CLAYTON DEAN SMITH, FILMMAKER
Film Description
Off Track Betty is a twenty-minute short shot on 16mm film on New York City's Lower East Side: a story about love, memory, and what it means to move forward.
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Clayton Dean Smith
Clayton is a New York-based filmmaker and actor in theater, film and television. His directorial debut, Off Track Betty, was on the festival circuit for two years (Best Short Audience Award, Brooklyn Film Festival; Best in Category, Tallgrass Film Festival; Kodak Award for Best Work Shot on Film, Queens World Film Festival).
His second short, Too Late, is currently on the festival circuit and has been nominated for several awards. As an actor, his performances garner critical acclaim (The New York Times, The New Yorker, Time Out NY), and he has worked with directors including Neil Jordan, Louis C.K., Steve Buscemi, Anne Bogart, and Don Scardino. He is currently in post-production on his third project, an autobiographical coming of age story called Kansas, 1989. He also serves on the Executive Committee of Midtown Manhattan's Community Board Five, weighing on municipal policy issues in the public interest. He and his husband live in East Harlem with their old lady schnauzer, Sasha. IG: @eyesofclaytondean / www.claytondeansmith.com
LAINE ELLIOTT, FILMMAKER
Film: I'm Glad It Was You
Film + Feast: Part Three
February 24th, 2020
Film Description
A couple reflects on the beginning of their relationship and their hopes for the future.
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Laine Elliott
Laine Elliott is a NYC-based director and production designer. Originally from Yorktown, Virginia, Laine is currently pursuing a BFA in Film & Television Production from
NYU. They are passionate about new media, visual development, genre-films, and music videos.
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Film Festivals - Official Selection:
WINNER - Best Experimental Film at Tribeca Film Festival/Tribeca Film Institute "Our City, My Story" Showcase 2019
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OFFICIAL SELECTION - National Film Festival for Talented Youth (NFFTY)2019
HONORABLE MENTION - Fusion Film Festival 2019
MIRAM PINEDO, FILMMAKER
Film: Steven
Film + Feast: Part Two, January 13th, 2020
Gloria and Amelia, best friends and roommates are ready to move out of the apartment they shared for 5 years. As they wait for the landlord to arrive for a final inspection, they get into an argument about who gets to keep Steven. Halfway through the argument, their nosy neighbor, Peggy, shows up and she offers to help them figure out who the rightful owner is leading to unintended consequences.
Miriam Pinedo is an award-winning actress, writer, singer, producer, and media professional originally from Venezuela. Miriam played Maggy in the 2016 feature film Translucido. She wrote the film Steven which won Best Comedy at the 2018 AMAW Film Festival in NYC. She also won Best Performance for her portrayal of Martha in the feature film Enduring: A Mother's Story at the Hollywood North Film Awards in 2019. Miriam recently played Lisa in Porcelain Doll and Emily in Step 9 which she also wrote and co-produced. Miriam is a founding member of Tunic Productions.You can follow Miriam on social media @miriam_Pinedo
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Film Festivals - Official Selection:
AMAW Film Festival 2018 - Winner Best Comedy
Silver State Film Festival 2018
New York Short Film Festival 2018
Top Short 2018 - Winner Honorable Mention: Dark Comedy
Dumbo Film Festival - 2019
HAYAT ALJOWAILY, FILMMAKER
Film: Naila
Opening Night, December 2nd, 2019
The film follows a day in the life of Naila, a young Moroccan woman living in New York, as she learns to navigate a world to which she does, yet does not belong to.
Cast: Hiba El Habibi, Sara Wali, and Hardy Hewson
Hayat Aljowaily is an Egyptian filmmaker based in New York. After having completed studies in the Social Sciences, International Law and Middle Eastern studies at Sciences Po Paris’ Menton, Hayat is now pursuing a BA in Film and Media Studies at Columbia University.
Hayat aims to to use film and media as a medium to promote cultural understanding and encourage social cohesion — while focusing on producing quality projects based on stories from the Arab and North African culture.