NYFA
Faculty Directory

Faculty Directory

Claudia Raschke

Cinematographer Claudia Raschke was born in one of the largest European ports near the Baltic Sea in Northern Germany. Throughout her childhood the chain of movie theaters owned by her mother brought Claudia into the world of film. After college Claudia’s studied of the art and technique of cinematography on the practical level while working with some of the most prominent and accomplished international filmmakers. She is a founding member of the NYC Kamera Kollektiv, a boutique agency for documentary cinematographers and a member of AMPAS.

Among her many notable award winning films are: Oscar-nominated and Emmy winning RBG (Magnolia/ Participant/ CNN Films), Oscar-nominated GOD IS THE BIGGER ELVIS (HBO), Oscar short-listed JULIA (CNN Films/ Imagine Entertainment/ Sony Classic) and MAD HOT BALLROOM (Paramount), Oscar short-listed and Emmy winning BOYS STATE (A24), Peabody Award-winning MY NAME IS PAULI MURRAY (Amazon Studios/Participant Media), Critics Award nominated FAUCI (NAT GEO/ Magnolia/ Disney+), PARTICLE FEVER (Bond 360), THE FREEDOM TO MARRY (Argot Pictures) Her latest documentary series work includes The House of Hammer (Discovery +), Eleanor and Franklin (CNN), Pharma (Showtime) to be released in 2023.

Marissa Read

Marissa is a muli-hyphante who aims to create material she can direct and act in. She first accomplished this goal when she, along with her writing partner Selyna Warren, made their first sell to AwesomenessTV in the form of a half hour streaming show called “Foursome”. Foursome ran for four seasons, broke YouTubeOriginals’ record for longest running series, and garnered over 95 million views. Marissa then went on to sell television shows and features to Nickelodeon, Tristar, American High, Sony, and more. Currently, Marissa is working alongside Cobia Kai’s Counterbalance and Sony Studios on a True Crime dramady titled, Bad Apple. On the feature side, Marissa is in development with Jordan Kerner on a kids and family Halloween movie. Marissa and Selyna’s feature, Bat Mitzvah, was just announced as a finalist for Tribeca’s Untold Stories Million Dollar Grant. For the Screenwriting Department in LA, Marissa teaches Comedy Writing, Scene Study, TV Workshops, and Web Series.

Tim Redmond Acting for Film Instructor

MA in Theatre Arts, California State University Los Angels; BFA in acting, Kent State University. Regional credits include the American Conservatory Theatre, The Aurora Theatre Company, The Utah Shakespearean Festival and the Contemporary Irish Arts Center of Los Angles among others. His recent film and television appearances include American Crime Story, Station 19 and Dying Breed. Producer credits include “Only in Theatres” “LA Foodways ( Emmy nominated) and “The Bird Who Could Fly.”

Dan Renkin

Dan trained with renowned co-founder of Shakespeare and Company and TONY-recipient B.H. Barry, after studying at UC Irvine and Circle in the Square. His work as actor, stage fighter and fight director has ranged from The Metropolitan Opera to ‘As the World Turns,’ from creating roles with Kirk Wood Bromley’s fabled Inverse Theatre and New York Theatre Ballet to coaching fights on Broadway, Off-Broadway, and whatever you’re doing next. He was among NYFA’s Musical Theatre founding faculty, and also teaches for Circle in the Square, American Academy of Dramatic Arts, and Five Towns College. Past/guest faculty: HB Studio, Juilliard School, Cap21. He was delighted to be nominated for the 2019 BroadwayWorld Vermont Awards for his performance in The Complete History of Comedy (Abridged). Recent fight direction includes the world premieres of MONTE CRISTO, FRANK, and the new musical LOVELESS TEXAS, and touring productions of Robin Hood, Peter Pan, and Treasure Island for Summer Theatre of New Canaan, as well as work at Queens College, Montclair State University and in indie film.

Nikk Rich

Nikk Rich studied abroad at Savannah College of Art and Design in Hong Kong. With strong knowledge in lighting, post production, medium and large format, her work largely surrounds black women in beauty. Pulling from from her community and personal experiences, Nikk shares the nuance of these interactions in her work and actively uses her platform to influence a change in beauty standards.

With her distinct soft lighting, muted color palette and fine art approach to portraiture, Nikk’s specific style and aesthetic has led to multiple shows in China, Atlanta, and Washington DC. She currently resides in Southern California.

