Points North
Who We Are2020-01-20T15:04:10-05:00

CORE STAFF

Ben Fowlie - Executive Director of Points North Institute
Bio

Ben Fowlie

Executive & Artistic Director / Co-Founder

Ben Fowlie

Executive & Artistic Director

Ben Fowlie is the Executive Director of the Points North Institute, and the Founder of the Camden International Film Festival. He is a co-founder and co-programmer of The DocYard, an award winning screening series in Cambridge, MA and has served on juries at the Silverdocs Film Festival, Hot Docs Festival, Dokufest Kosovo, IFFBoston and for IFP’s Gotham Awards. Ben is currently the Nominee’s Chair for the Cinema Eye Honors for Nonfiction Filmmaking, and a member of their Industry Advisory Board and Nominating Committee. He serves on the Maine Film Commission, and is an adjunct instructor at Unity College’s Center for Environmental Arts and Humanities.

Sean Flynn - Program Director
Bio

Sean Flynn

Program Director / Co-Founder

Sean Flynn

Program Director

Sean Flynn is the Program Director for the Points North Institute and has helped design and produce all Points North programs since 2011. Sean received a master’s degree from MIT’s Comparative Media Studies department, where he worked as a researcher at the MIT Open Documentary Lab. Sean began his filmmaking career as a producer and cinematographer working on two feature-length documentaries, BEYOND BELIEF and THE LIST, both of which had their premiere at the Tribeca Film Festival and aired on national television. In 2012, Sean was a Fulbright Senior Research Fellow in Mumbai, India.

Emily Peckham - Development Director
Bio

Emily Peckham

Development Director

Emily Peckham

Development Director

Emily Peckham is the Director of Development for the Points North Institute, bringing with her a background in organizational behavior, project management, and fundraising for place-based education. Her keen interest in the arts can be traced from her early childhood. Emily earned a B.A. in psychology from Oberlin College with a research methods focus and inductions into Sigma Xi and Phi Beta Kappa. Her early career included management consulting in a boutique firm and project management at a major Boston teaching hospital. After three years in a Ph.D. program at Boston College, Emily moved to Rockland in 2007.

Annie Brown - Operations & Communications Manager
Bio

Annie Brown

Operations & Communications Manager

Annie Brown

Operations & Communications Manager

Annie Brown, Operations & Communications Manager, grew up in Portland and has lived and worked in midcoast since 2006. She is a graduate of Bennington College and most recently ran events for the Farnsworth Art Museum. Her interests include strong coffee and earl grey, peonies, making and eating delicious food, working hard for better world, surprises.

Annie Brown - Operations & Communications Manager
Bio

Annie Brown

Operations & Communications Manager

Annie Brown

Operations & Communications Manager

Annie Brown, Operations & Communications Manager, grew up in Portland and has lived and worked in midcoast since 2006. She is a graduate of Bennington College and most recently ran events for the Farnsworth Art Museum. Her interests include strong coffee and earl grey, peonies, making and eating delicious food, working hard for better world, surprises.

Samara Grace Chadwick - Programmer
Bio

Samara Grace Chadwick

Senior Programmer

Samara Grace Chadwick

Senior Programmer

Samara Grace Chadwick is a documentary filmmaker, programmer, and scholar who has spent over 15 years working in the field of non-fiction, in Germany, Denmark, Vanuatu, Brazil, Italy, the US and Canada. She has a PhD in Cultural Studies, and has programmed films and conferences for HotDocs in Toronto, the 2ANNAS Film Festival in Rīga, the Museum of  Modern Art in Rio de Janeiro (MAM), and the Kunst-Werke Institute for Contemporary Art / 7th Berlin Biennale in Berlin. For the past two years, she curated Doc Circuit Montréal: the Market, Conference, Talent Lab and Kino VR programmes of the Montreal International  Documentary Festival (RIDM).

