DIRECTOR

Stephen Steelman has been working in entertainment for the past 17 years. Though he graduated USF with a Performing Arts degree, he found the other side of the camera far more rewarding. Directing music videos led him to creating tour visuals for artists like Kacey Musgraves, System Of A Down, and Seven Lions. Stephen also worked at XR Studios, directing virtual production performances for Leon Bridges and others. 

Feeling his career had strayed from his true passion of narrative filmmaking, in 2019 he directed his first narrative short film. In 2020, SHOOT recognized his work in their New Directors Showcase and in 2021 his horror short film JUICED premiered at Screamfest. This journey led him to AFI, where he recently received his MFA in directing.

PRODUCER

Hector Martinez graduated from Miami Dade College School of Entertainment, Design and Technology with a Bachelor of Applied Science in Film Production. For the past eight years, Hector has been working for a travel-based production company in Miami, Florida, where he has had the opportunity to create branded content for national and international companies such as Virgin Voyages, Carnival Corp., Tim Horton's, Disney, St. Jude Children's Hospital, among others. His short film ROAM was featured in the South Florida PBS filmmaker series which resulted in a regional Emmy® nomination for Directing.

PRODUCER

Bridger Philip Zadina moved from a Wisconsin llama ranch to Los Angeles in 2006 to begin a childhood acting career. His credits include such television shows as LAW & ORDER: SVU, CSI:NY, CRIMINAL MINDS, GREY'S ANATOMY, BOSCH, THE RESIDENT and BETTER THINGS, amongst many others. He has worked with networks and production companies including Marvel, SyFy, Netflix, Hulu, Amazon Prime, Comedy Central, TNT, USA, A&E and The History Channel, and worked in films ranging from major superhero blockbusters to Sundance-accepted independents. When left unsupervised, Zadina will be found camping, prospecting, ranching or just otherwise generally lost in the woods

PRODUCTION DESIGNER

Mackenzie McMahon is a production designer of films, commercials, and music videos. Originally from Texas, she is now working in Los Angeles and across the American South. Her work spans genres and styles and draws from her background studying film production, art history, and theatrical design. Films she has designed have premiered at New Orleans Film Festival, Austin Film Festival, and Cleveland International Film Festival among others, and on platforms including HBO and Billboard Online. In her short-form work she has designed shoots for artists including Jonathan Van Ness, K.Flay, and Missio, along with commercials for national brands including Samsung, Capital One, and Dell.

SCREENWRITER

In 2014, Sasha Das set his sights on filmmaking, and has since written, produced and directed several short films and comedy sketches. He believes that filmmaking is functional - a tool for social survival and, at its best, spiritual transcendence.

CINEMATOGRAPHER

Sam David Zhang hails from the great state of New Jersey. He originally studied to be an electrical engineer, but he was quite terrible at it. He then pivoted to audio engineering which unfortunately proved to be an even worse match. Luckily for him, he fell into film one fateful day. After leaving his desk job to PA for a feature off Craigslist, Sam knew he found his true calling. Sam never thought a career in film was possible, but he fell in love with the lights and hard work that went into every piece of cinema. This is what he wanted to do with his life. Sam spent the next four years cutting his teeth on no budget movies in New York City until he decided to hone his craft in visual storytelling, culminating in his admission to the American Film Institute, where he recently received his MFA in cinematography.

Sam loves this project. The story of someone finding hope in their day-to-day life is exactly what brought him to film in the first place.

EDITOR

Originally from Perth Australia, Hamish McLean has spent his whole life editing together films. With a love for the craft, and everything Post-Production, Hamish completed his undergraduate in Australia, receiving a Bachelor of Arts with Majors in Screen Arts as well as Animation & Game Design. He’s spent the last few years working as an Editor and VFX Artist on short films, with many of the shorts taking home awards from around the globe. Hamish finally decided to make the leap across the Pacific to pursue his goal, leading him straight to AFI, where he has just completed his Post Graduate Film Degree.