Alisa Schlesinger is a founding member of ReelAbilities Film Festival Los Angeles. She serves as a Commissioner on the City of Los Angeles Commission of Disabilities. She has been an advocate for people with disabilities for over twenty-five years and is committed to expanding visibility and inclusion for people with disabilities in the entertainment industry.

Jennifer Schlesinger is a founding member of ReelAbilities Los Angeles. She is the Associate VP at Alzheimer’s Los Angeles, a local non-profit committed to helping families affected by Alzheimer’s or dementia.

Stephen David Simon is Executive Director of the City of Los Angeles Department on Disability, working to ensure that all City programs, services, activities, and facilities are accessible to all Angelenos. He previously served as the City’s AIDS Coordinator, responsible for development, implementation and oversight of the City’s HIV/AIDS policies and programs. He received his Juris Doctorate and Bachelors degrees at UCLA.

Ali Everett, J.D., M.P.A, is the Assistant General Manager for the City of Los Angeles Department on Disability. She has worked and volunteered in accessibility for over 25 years and worn many different hats and has a lot of experience that continue to inform her work. She has her B.A. from the University of California, Santa Barbara, has her M.P.A from Syracuse University, and has her J.D. from Syracuse University College of Law. Prior to joining the Department on Disability, she was the Accessibility Coordinator for City of Pasadena, where she worked on citywide compliance and inclusion initiatives to create a more inclusive community.

Danny Woodburn is a 30 year veteran actor (as seen in Seinfeld and Watchmen) and disability rights activist whose work has led to increased representation, understanding, appreciation, and opportunities for Performers with Disability (PWDs). He has had a role in every change occurring today for PWDs in Hollywood, and has worked to open doors for PWDs at 20th Century Fox, CBS, NBC, HBO, and other studios.

Over the last 13 years of her career in entertainment, Elizabeth Fish has worked on various indie films as a producer, director, sound editor & mixer, camera operator as well as a production assistant & SAG background actor on various TV shows. She had the honor of producing and directing 4 short documentaries for Joni & Friends in 2015 for their world conference. Currently a Coordinator at Disney Television Studios for 20th Television. She is a leader on the Disability ERG for DGE as well as their Creative Pipeline team for disability and a member of 20th TV’s Action Group where she spearheaded a panel discussion on disability in front of and behind the camera.

Veronika steps into the exciting role of Project Coordinator for the film festival, eager to apply her skills and ensure the event’s success. With a deep-seated commitment to leaving a positive impact, she has dedicated her professional journey to supporting people, teams, and causes close to her heart. Veronika’s expertise spans project budgeting, workforce management, creative writing, video editing, production and business accounting, CRM management, social media management, assistant directing, and campaign strategy development and execution.

Holly Pullar has over 20 years of caregiving experience for individuals with special needs, mental illness, and developmental disabilities, from children to adults. Holly also helped train law enforcement to help these individuals during a crisis. Plus, she had a psychotic break due to the wrong medication. Her one-time hospitalization was illuminating and a total dumpster fire. She’s also a breathworker. Beyond caregiving, Holly earned a Master of Fine Arts in screenwriting and has made multiple indie films. She and her ex-husband juggled three jobs and turned their home into an Airbnb to finance their acclaimed feature film ‘MY APOCALYPTIC THANKSGIVING,’ which won Best Script and Best Actor at the 2022 Entr’2 Marches in Cannes. Her scripts have been second rounders, quarterfinalists, and finalists as well as twice made the first cut into the Sundance Feature Film Program. She also read scripts for six years at the Austin Film Festival and her film ‘plAy Date’ was nominated for best short short drama at the 2022 City of Angels Film Festival. She lives in LA with her two saucy kitties.

Keris Jän Myrick is a Vice President of Partnerships at Inseparable, Podcast host of Unapologetically Black Unicorns and serves on the Board of the Mental Health American (MHA) and Disability Rights California (DRC). Ms. Myrick has over 15 years of experience in mental health services innovation, transformation, peer workforce development and has numerous authored peer reviewed articles and book chapters. She has held executive positions at local, federal, and national levels and was the Board President of National Alliance on Mental Illness. Ms Myrick’s work, research and advocacy has a focus on lived experience, digital therapeutics, race equity and disability justice. She was instrumental in the work of The Voice Awards that recognized community leaders and members of the entertainment industry, including television and film screenwriters and producers, for their efforts to raise awareness about the importance of behavioral health and spread the message that people can and do recover from mental health conditions and substance use disorders. Ms. Myrick is a Certified Personal Medicine Coach, has a M.S. in organizational psychology from the California School of Professional Psychology of Alliant International University and MBA from Case Western Reserve University’s Weatherhead School of Management.

Lindsay is the Director of Content and Community at Undivided, sharing their mission to empower and support parents raising children with disabilities. She’s also currently serving as a Family Support fellow in the CA-LEND (Learning and Excellence in Neurodevelopmental and Related Disorders) program at Children’s Hospital Los Angeles and was recently appointed by the Governor to serve as a Community Representative on the State Interagency Coordinating Council on Early Intervention. As the parent of a teenager with disabilities, she is dedicated to promoting inclusive education through her roles in state and local special ed advisory committees. Before venturing into disability advocacy, Lindsay worked in film acquisitions and development at companies including United Artists/MGM, Fine Line Features/New Line Cinema, Picturehouse, and the Meyers-Shyer Company/Disney. All of her roles have been rooted in showcasing storytelling as a catalyst for change.

Ranell Shubert is the Nonfiction Access Initiative (NAI) Funds Program Manager at the International Documentary Association (IDA), a movement aimed at narrative change through building power and community and increasing opportunities for nonfiction media-makers who identify as disabled. She also teaches Podcast Production at the University of Southern California. Before joining IDA and NAI, she produced the What’s Up With Docs Podcast and worked with the 1IN4 Coalition to create artist development programs for creatives with disabilities. Ranell has ten years of experience in artist support programs and education, film festivals and industry programming, production, pitching, funding, advocacy, and distribution, and provides creative and professional consultation to nonfiction storytellers of various forms, from film, series, podcasts, and immersive content.

Stewart has been involved with the arts for over 20 years, having worked in the world of live theater and music performances as an artist, director, and producer. As the Managing and Technical Director of the theater company at Playhouse West — one of LA’s most prestigious acting schools — for just over a decade, he was a prolific writer and director, mentoring emerging artists while lending his talents to productions with lighting/sound design, prop creation, and as co-director of the annual film festival. More recently, he spent 12 years at Universal Studios Hollywood managing the entertainment program on CityWalk, producing large events at the 5 Towers concert venue as well as booking live bands in Margaritaville and Antojitos. He also led a nightly entertainment program out on the walk, where he auditioned, developed and promoted the performers. The program was a successful platform for artists — with some having been discovered by industry executives who have signed them to recording and management deals. He is currently writing a book on artist self-development and still finds time to coach performers.