Samara Grace Chadwick - Programmer
Bio

Samara Grace Chadwick

Senior Programmer

Samara Grace Chadwick

Senior Programmer

Samara Grace Chadwick is a documentary filmmaker, programmer, and scholar who has spent over 15 years working in the field of non-fiction, in Germany, Denmark, Vanuatu, Brazil, Italy, the US and Canada. She has a PhD in Cultural Studies, and has programmed films and conferences for HotDocs in Toronto, the 2ANNAS Film Festival in Rīga, the Museum of  Modern Art in Rio de Janeiro (MAM), and the Kunst-Werke Institute for Contemporary Art / 7th Berlin Biennale in Berlin. For the past two years, she curated Doc Circuit Montréal: the Market, Conference, Talent Lab and Kino VR programmes of the Montreal International  Documentary Festival (RIDM).

PROGRAMMING ASSOCIATES

Tiffany Jackson

Milton Guillén

2019 FESTIVAL STAFF

Click for bio

Aja Stevens-Bell

HUB Master

Click for bio

Alfie Russo

Storyforms Tech Manager

Click for bio

Alix Towler

Special Events Manager
Nicole Fowlie - Finance
View Bio

Nicole Fowlie

Finance

Nicole Fowlie - Finance

Nicole Fowlie

Finance

Nicole Fowlie has been a dedicated supporter of the festival since year one and has enjoyed working as an official member of the team for many years. She lives in the midcoast area where she is raising her two sons. In addition to crunching numbers for Points North, Nicole is proud to work with local youth, both in the school system, and as a behavioral health professional.

Jonathan Laurence - Design Director
View Bio

Jonathan Laurence

Design Director

Jonathan Laurence - Design Director

Jonathan Laurence

Design Director

Jonathan Laurence is an artist and designer, currently living in his native lands of midcoast Maine. In addition to working, he gets a kick out of eating, cooking good food, travel, adventure, design, films, art, music, looking, making, assembling, learning, and generally anything positive. find more: jonathanlaurence.com.

BEN FOWLIE
BEN FOWLIEExecutive and Artistic Director
Ben Fowlie is the Executive Director of the Points North Institute, and the Founder of the Camden International Film Festival. He is a co-founder and co-programmer of The DocYard, an award winning screening series in Cambridge, MA and has served on juries at the Silverdocs Film Festival, Hot Docs Festival, Dokufest Kosovo, IFFBoston and for IFP’s Gotham Awards. Ben is currently the Nominee’s Chair for the Cinema Eye Honors for Nonfiction Filmmaking, and a member of their Industry Advisory Board and Nominating Committee. He serves on the Maine Film Commission, and is an adjunct instructor at Unity College’s Center for Environmental Arts and Humanities.
SEAN FLYNN
SEAN FLYNNProgram Director
Sean Flynn is the Program Director for the Points North Institute and has helped design and produce all Points North programs since 2011. Sean received a master’s degree from MIT’s Comparative Media Studies department, where he worked as a researcher at the MIT Open Documentary Lab. Sean began his filmmaking career as a producer and cinematographer working on two feature-length documentaries, BEYOND BELIEF and THE LIST, both of which had their premiere at the Tribeca Film Festival and aired on national television. In 2012, Sean was a Fulbright Senior Research Fellow in Mumbai, India.
KATE FLETCHER
KATE FLETCHEROperations Director
Kate Fletcher is the Operations Director for the Points North Institute. Kate has worked in arts administration and development for theatre arts, visual arts, and educational organizations for over 25 years, including the Long Wharf Theatre (New Haven, CT), the Museum of Photographic Arts (San Diego, CA), Maine Media Workshops & College in (Rockport, ME) The Strand (Rockland, ME), Legacy Theatre (Branford, CT), and Elm Shakespeare Company (New Haven, CT). Kate has also been active with Midcoast theatre companies as director, producer, actor, and board member. She’s returned home to Maine from New Haven, CT where she worked in marketing and communications at the International Festival of Arts & Ideas and served as Managing Director of Orchestra New England.
EMILY PECKHAM
EMILY PECKHAMDevelopment Director
Emily Peckham is the Director of Development for the Points North Institute, bringing with her a background in organizational behavior, project management, and fundraising for place-based education. Her keen interest in the arts can be traced from her early childhood. Emily earned a B.A. in psychology from Oberlin College with a research methods focus and inductions into Sigma Xi and Phi Beta Kappa. Her early career included management consulting in a boutique firm and project management at a major Boston teaching hospital. After three years in a Ph.D. program at Boston College, Emily moved to Rockland in 2007.
SAMARA GRACE CHADWICK
SAMARA GRACE CHADWICKProgrammer
Samara Grace Chadwick is a documentary filmmaker, programmer, and scholar who has spent over 15 years working in the field of non-fiction, in Germany, Denmark, Vanuatu, Brazil, Italy, the US and Canada. She has a PhD in Cultural Studies, and has programmed films and conferences for HotDocs in Toronto, the 2ANNAS Film Festival in Rīga, the Museum of  Modern Art in Rio de Janeiro (MAM), and the Kunst-Werke Institute for Contemporary Art / 7th Berlin Biennale in Berlin. For the past two years, she curated Doc Circuit Montréal: the Market, Conference, Talent Lab and Kino VR programmes of the Montreal International  Documentary Festival (RIDM). 
JONATHAN LAURENCE
JONATHAN LAURENCEDesign Director
Jonathan Laurence is an artist and designer, currently living in his native lands of midcoast Maine. 

