ED FOUNDATION ANNOUNCES JUDGES FOR 8th ANNUAL MILLBURN FILM FEST

ED FOUNDATION ANNOUNCES JUDGES FOR THE 8th ANNUAL MILLBURN FILM FEST

Excitement is in the air as Millburn Middle and High School students submit their films to the eighth annual Millburn Film Fest. You won’t want to miss the Red Carpet Premiere on Friday, April 26, at 7:00 p.m. at Millburn High School. The films will be shown again at an Encore Performance at Millburn Bow Tie Cinema on Wednesday, May 1, at 11:00 a.m. Tickets and sponsorships are available now at www.millburnfilmfest.com .

Each year a panel of industry professional judges review and score all of the entries. The Ed Foundation and Millburn Film Fest are pleased to announce this year’s judging panel. Featured judges for the 2019 Millburn Film Fest are Tanya Nirielle Barach, Domenica Cameron-Scorsese, Alexander Franke, and Josh Schwartz, who will join Millburn-Short Hills Art Advisory Committee members Laraine Brennan Barach, Amy McGovern, Andrew Permison, Kathi Hecht, Victoria Plummer, Judith Kramer, and Donna Davis. This year, the Film Fest is pleased to honor Kathleen Harte-Gilsenan with the Krueger-Rhodes Award for her commitment to enhancing the education of students through art and film.

MEET THE JUDGES:

Tanya Nirielle Barach is a dual-citizen of the US and Ireland, Tanya was born in New York City, raised in Millburn, and now lives in San Diego. She attended Rutgers University and the American Repertory Theater program at Harvard University. She was a founding member of the theater group The Cosmic Joke Collective in New York City with French actress Audrey Dana and Grammy winner Jesse Harris and performed in many NYC venues including the Knitting Factory and Cornelia Street Cafe. Her short film “Don’t Be Such a Girl” won Best Director of a Short at the New York International Independent Film Festival and her short film “Mercy” screened at multiple festivals.She is married to Bill Carrasco and they have two children, Sofia and Nico. Tanya is honored to be a judge for the Millburn Film Festival and thanks all the participants for their courage and creative vision.

Domenica Cameron-Scorsese is an award winning filmmaker whose feature film debut, ALMOST PARIS, premiered at the 2016 Tribeca Film Festival. It went on to play the festival circuit with multiple nominations and wins, including Best First Feature Director at the Big River Film Festival (where Domenica was also nominated for Female Filmmaker of the Year) and the Audience Choice Award at the Beaufort International Film Festival. Her previous short films SPANISH BOOTS and ROOTS IN WATER also premiered at the Tribeca Film Festival. Her first short, A LITTLE GOD, won the Torchlight Short Film Award at the Woodstock Film Festival in 2001. Domenica began her storytelling professionally at the age of eleven as an actress in Chicago— later growing into a writer/director/producer. Aside from being born into a film family and having the privilege as a child to work with both her mother (Julia Cameron) and her father (Martin Scorsese), she has gone on to work with multiple Oscar, Emmy, and Tony award winners and nominees appearing in over twenty films and several off-Broadway and regional plays. While in New York, Domenica was an associate director for the multimedia lab BdA, helping develop new plays. Since returning to Chicago, she directed her first full-length theatrical production, Caryl Churchill’s A Number, with the Runcible Theatre Company at the Royal George Theatre. Domenica studied film at Wesleyan University (CT), where she also helped produce, write and direct for the student playwrights’ workshop. She now lives in Evanston with her husband and daughter.

Josh Schwartz is a 2008 graduate of Millburn High, and he currently works as a video editor in Brooklyn, NY. He has edited various TV shows featured on PBS and Nickelodeon including Front and Center and Take Me To Your Mother , as well as for branded content. Josh’s passion for film started right here in Millburn, when he made the acclaimed “CSI: Short Hills” for Mrs. Krueger’s Mass Media class. His hobbies include writing and performing comedy and making music. He is honored to have the opportunity to enjoy the films of Millburn’s young and talented filmmakers.

