Leadership

ROBERT RABEN
Founder

KIM CALLINAN
Executive Director

ISISARA BEY
Artistic Director

OPAL HOPE BENNETT
Emerging & Student Filmmaker Competition Director

Leigh Davis
Producer
Team
- Producer: Leigh Davis
- GALA Consultants: Kimball Stroud Associates
- Marketing Lead: Mike Utaegbulam
- Finance Director: Ibonee Perry
- Operations Manager: Ralph Santora
Board of Trustees
The Festival is guided by a team of leaders across the entertainment, policy, and social justice arenas that ensures the success and execution of our vision.

Denielle Pemberton-Heard
President
Diversified Search Group

Craig Emanuel
Treasurer
Ryan Murphy Productions

Stephanie Gold
Secretary
Hogan Lovells

Vickee Jordan Adams
Finsbury Glover Hering

Victoria Bassetti
Brennan Center for Justice

Joyce Brayboy
Goldman Sachs

A'Lelia Bundles
Author

Samara Foxx
Attorney

Melissa Maxfield
Comcast

Joseph Olchefske
Educator & Entrepreneur

ROBERT RABEN
Founder

Joseph West
Duane Morris LLP
Press releases
June 2025 Newsletter
Upcoming Webinar – Behind the Lens: Telling Civil Rights Stories Through FilmTuesday, June 24 | 1:00-1:30 PM ET Join us for a live conversation about the power of film to […]
Why Storytelling Matters iIn the Fight for Social Justice
One Video. One Brave Teen. A Global Movement. Four years ago, the world changed—not because of a press release or a policy paper, but because of a 17-year-old girl with […]
Introducing March On!: Stories That Move – Our Monthly Cultural Roundup
Inaugural Edition — June 2025 In a time when key aspects of American history—such as the truth about slavery, Jim Crow, the civil rights movement, and ongoing racial injustice—are being […]