seen on shows ranging from America’s Test Kitchen and Cook’s Country to Simply Ming and Julia Child & Jacques Pepin’s Cooking at Home. He also created and directed the television show “Restoration Stories” on PBS. Stephen has worked with ESPN, CBS, MSNBC, History, Discovery, National Geographic, Showtime, and HGTV.
Macaela VanderMost – Camera Operator
Macaela VanderMost is a passionate filmmaker lending her creativity to the advertising world through her production company, Newfangled Studios. Her client roster includes Virgin, Google, New Balance, and Staples. Macaela also directed and filmed the award-winning documentary Sky High. Her work can be described as cinematic documentary style, with a strong integration of motion graphics.
Eric Joslin – Camera Operator
Eric Joslin graduated from Boston University’s prestigious film production program with a MFA in Film Production. He founded Egg Films in 2008. Working as a freelance cameraman and director, Eric has worked on PBS shows, ranging from America’s Test Kitchen to Cook’s Country. He is currently wrapping up production on his short film Shoestrung.
Jeremy Bond – Audio Engineer
Jeremy Bond is a film Swiss army knife. A master of field audio, lighting, grip, and camera work, he can do it all. Currently the Equipment Manager at DGA Productions, Jeremy is constantly in the field – from ESPN shoots at Gillette Stadium to documentary shoots in the forests of Brazil. He is also a master drone videographer.
Rachel Lawlor – Editor
Rachel Lawlor is an editor, filmmaker, and designer based in Brooklyn, New York. She majored in Digital Journalism and Film, Television, New Media, with a minor in Graphic Design at Fairfield University.