In addition to working, he gets a kick out of eating, cooking good food, travel, adventure, design, films, art, music, looking, making, assembling, learning, and generally anything positive. find more: jonathanlaurence.com
NICOLE FOWLIE
NICOLE FOWLIEFinance
Nicole Fowlie has been a dedicated supporter of the festival since year one and has enjoyed working as an official member of the team for many years. She lives in the midcoast area where she is raising her two sons. In addition to crunching numbers for Points North, Nicole is proud to work with local youth, both in the school system, and as a behavioral health professional.

2017 FESTIVAL STAFF

ALEXANDRA MARVAR
ALEXANDRA MARVARFestival Producer
Alexandra Marvar is a writer, strategist, and producer focused on helping creators build relationships with their audiences. She has worked on several record-breaking crowdfunding campaigns, recently co-producing the highest grossing doc film campaign to date. She’s participated in panels on film distribution and audience engagement for Hot Docs Doc Ignite labs, the Geena Davis Institute, the Sloan Foundation, IFP, and a pile of great film festivals. In 2010, she co-founded non-profit arts festival O+, where participating artists and musicians exchange art for free healthcare services from art-loving healthcare professionals — now in four U.S. cities! She loves helping bring other people’s great ideas to fruition, and also lobster rolls, so she’s over the moon to be part of CIFF for her fourth year running.
COLIN KELLEY
COLIN KELLEYTech Director
Colin Kelley has made a career helping artists realize their visions through technology. He couldn’t imagine a better gig. An experienced digital projectionist and content creator, he frequently freelances for print, broadcast and independent film. He lives down the coast a bit with his wife, their awesome tiny human, two feuding cats and an overly ambitious dog.
MANETTE POTTLE
MANETTE POTTLEPoints North Forum Producer
ETHAN KIERMAIER
ETHAN KIERMAIERSpecial Events Creative Director
Ethan Kiermaier is a freelance builder, event producer, educator, dj, installation artist and native of Midcoast Maine. He holds an MFA from the University of Massachusetts at Amherst and his work has been supported by Assets for Artists, the New England Foundation for the Arts and the Berwick Research institute. He is still largely in disbelief that he gets to throw parties for a living…
SARAH ROGERS
SARAH ROGERSVolunteer Manager
Sarah Rogers comes to CIFF with a love of anything that involves production and volunteers. When she is not working for CIFF she can be found organizing the flat- track chaos of Rock Coast Rollers roller derby league; the bit and pieces of the First Universalist Church in Rockland; and all the important data for WindowDressers, a non-profit dedicated to reducing fossil fuel consumption. She is also a mother and secretly addicted to painting murals.
STEVIE WEINSTEIN-FONER
STEVIE WEINSTEIN-FONERSpecial Events Assistant Director
Stevie excited to be joining the CIFF special events team for the second year in a row. He currently works as a musician, artist, archivist, and jack of all trades. He recently moved to Los Angeles. When he’s not on the road, that’s where he lives.
ERIN MOLITOR
ERIN MOLITORDirector of Special Events
Erin grew up a Downeast Maine girl and now resides in the wilds of Brooklyn, New York. She is a recorder of light and shadow, a jewelry designer, a metalsmith, a painter and drawer, a writer and editor of words, and an organizer of events. She is proprietor and maker of things at owl&bone in Brooklyn.
AUDREY EWELL
AUDREY EWELLPublicist
Audrey is a publicist and award-winning filmmaker based in Brooklyn, NY. Press inquiries can be sent to her at audrey(at)evilsummerpr(dot)com