Alexander Franke is also a 2008 graduate of Millburn High and he is a documentary and reality TV editor based out of New York City. His credits include the Emmy nominated series “Spartan Race” for NBC Sports, “Abuse of Power” for Oxygen, among many others. He’s worked for networks such as Discovery, Animal Planet, TLC, HGTV, MTV, and more. While at Millburn High, Alexander directed his first short film about a high school student in the midst of an existential crisis (in retrospect, strongly autobiographical). He is excited to screen the work of young filmmakers from his hometown!

The Millburn-Short Hills Art Advisory Committee’s twenty year mission has been to enhance and advance the arts in Millburn Township. The committee is comprised of recognized leaders in the art community--professional artists, sculptors, television and film producers, art directors, set decorators, and gallery owners. Laraine Brennan Barach, Amy McGovern, Andrew Permison, Kathi Hecht, Victoria Plummer, Judith Kramer, and Donna Davis will be representing the Art Advisory Committee this year as judges for the Film Fest. For ten years under the guidance of Laraine Brennan Barach, the Committee has sponsored the highly competitive Millburn-Short Hills Art Advisory Scholarship for Millburn High School students.

Millburn-Short Hills Art Advisory Chairwoman Laraine Brennan Barach has lived with her family and volunteered in Millburn-Short Hills for over 40 years. After careers in film and television production in New York, Ms. Barach relocated to Millburn and became active in many New Jersey-based volunteer positions in Millburn PTOs, the Maplewood Board of Education, and Seton Hall University’s Theater in the Round. Laraine established the Millburn-Short Hills AP Art Scholarship with AAC Member support twelve years ago. She is a past member of SAG, AFTRA, and Actors Equity. She has worked with Martin Scorsese, Cathy Scorsese on industry projects, the New York Art Students League, and the Morris Museum.

Township resident Amy McGovern is currently the Art Advisory Vice Chair. While working as a public defender, Amy has worked as a mosaic artist and has studied photography. She is currently studying multiple media under the professional artist Anne Kullaf. She has been a member of the Art Advisory Committee since 2007 and a township resident for over 20 years.

Andrew Permison is a MHS graduate and longtime resident of Short Hills. He is an art dealer, painter, and a founding member of the Art Advisory Committee. He is an avid collector of fine art, mentor to young artists, and works on the Art Advisory Committee’s school programs.

Kathi Hecht has been a resident of Short Hills for 28 years. She has a BS in Art Education and has taught art at many levels in the Millburn and South Orange/Maplewood school systems. She has also worked in Special Education. Art has always been a part of her life, whether creating glass fused fish, paper mache masks, puppets, marquetry scenes, stained glass lamps, or jewelry designs using her glass beads (lampwork). Kathi has taught Mask Making and Puppet Making at the South Orange/Maplewood Adult School Program for 15 years.

Victoria Plummer has an MFA in Film and Media Arts from Temple University. Previously, she worked as an editor for television and in the editing department of feature films. She has a great love of festivals, helping to start the UFVA International Film Festival (now called NextFrame) while in graduate school and, more recently, bringing the Six Week Film Festival to the Millburn Library. Victoria has been a member of Millburn Art Advisory Committee since 2010 and serves as the Publicity Chair, Webmaster, and Children’s Film Festival Curator.

Judith Kramer, Esq. is an attorney in Millburn and a town resident. She is former president of the Rotary International Millburn/Chatham chapter and was chosen to receive the prestigious Paul Harris Fellow award. Judith was formerly on the board of the Millburn Red Cross and a big sister in the Morris County Big Brothers/Big Sisters organization. Currently, she serves on the boards of the Downtown Millburn Development Alliance, Art Advisory Committee, and Senior Citizens Committee. She enjoys film, oil painting, and yoga. Most of all, she likes to attend charity functions for the Colon Cancer Association and help others in need.

Donna Davis has been a resident of Millburn Township for the past 37 years. She has taken both active and leadership roles in the South Mountain School PTO/PTA and the local Civic Association. Donna’s personal interest in art, greater free time, and awareness of the Art Advisory Committee's many activities focused on expanding the arts in Millburn motivated her to serve on this Committee. She participated in the Appraisal Events in 2008-2010 and continues to support young artists through the Committee's AP Art Scholarship program event.