Samuel Mirpoorian (director/producer) is an award-winning Iranian filmmaker exploring societal themes at the intersection of time, isolation, health, + science. During his undergrad + grad studies at Indiana University, he made his first doc-short, Little Warriors, which tells the story about youth activism in the space of climate policy. The film was a Grand Prize Winner at the Academy Award-Qualifying, Heartland Film Festival in Indianapolis.

In 2018, Sam edited + produced a doc-short, Destination Park, which examines a mobile chapel located in the heart of a desolate truck stop in Grand Rapids, Michigan. The film premiered at the Tribeca Film Festival in New York + made its online premiere via The Atlantic.

In 2020, Sam’s second doc-short, Sonnie, which follows the serene + poignant life of a single father raising his son, played + won awards from over 40 film festivals across the United States + is a recipient of the Kodak Motion Picture Film Bronze Award for Excellence in Filmmaking. Sonnie won three Regional Emmy® Awards and was acquired by NBC, making its broadcast premiere via Peacock.

David J. Cornfield is a skilled systems design engineer, an accomplished venture capitalist, and a passionate philanthropist. He launched his career at Microsoft after graduating from the University of Waterloo, Ontario, with a degree in Systems Design Engineering. David is a board member of the Seattle International Film Festival.

Linda A. Cornfield is a savvy media investor, passionate philanthropist, and engaged environmental advocate. Linda earned an M.S. from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology’s Sloan School of Management and a B.S. in Systems Analysis from Miami University (Ohio).

Jason Stephens spent nearly 20 years helping develop and promote emerging film talent in Chicago as an independent producer, non-profit entrepreneur and Columbia College Chicago professor.  His passion for impact documentary led him to the Board of Directors for Chicago’s documentary powerhouse Kartemquin Films, on which he served the maximum 9 years, the last 4 of them as Chair of the Board.  During his tenure the organization was nominated for 3 Academy Awards and was the recipient of an Institutional  Peabody. Internally, he established the organization’s first reserve fund and successfully oversaw the hiring of two new Executive Directors, the first transitions of leadership in the organization’s 60-year history.  In 2020 he returned to his homeland and now lives on the border of the Hoosier National Forest, in the hills of southern Indiana, where he continues to teach the next generation of impact producers through remote courses for Columbia and to produce stories that matter with emerging talent from the heartland.

Mark Crawford (composer) is a Primetime Emmy-nominated composer and filmmaker who has traveled the world producing and scoring films, and soaking up cultures. He is the sole composer for the feature length Emmy-nominated documentary The Social Dilemma, which premiered at the 2020 Sundance Film Festival. Mark was nominated for a Primetime Emmy Award & ASCAP Composer’s Choice Award for the critically-acclaimed film.

Previously, his credits include additional music for the award-winning feature documentaries Chasing Coral (2017) and Chasing Ice (2012), Classic, which premiered at the Denver Film Festival in 2019, and the multi-Audience Award-winning short documentary, The Love Bugs, which premiered on PBS’s POV. In 2021, Crawford’s score for The Love Bugs was nominated for a News & Documentary Emmy Award for Outstanding Music Composition. His music and film work have also been included in programs featured on National Geographic, California Academy of Science, Harvard Kennedy School, Nike Foundation, and Fast Company.

Brenton Oechsle is an award-winning filmmaker/cinematographer & editor. His experience in documentary and narrative filmmaking extends over a decade.

His work has been featured in The New York Times, The Atlantic, Tribeca, Hollyshorts, and Nowness.