SITA HELLERICH
SITA HELLERICHArtist Programs Producer
Sita Hellerich recently relocated to Maine after 11 years in NYC. Originally from Germany and India, she moved to the U.S. to study at Vassar College in upstate New York. She holds a BA and an MFA in Political Science and Art History. She has worked in the restitution department at Christie’s in London and Berlin, and spent her time in New York in various creative arts fields, including the museum and art world, event production and coordination, and prop styling for photo shoots. An avid lover of all things Maine in general—and CIFF in particular—she is thrilled to be joining the team for her second year.
SCOTT SELL
SCOTT SELLStoryforms Producer
Scott Sell is a freelance cinematographer, editor, and writer. A graduate of the Salt Institute of Documentary Studies and The Graduate School of Journalism at Columbia University, he has worked as a reporter, a writing and multimedia teacher, and most recently, as the Island Institute’s in-house filmmaker. He lives in Rockland, Maine and is a member of Steel House, an art, design, and technology collective.
DENIZ TORTUM
DENIZ TORTUMStoryforms VR Producer
Deniz Tortum is a filmmaker, media artist and a researcher. He is a graduate of MIT Comparative Media Studies and the Open Documentary Lab. His most recent film, If Only There Were Peace (co-dir Carmine Grimaldi), received the best short documentary award at Dokufest. Currently he is a fellow at Harvard Film Study Center. Deniz is joining CIFF Storyforms team for the second time.
ALFRED RUSSO
ALFRED RUSSOStoryforms Tech Director
Alfred Russo has been a tech guru since before he can remember, and at CIFF for three years. He currently works as an audio engineer for a public radio station in Boston, and loves putting together the pieces to make technological dreams reality. When not immersed in wires he has been a Forest Ranger, stewarding land with a penchant for capturing the sights and sounds that accompany, as well as educating others on the value of the natural world.
EILEEN LEVEL
EILEEN LEVELVenue Manager
Eileen Level is a film festival trotter with a New York City mind and San Francisco heart ,searching for the key ingredients to improve the engagement of the cinema culture. She features different movie theaters on her blog, spotlighting what makes each one unique. She also focuses on the importance of supporting movie theaters in our communities. Her dream is to own and manage the finest movie theater this world has ever known.  Besides cinema, she loves Ben and Jerry’s ice cream and anime!
REBECCA WILSON
REBECCA WILSONVenue Manager
Rebecca has been in still, motion, and music production for more than two decades and splits residence between Los Angeles and Brooklyn. Her projects and work have taken her to over 34 countries, but swimming underwater in any large body of water in Maine. Rebecca is phobic of parade floats, highly insecure about her ugly enormous feet, and would elect the Dalai Lama to be president of Earth if it were allowed. To see her commercial photo work see www.rebeccawilsonstudio.com
DANA BIALEK
DANA BIALEKVenue Manager
Dana Bialek is an extravert and morning person, and a radio and event producer. She lives in New Orleans, Louisiana where she produces The Moth StorySLAM. Between gigs, she spends a lot of time on a bicycle. She’s excited to be joining the CIFF team this year.
MELISSA CARON
MELISSA CARONVenue Manager
