Our Team
Gabrielle Ewing |
Director
Gabrielle Ewing is an award winning producer and filmmaker who is fiercely passionate about amplifying stories that challenge mainstream narratives. She graduated with honors in Journalism and Film & Television from New York University's Tisch School of the Arts. Her multidisciplinary approach has taken her to NBC New York, CNN’s Documentary Unit, and National Geographic where her short documentary about a transgender teen was a finalist for a Pulitzer Prize. Gabrielle was a Logan Nonfiction Fellow, Docs in Progress Fellow, 202Creates Resident, and was named the Filmmaker of the Month by the DC Office of Entertainment. She is currently the Director of Programming at PBS Digital Studios in Washington, D.C.
Azadeh Nikzadeh |
Producer
Azadeh works on rarely-heard human rights and women empowerment stories. She is the 2022 Athena Film Festival Writers Lab and Women Empowerment Fellow and the only Iranian recipient of the 2010 Asian Film Academy fellowship from the Busan International Film Festival. She wrote, directed, and produced award-winning films with a focus on concepts and characters that are misunderstood and judged by society such as prostitution and the archetype of divine feminine such as The Girl Sitting Here, Vida, and X. Her feature script DANDELION is a Sundance Writing Lab and Austin Film Festival finalist. She is the founder of Burnt Generation Studios, a production company that develops and produces independent films with the mission to create and promote authentic narratives that build grounds for mutual understanding and shifts in the collective perspective of the audiences.
Kimberly McFarland |
Consulting Producer
Kimberly McFarland is a documentary filmmaker and educator with a passion for character driven, authentic storytelling. Her career in media began as an editorial writer in Singapore at ContentAsia, reporting on broadcast media across the Asia-Pacific region. She has worked on feature documentaries with Meridian Hill Pictures and Stone Soup Films, and is currently a Digital Project Manager and Producer at Smithsonian Enterprise.
Katherine Castro |
Cinematographer
Katherine Castro is a New York City based Cinematographer who was selected for the inaugural American Film Institute Cinematography Intensive for Women in Los Angeles. Born in Boston, Katherine studied architecture and photography while living in The Dominican Republic. Katherine returned to Boston in 2008, where she began working in film and TV as a Local 600 Camera Assistant. Applying her design and photography background along with the invaluable lessons she has acquired over the years working in production, Katherine brings a unique style and viewpoint to her cinematography. She's worked in many countries, including Spain, South African, and Peru. Her work spans narrative, commercial, music video & documentary. It has screened in film festivals such as Indy Film Fest, Woods Hole Film Festival & Asian American International Film Festival in NYC.
Cassie Shao |
Animator
Cassie is an Animation Artist currently based in Los Angeles. She is a graduate of the School of the Art Institute of Chicago and School of Cinematic Arts at USC. She works across the field of independent films, music videos, explainer videos, experiential installations, and advertisements. Her films have been officially screened at film festivals worldwide including Leipzig Festival for Documentary and Animated, IndieLisboa, PÖFF Shorts, Ani’mest, Encounters, LUFF, LIAF, Mill Valley, Cucalorus, KLIK, and Ars Independent. Her films also screened or were a part of exhibitions at Hammer Museum and The Getty Museum in LA, CICA Museum in South Korea, Rosalux Gallery in Minneapolis and VisArts in Rockville. She also received a MacDowell Fellowship in 2020.
Christina Lowery |
Strategic Consultant
Christina Lowery is the Chief Executive Officer of Girl Rising. Christina is passionate about narrative storytelling as an engine of social awareness. In 2009, she helped found Girl Rising, serving as its Managing Director and in 2017 led its transition from a film production company to a non-profit. Christina is responsible for the strategy and execution of Girl Rising’s expanding work around the globe including the production of new films and other media, implementation of GR’s on the ground programs and ongoing engagement with public and private sector partners, foundations, media partners, educators, and grassroots supporters. Her passion for storytelling is founded upon decades of experience in documentary film and television, having contributed to and/or produced films for CNN, ABC, Bill Moyers, Martin Scorsese and Robert De Niro, among many others. She holds a B.A. in Comparative Literature from Brown University and a Masters in International Community Planning from the University of Texas, Austin. She lives in New York’s Hudson River Valley with her husband and three children.
Join our team!
We’re looking for an Executive Producer who can help bring our film to life. Please email us to find out more!