Faculty Directory

Marina Catala

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Marina Catala is a New York-based Producer and Editor who has developed, produced and edited hundreds of hours of television content for networks such as ABC, CBS, NBC, ESPN, Bravo, and The CW. She graduated with an MFA in Editing from the AFI Conservatory in 2003, just as reality TV was emerging as a major presence on broadcast and cable television. She was an Editor on shows like The Biggest Loser, The Amazing Race, and Big Brother, before a desire for more creative input took her out of the edit chair. For several years she oversaw the Post departments of shows like Ink Master and I Used to be Fat, and then took her command of Post Production and applied it to all aspects of Production – from development to pre-production to field producing – as an Executive Producer. Most recently, she was the EP of Impractical Jokers for seven seasons, and the Showrunner of its spin-off, After Party, for three seasons.

Julie Deffet

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Award-winning director Julie was born in a French-speaking town in southern Belgium. After graduating from ULB (Université Libre de Bruxelles) with a Master’s degree in Journalism, she moved to New York to study filmmaking at The New School for public engagement. Her personal work was screened at Cinequest, The Big Apple Film Festival, The Prague International Film Festival, and the Bowery Film Festival, among other places. She won several Awards both as a director and producer, including Best Picture at the Los Angeles Film Awards. Julie’s skillful editing has also made her a sought-after post-production professional. She has edited an international campaign for Tiffany and Co, award-winning short films, and commercial content. She recently was an associate producer for the movie The Drummer, starring Danny Glover, and the Emmy Awards-winning show After Forever as well as a freelance editor for companies such as Sony, Google, and Vice Media. She currently lives in Brooklyn, New York.

 

Terence Donnellan

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Terence Donnellan is a writer, director, producer, and editor for film and television. Two of his feature documentaries were nominated for Emmy awards. His third documentary is being distributed nationally via PBS. His short documentary film, Free Ena Farley, won two Telly Awards.

For seven years, he was responsible for producing, directing, writing, and delivering entire television seasons (talk shows). He has also written, directed, and produced short fiction and nonfiction films, commercials, PSAs, and other media projects.

His work has been shown at film festivals, on television, and through Amazon Prime, iTunes, YouTube, Vimeo, Vudu, Tubi, Plex, and other international streaming platforms.

Website: https://www.blasketmcmanusproductions.com/

Fabrizio Famà

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Fabrizio was born and raised in Catania, Sicily, Italy. After graduating with a Bachelor of Arts in media and communication studies, he decided to open his own advertising company in Sicily named 095mm. A few years later, he felt his career as a video editor needed a big turn, so he decided to leave Italy and move to New York City. Shortly after arriving in the U.S., he was hired by Thin Edge Films to be the senior editor on “Thirsty,” a musical film directed by Margo Pelletier and produced by Lisa Thomas. To this day, he still collaborates with the studio, working as a video editor for features, short films, and music videos.Most of the projects he edited have had the honor of getting nominations and winning awards across the USA, Canada, and Europe. As an experienced film editor, he has the privilege of collaborating with many of his colleagues, bringing to the table his creative and passionate style of work and being rewarded by their trust and continuous interest in partnership. Currently, he is living between Europe and the United States, where, besides working as an editor, he also shares his knowledge and expertise working as a post-production instructor at the New York Film Academy with BFA and MFA students.

Kuldeep Gangola

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Kuldeep Gangola is a filmmaker and post-production instructor based in New York. With over six years of teaching experience at the New York Film Academy and over 8 years of industry experience, he brings a deep understanding of nonfiction storytelling, editing craft, and industry-standard workflows. He has worked on films for platforms including Netflix, Amazon Prime, PBS, and HBO. Kuldeep is passionate about mentoring young filmmakers and helping them find their unique voice through visual storytelling.

Lisa Shreve

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Emmy Award-winning and Oscar-nominated filmmaker Lisa Shreve has edited and produced over one hundred television documentaries, narrative films, and shorts of various genres. She has worked with such figures as Barbara Walters, Diane Sawyer, Mike Wallace, Peter Jennings, and Michael Bay among others. Lisa earned her Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in film from NYU Tisch School of the Arts where Martin Scorsese was her professor. Prior to her filmmaking career, she acted in Off-Off Broadway theatre, worked as a still photographer, and sang backup in “The Stilettos”, a seventies New York rock group. Recent projects include producer/editor on the independent documentary Miracle on 42nd Street, winner of the 2020 New York Regional Emmy Award for Best Documentary. She was Associate Producer and Consulting Editor on Created Equal: Clarence Thomas In His Own Words, a feature-length documentary that premiered in theatres nationwide and aired on PBS in 2020. Lisa also teaches documentary editing at NYU Tisch School of the Arts and the History and Theory of Film Editing at New York Film Academy.

 

José Venutolo Camp Director

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José Alberto Venutolo Chirinos is a Venezuelan Filmmaker based in New York City since 2010, he works as a Director, Producer, Editor, DIT, Videographer, and Educator. Born and raised in Venezuela he found his way to New York in 2008 and pursued studies in filmmaking at the New York Film Academy from 2008 to 2010, he’s fluent in Spanish and English, and conversational Italian.

From 2010 to present he walked the path of freelance filmmaking as a Director, Producer, and Editor. Has worked in TV, advertisement, PSA, and independent productions and art installations, while walking a path at the New York Film Academy (NYFA) that evolved from TA, to instructor, to Youth Programs Director. He is currently the Director of the Teens’ Summer
Camps at NYFA’s New York City campus.

José has a passion for teaching and wishes to never be fully removed from the classroom, he loves incorporating his own perceptions and experiences to his teaching, and also that of an immigrant professional finding a foothold in the US media production and education businesses. He keeps connected to his freelance work which in his 15 years’ career has taken him to an eclectic range of work, from video production for both narrative and commercial products, including short and feature films, advertisement, institutional videos, PSAs, documentaries, and music videos, frequently wearing many hats on a production.