THE EVENT

Join us for a short film screening, cocktail hour and panel discussion on how independent filmmakers are using social and emerging media to fundraise, market and distribute their films.

Your $25 contribution gets you the following:

• A great night in the Starlight Loft of the Roger Smith Hotel
• A screening of short films, including Nailing Jello, soon to make it's debut on MTV's Logo Network.
• Participate in a panel discussion about learn about how social media has helped filmmakers to distribute their product and their careers.
• Get social! Learn from social media and marketing experts who will share best practices through case studies.
• A chance to network with other indies and social media gurus.
• Free signature cocktails all night, provided by Ultimat Vodka
• A chance to do good! The event is a fundraiser for the feature version of Nailing Jello

The event is 21+ please.

THE PANEL

Leslie Poston is the co-author of Twitter for Dummies and is a speaker and leading authority in social networking, new media, brand and business development with a concentration in food, wine, spirits, off-beat brands, music and film. She is the Founder and CEO of Uptown Uncorkedsocial media and business development consultancy and the Founder of Social Mic. She is also the Co-Founder of Film Pop!, a digital and new media services development agency for independent film. A firm believer in translating online relationships and successes into the offline world, she has also founded Social Media Breakfast New Hampshire, PodCamp NH, S•Cub3d Conference and the nationwide Strong Women in Tech initiative.

Michelle DeForest is Manager of Sales Marketing for Next New Networks, the leading online television company. Next New Networks' hit programming includes online television networks ThreadBanger, Indy Mogul, Fast Lane Daily, Barely Political (home of Obama Girl), and Channel Frederator. The company has racked up over 500 million video views and seven Webby Awards - more than any other independent media company. Prior to Next New Networks, Michelle worked in film and television production on projects including The Departed, Dreamer, "Jericho," and "The Bronx is Burning," and was the producer, host, and community manager of The Daily Reel, a pioneering online video site.

Matthew Knell is a web technologist and marketer with a long history designing, developing, and marketing a wide array of successful products and brands including About.com, JetBlue Airways and MTV Networks. An active member of the New York Technology scene, he was the lead organizer of SocialChangeCamp NYC 2009, an unconference focused on the sharing of knowledge at the intersection of Non-Profits and Technology. Currently, he is the Director of Emerging and Social Media Strategy at CafeMom, and teaches Social Media and Information Architecture at NYU’s School of Continuing and Professional Studies. Learn more about Matt at tagsmith.org and find him @matthewknell on Twitter.

John Knowles is the CEO of Panman Productions, an interactive production company based out of New York City that focuses on live broadcasting, film, fashion, art and social media. Panman Productions consists of a five member team that operates collectively with the understanding that ours is a company where “All of your dreams come true.” After being introduced to Live production at Plum TV, John worked to adapt the Live production model to his endeavors online. In the last several years, John has worked in collaboration with the Roger Smith Hotel on a number of projects. He helped to create and build the Roger Smith Social Media Program and was the executive producer of the 2009 Roger Smith Shorts Film Festival which generated six original short films. John is currently in production of the 2010 series of Roger Smith Shorts, which are scheduled to premiere at the Brooklyn International Film Festival in June.

Matt Gielen is a video and film producer and audience development expert. After graduating from Columbia in 2007 Matt began his career in media by Executive Producing "The Graduates" with his brother Ryan Gielen. After completing "The Graduates," Matt headed up their online and social media campaign in conjunction with Ryan to produce an extremely successful online release of the DVD and digital versions of the film. Since then, Matt has produced and orchestrated the distribution and audience development for several web series including, "DiGiTS" and "Tony & Cal" among others. Matt currently works at Driver Digitalwhere he is a campaign manager and audience development guru.