Anthony Richmond ASC, BSC

An accomplished Cinematographer whose career spans well over six decades, Tony Richmond worked as Assistant Cameraman on such films as From Russia with Love, A Funny Thing Happened On The Way To The Forum, Truffaut’s Fahrenheit 451, and David Leans’s Dr. Zhivago. The award-winning Cinematographer has had numerous collaborations with Director Nicolas Roeg, lensing five of his films: Don’t Look Now – for which Richmond won the prestigious BAFTA award; The Man Who Fell To Earth; Bad Timing; Heart Of Darkness; and Full Body Massage for Showtime. Some of Richmond’s other credits include: The Sandlot; Candyman; Stardust for Michael Apted; Playing God; Dirty Dancing: Havana Nights; Rough Riders for John Milius; and That’s Life and Sunset for Blake Edwards;

Richmond was also responsible for the photography of the seminal British music scene of the late 60s. He shot the Rolling Stones classic, Sympathy For The Devil for Jean-Luc Godard, and then collaborated with Michael Lindsey Hogg on The Rolling Stones Rock And Roll Circus and the Beatles’ Let It Be. His other rock and roll credits include The Who’s The Kids Are Alright, and the documentary Glastonbury Fayre.

Richmond’s most recent credits include Good Luck Chuck; The Comebacks; Legally Blond; Ravenous; Men Of Honor; The Sweetest Thing; Someone Like You; Just Friends; John Tucker Must Die; Autopsy; Sex and Lies in Sin City; The Rocker; Alvin the Squeakquel; and Diary of a Wimpy Kid: Rodrick Rules.

John Riddle

John is a former Marine Corps. Sergeant, film editor, and teacher with over 15 years of experience in editing, graphic design, and motion graphic effects. He holds multiple degrees in film and graphic design, and has been teaching for multiple film schools for almost a decade. When John is not in the classroom, he spends his time with his wife and two daughters, as well as reading and drawing. John is currently finishing his debut novel.

Ana Paula Tizzi Riis

Ana Paula Tizzi Riis is a Brazilian-born visual artist residing in New York City. Her creative work is inspired by her surroundings and experiences, with a keen eye for capturing the essence of life. Ana Paula is also involved in numerous editorial projects and with technology research. Her unique talent and vision have been featured in high-profile publications such as Vogue, Marie Claire, Kate Spade, Coach, Cut magazine, New York Times, and Sony Creator. Additionally, Ana Paula serves as an instructor at the New York Film Academy New York Campus.

Heather Ritcheson

With over 30 years of experience in film and television, Heather Ritcheson has forged an impressive career path. She embarked on her journey as a projectionist at a post-production sound house, diligently climbing the ranks in various sound editing positions until ultimately finding her calling as an ADR Supervisor. Collaborating with renowned actors like Brad Pitt, Forest Whitaker, and Sandra Bullock, among other notable talents, earning recognition through a Golden Reel Award nomination for her work on the HBO film “Rebound: The Legend of Earl ‘The Goat’ Manigault,” featuring Don Cheadle.

Transitioning to the production side of the industry, Heather effortlessly took on multiple management roles, assuming responsibilities as a Production Manager, Coordinator, Set Designer, and Production Accountant on numerous non-scripted television shows, including popular titles like “Clean House,” “Celebrity Wife Swap,” and “MasterChef.” However, an unfortunate on-set injury forced Heather to alter her career trajectory.

In 2016, Heather embraced a new journey as Senior Producing Coordinator and instructor for the Producing department at NYFA. With her mission to create safer working environments on film sets, she actively works with her students to help them understand the importance of safety and the measures for ensuring it.

Mark Ritcheson

Mark Ritcheson is a Visual Effects Producer, Writer and Story Editor who has worked in the industry for nearly 3 decades with top directors, producers and filmmakers. Mark headed the visual effects department of RIOT Santa Monica and Hollywood’s Complete Post. As a Visual Effects Producer, he has worked closely with top directors and visual effects supervisors including James Cameron and David Lynch to bring their vision to the screen. His credits include: Xmen 2, Failure to Launch, What’s the Worst That Can Happen? and The Stepford Wives.

Saul Robbins

Saul Robbins is interested in the ways people interact within their surroundings and the psychological dynamics of intimacy. His photographs are motivated by observations of human behavior and personal experience, especially those related to loss, unity, failure, and the latent potential residing in traditional photographic materials and personal history. Robbins is best known for “Initial Intake”, which examines the empty chairs of Manhattan-based psychotherapy professionals from their clients’ perspective, and “How Can I Help? – An Artful Dialogue”, a pop-up office into which he invites strangers to speak with him about anything they wish for free, and in complete confidence.

Robbins’ work has been exhibited and published internationally. He received his MFA from Hunter College of the City University of New York, where he studied under Roy DeCarava and is Adjunct Professor of Photography at International Center of Photography, NYFA, and SVA. He also consults privately and leads Master Workshops about communication strategies and professional development. His work can be viewed at: www.saulrobbins.com and @Saul.Robbins on Instagram.

Dafina Roberts

Dafina Roberts is an award-winning writer/director/producer with television development experience.