Melissa Caron is a Brooklyn-based actor and improvisor. A life long enthusiast for all things in front of and behind the camera, she comes to CIFF by way of VHX and Vimeo and is ready to put her event management skills to work running the Rockport Opera House as venue manager this year. You can catch her on stage at The People’s Improv Theater, UCB, and Magnet Theater, or on Instagram at @missmayyoke. Bring sourpatch kids and pics of your pets, please.
LINDSAY HEALD
LINDSAY HEALDLead Photographer
Lindsay Heald first attended CIFF as a student at the University of Maine enrolled in a documentary film course. After capturing the festival through the lens of her iPhone 4, she was invited back the next year to document Points North programming via a video camera. 5 years later, Lindsay joins us as the lead photographer. Born and raised in Maine, she has a deep appreciation for this special festival hosted in her home state. When she’s not with us, she’s in Portland, Maine working for a small video production company where she produces, shoots and edits short narrative and commercial pieces.
KATE CHANDLER
KATE CHANDLERPass Master
Kate lives in Maine and runs the three ring circus that is a house with multiple kids, dogs and chickens. She is an artist with a love of both metal and fiber. She studied at The School of the Art Institute of Chicago with a focus in large metal works. She currently sells fine marine finishings working for Epifanes NA. This is her second year with CIFF.
AMANDA FLORIO
AMANDA FLORIOTransportation Coordinator
Amanda is a film festival gypsy specializing in guest services and venue management. She is also passionate about marketing and programming. She received her Bachelor of Arts in Film with a minor in Hospitality Management from the University of Central Florida. She is a native of Boston, MA where she currently resides. Maine is Amanda’s home away from home so she is especially thrilled to be a part of CIFF.
JEREMY HERSH
JEREMY HERSHTransportation Coordinator
Jeremy Hersh is a fiction filmmaker based in New York City.
HALLE JOHNS
HALLE JOHNSProduction Assistant
Halle moved to Maine originally to attend Bates College, where she graduated with a degree in Rhetoric and a concentration in film. She currently works in Camden as an associate producer and assistant editor. While she has attended and volunteered at CIFF in past years, this will be her first year working for the festival as a production assistant, and she couldn’t be more excited. In addition to all things film, Halle enjoys baking (scones are her strong suit), running, and quilting.
IRENE YADAO
IRENE YADAOProduction Assistant
Irene made her way to Maine ten years ago by way of San Diego, New York, and New Mexico. She has written and edited for the likes of The Village Voice and the San Diego Union-Tribune, and most recently penned profiles and food pieces for Maine and Old Port magazines. She studied journalism at San Diego State University and earned her MFA in Creative Writing from Naropa University. A lover of powerful storytelling in written word, radio, and film, she previously worked as festival coordinator for the Camden International Film Festival, and is Assistant Director at Compass Light Productions, a documentary film and television production company based in Camden, Maine. Irene enjoys writing, baking, knitting, rollerskating, and taking random photographs of shadows and light. She is thrilled to be joining the CIFF team for another season.
ANNA HABERMANHub Manager
Anna Haberman is a Midcoast Maine local who loves the ocean, good fish tacos and the Red Sox. Since graduating from Guilford College with a degree in Psychology and Communications, she has been working in hospitality and marketing. She is always looking for an opportunity to express her creative side, making CIFF a perfect fit. Anna is thrilled to have the opportunity to work alongside such a passionate team with CIFF this year.

2019 Festival Staff

SENIOR PROGRAMMER: Samara Chadwick
FESTIVAL  PRODUCER: Jen Feeney
ASSOCIATE  FESTIVAL  PRODUCER: Meg  Fournier
FINANCE  MANAGER: Nicole  Fowlie
VOLUNTEER  MANAGER: Anne  Bardaglio
GUEST  RELATIONS  MANAGER: Phoebe Parker
TECH DIRECTOR: Colin  Kelley
TECH ASSISTANT DIRECTOR: Terri  Lea  Smith
FORUM  TECH MANAGER: Tim  Haggerty
FORUM TECH ASSISTANT: Daniel Ackerman
ARTIST  PROGRAMS  MANAGER: Mara  Bresnahan
STORYFORMS  PROGRAM  MANAGER: Scott Sell
STORYFORMS  TECH  DIRECTOR: Alfred  Russo
STORYFORMS  VENUE  MANAGER: Julia Ferguson
HUB  MANAGER: Melissa Rice
PASS  MASTER: Emma Geiger
FESTIVAL INTERN: Zoe Dickerson
VENUE  MANAGERS: Tela Moss, Eileen  Level, Kate Lemberg, Nozha Jebali, Bria White
CAMDEN  OPERA  HOUSE  STAGE  MANAGER: Devin  Fletcher
TRANSPORTATION  COORDINATORS: Keith Blizzard
SPECIAL  EVENTS  CREATIVE  DIRECTOR: Ethan Kiermaier
SPECIAL  EVENTS  MANAGER: Alix Towler
SPECIAL  EVENTS  ASSISTANT MANAGER: Kate Chandler
SPECIAL  EVENTS  RESIDENT  ARTISTS: Dave  Olsen, Hannah  Patterson, Cara Stewart, Lauren Cargo, Hannah Berta, Paul Calder, Sonya Savchenko
FESTIVAL PRODUCTION ASSISTANT: Evan Stevens
PUBLICIST: Audrey  Ewell
PHOTOGRAPHERS: Jourdan  Christopher, Daniel Nova

BOARD OF DIRECTORS

Doug Stradley –  Chair – Technologist, Data Evangelist, Former Director of MMW Film Program
Lars Perkins – Vice Chair -Tech Entrepreneur
Rick Rector – Treasurer – President, United Publications
Jula Sampson – Secretary – Co-Owner and Sales Manager, AE Sampson & Son
Bridget Besaw – Filmmaker, Founder of Seedlight Pictures
Kerem Durdag – Chief Operating Officer, GWI; Believer in humanity
Evelyn Rosen Isom – Professor of English and History, writer and Jazz singer/aficionado
Steven Koltai – Non-Resident Senior Fellow Governance Studies, Brookings Institution
Emily McDevitt – Educator, Outdoor Enthusiast, Community Advocate
Julia Metcalfe – Tech Entrepreneur
Elizabeth Noble – Lawyer
Patricia O’Toole –  Award-winning biographer, journalist, and former nonfiction professor at Columbia University
Cecily Pingree – Filmmaker, Small Business Owner
Polly Saltonstall – Writer and Editing Professional, Maine Boats Homes and Harbors
Caroline von Kuhn – Director of Artist Development, San Francisco Film Society

INDUSTRY ADVISORY BOARD

Charlotte Cook – Field of Vision
Daniel Chalfen – Naked Edge Films
Lisa Kleiner Chanoff – Catapult Film Fund
Marshall Curry – Filmmaker
Kristin Feeley – Sundance Institute Documentary Film Program
Alex Hannibal – CNN Films
Ryan Harrington – Discovery Communications
Ingrid Kopp – Tribeca Film Institute
Lyda Kuth – LEF Foundation
Mary Lampson – Filmmaker / Editor
Jennifer MacArthur – Borderline Media
Andrea Meditch – Back Allie Entertainment
Robb Moss – Filmmaker / Harvard University
Brian Newman – Sub-Genre Media
Sierra Pettengill – Producer/Director
Dawn Porter – Producer/Director
Nancy Schafer – Independent Producer
AJ Schnack – Filmmaker / Field of Vision
Sue Schardt – AIR
Louis Venezia – Pilot

FOLLOW US

STAY IN TOUCH

©2018 Points North Institute

Send this to a friend

Hi, this may be interesting you: Who We Are! This is the link: https://pointsnorthinstitute.org/about-us/who-we-are/