Recently, Dafina was a 2019 Ryan Murphy Half Initiative Directing Fellow. Previously, she created the digital series Giving Me Life (In The Land Of The Deadass). The series was released in 2019 via Comcast’s Xfinity, Gravitas Ventures and iOne Digital. Previously, the series won the AT&T Audience Award for Best Episodic at the 2018 Frameline San Francisco International LGBTQ Film Festival. It was also an Official Selection of the 2017 New York Television Festival, 2018 Cleveland International Film Festival, and 2018 Atlanta Out On Film Festival. In 2017, Dafina was a Kickstarter Creator-In-Residence while she was in production on Giving Me Life.

Prior to that, she worked as a Director of Development & Production at Nickelodeon, where she oversaw development and current series for scripted and unscripted projects. She also co-produced the urban coming-of-age feature film, Punching At The Sun (Official Selection of the 2006 Sundance Film Festival and Tribeca Film Festival; Winner for Best Narrative at the San Francisco International Asian American Film Festival.)

David Robinette Associate Chair of Acting for Film

MA in Performance Theory/Playwriting, California State University, Northridge and BA in English/Creative Writing, Hunter College. Television actor with appearances on “The Young and the Restless,” “Law & Order,” “As the World Turns,” and “All My Children.” Film role in “Cry Funny Happy,” Official Selection at Sundance.

Eddie Rosenstein

Eddie Rosenstein has produced and/or directed ten award winning documentary films including THE FREEDOM TO MARRY, BOATLIFT, SCHOOL PLAY, WAGING A LIVING, A TICKLE IN THE HEART and SANDHOGS. He has also created non-fiction programming for television networks including PBS, A&E, TruTV, History, Discovery ID, HBO and AMC. He has won dozens of awards at film festivals including Berlin, Full Frame, San Francisco, Chicago and Savannah. A TICKLE IN THE HEART was shortlisted for an Academy Award and CALLED TO ACTION (AMC) was nominated for an EMMY. Eddie has produced and/or directed more than 150 commercials and corporate films, and served as an executive producer at several production companies, including at Eyepop Productions which he co-founded. Eddie has lectured at many universities and corporations and has been teaching documentary filmmaking at NYFA since 2008. He lives in Brooklyn with his wife and two sons.

Christopher Rossiter, CSI

Christopher’s cinematography credits include the period war series “Benedict Arnold: Hero Betrayed” starring Peter O’Meara and Martin Sheen, the Arleen Sorkin series “How to Marry a Billionaire” and numerous commercials such as the “I Love New York” campaign. He has worked under many notable cinematographers such as Fred Goodich, ASC; Tom Houghton, ASC; Vilmos Zsigmond, ASC; to name a few.

In addition to being a cinematographer ranked member of the International Cinematographers Guild (ICG), Christopher was recently accepted into the Colorist Society International (CSI) for his work as a colorist. His most notable credits are “Iconic Vision: John Parkinson Architect of Los Angeles” that premiered at the Newport Beach Film Festival and was EMMY nominated after airing on PBS in 2019, the documentary “The Art and Times of Frosty Myers” that also aired on PBS, a series for “La Palma Magazine: Niki Koss Fashion Story”, the feature film “Brahmin Bulls” starring Mary Steenburgen and “Hollyweird”.

For many years Christopher worked as a key grip and gaffer for union and non-union productions. Some highlights include Jon Favreau’s “Dinner for Five”, Ming Tsai’s series “East Meets West”, Yahoo Music video series, Dale Pon Advertising for Oxygen and Spike TV campaigns, Fedora Chocolate campaign, Apple Computers, and photographer Annie Leibovitz for Vogue Magazine.

Christopher is a graduate of the American Film Institute Conservatory where he earned a Master of Fine Arts degree in Cinematography. He is also a Cinematography peer group member of the Academy of Television Arts and Sciences.

Christopher has taught cinematography at many programs including New York Film Academy, and his alma mater, the American Film Institute.

In 2023, his work was nominated and selected for honorable mention at the International Color Award.

James Rowe

James first stepped onto a film set at 18 as a British Red Coat in Michael Mann’s epic adaptation of The Last of the Mohicans, shooting outside his home town of Asheville, NC. That fall he entered UNC-Chapel Hill, where he would write and direct the jazz-inspired short film Sax Man. The short was purchased by PBS for their Southern Visions series and James was invited to join the American Film Institute as a Directing Fellow.
While at AFI, he optioned his first feature screenplay to Oliver Stone’s Illusion Entertainment. The resulting film, Blue Ridge Fall — starring Peter Facinelli (Twilight, Nurse Jackie) and Academy Award nominee Amy Irving (Traffic, Zero Hour) — was directed by James and released by HBO. It played the Los Angeles Film Festival, Austin Film Festival and Cine de Mar del Plata, Argentina, among others, and was given prominent placement on the Blockbuster Movie Awards.
“A taut drama,” proclaimed Film Threat, “extolling the bonds of friendship as well as the fragility and vulnerability of futures we wrongly assume are set in stone.”
James has since led filmmaking workshops for professionals around the world and continues to create in Los Angeles, as a screenwriter, director and educator.

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