Meet the Flatiron Film Project Selection Committee

The Spring 2026 round of Flatiron Film Project Grants is the first ever for our organization, and we've worked hard to put together a grants package that meets the needs of independent filmmakers! Learn more about the grants packages and apply here.

We know that you, filmmaker, have worked equally hard if not harder on your submission package, which is why every single submission gets a thorough review from our Selection Committee. The Committee is made up of seasoned pros in the film and TV space. Check out some of their credentials, below.

Louie Psihoyos is an Academy Award-winning filmmaker and Executive Director of the Oceanic Preservation Society (OPS). He is recognized as one of the top still photographers in the world, having created iconic images for National Geographic for 18 years, and hundreds of covers for other magazines. Believing that film can be the most powerful weapon in the world, Louie founded OPS with Silicon Valley entrepreneur Jim Clark in 2005.

Psihoyos’ first documentary film, The Cove, won the Academy Award for Best Documentary Film of 2009 and over 75 other awards around the world. An annual dolphin hunt in a secret cove in Taiji, Japan suggests a microcosm of a larger picture: man’s disregard for the planet. The film garnered immense critical praise and has been seen by millions of viewers worldwide. LEARN MORE

Amy Jo Johnson is a multifaceted force in the entertainment industry. After two successful decades in front of the camera, she transitioned into writing and directing, building a body of work that spans independent film, television, and comics. Her feature Tammy’s Always Dying, starring Felicity Huffman, premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival and marked her emergence on the international stage.

A graduate of the Canadian Film Centre, Amy Jo has written multiple screenplays, including What We Become, which was featured on The Black List. She has also directed for Superman & Lois, further establishing her voice in high-end television. Her latest project, Ends of the Earth, is being produced by Wildling Pictures and is set to shoot in August 2026. Amy Jo is a talented musician with multiple albums, including her recent EP Still Here, which explores themes of perseverance and resiliency. Beyond film, TV, and music, she writes comic books and enjoys spending time in Toronto with her daughter, Franky. LEARN MORE

Ashley Archer Tindall is a Los Angeles-based documentary filmmaker. She is also a story producer, archival producer and field producer for HBO, National Geographic, PBS and independent filmmakers.

She is currently in development on “Cue Queens”, a docuseries about the women of international billiards. She directed and produced “27 Months: Journeys in the Peace Corps”, a feature-length documentary that followed three Peace Corps volunteers as they served in Azerbaijan, Liberia and the Philippines.

At Film Archer, she creates translational content for research universities and non-profits. Ashley holds a Masters in Documentary Film and Video from Stanford University and a Masters in Public Policy from the Luskin School of Public Affairs at UCLA. She received her bachelor’s degree from the University of Chicago and studied in Dakar, Senegal and Paris, France. LEARN MORE

Brandi Nicole is a writer/performer whose work centers on multidimensional, underestimated women. While she started as an actor, she fell in love with the storytelling process after writing & producing MUTED, a short about media discrepancy when a child of color goes missing, that was acquired by HBO, selected for the Ryan Murphy Half Initiative Program, and garnered over 175k views on YouTube via Issa Rae’s #ShortFilmSundays. She has since written or produced a handful of shorts as an indie filmmaker under her Rainy Day Bliss production banner.

On the TV side, Brandi got her start as an HBO Writers Fellow, and has written for legal/crime dramas including YOUR HONOR (Showtime/Netflix), HAPPY FACE (Paramount +), and the Bosch spin-off BALLARD (Amazon). While on hiatus you can find Brandi indulging/performing in her first love, musical theatre. LEARN MORE

Paulina Lule Bugembe-Kuwahara is an American actor and filmmaker based in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. A lover of genre films, they grew up on a steady diet of Steven Spielberg, James Cameron, and Wes Craven, among many others. A graduate of the Academy for Creative Media at the University of Hawai‘i at Mānoa, Paulina earned their MFA in Film Directing from Chapman University.

Their directorial work has screened at festivals such as the Austin Film Festival, Pan African Film Festival, and Milwaukee Film Festival, and has earned awards from BronzeLens and Women in Film. As an actor, Paulina most recently starred opposite Academy Award winner Forest Whitaker in Emperor of Ocean Park on MGM+. Additional credits include Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., The Good Place, and Marvelous and the Black Hole.

Inspired by visionary filmmakers like Nikyatu Jusu, Jordan Peele, and Ryan Coogler, Paulina aims to craft genre films that are both thrilling and emotionally resonant with stories that explore the complexities of the human condition while entertaining audiences. LEARN MORE

A graduate of NYU Tisch, Tyler Savage was a Story Editor at Warner Bros before going on to work for Terrence Malick, serving as Associate Producer on four back-to-back features. Repped by Madhouse Entertainment and Verve, he spent the next few years collaborating with co-writer Dash Hawkins. The duo had material optioned, took on rewrite work, and were hired to adapt a best-seller. Savage’s first feature (Inheritance, 2017) was lauded by genre critics after premiering at Brooklyn Horror Film Festival. His second feature (Stalker, 2020) premiered at Fright Fest, won top awards at Austin Film Festival and Shriekfest, and went on to be acquired by Vertical Entertainment. LEARN MORE

Growing up in the drizzly Pacific Northwest, introvert Scott Park pursued indoor, solo activities. Ever restless, over the years he has enjoyed drawing, painting, sculpting, music, and writing. In 2002, he turned his attention to film. Originally enrolled as a writer/director, he found cinematography to be the perfect combination of creative and technical. Since then he has shot more than 45 short film projects and two features, including Hoax (2019) and Rent-A-Pal (2020).

Remembering a favorite quote, "Learn the rules so you can break them effectively", he has begun exploring subversive cinematography — purposely breaking the rules for a greater effect than following them. Wanting to showcase that idea, he returned to writing and directing. In 2020 he wrote a feature, Cutter. Originally shot in Denver, a short version of Cutter was completed in 2025 after moving to the Seattle area. LEARN MORE

Born in the Philippines and raised in the Windy City, Tess Lina studied acting at The Juilliard School. From NYC to LA, Tess now calls Southern California home.  

Tess has worked at regional theaters across the country, notably at the Denver Center in a co-production with the Royal Shakespeare Company, directed by the late Sir Peter Hall. Television credits include roles on For All Mankind, How to Get Away with Murder, S.W.A.T., Revenge, House, CSI, CSI:Miami, and NCIS. Tess is also a Teaching Artist at the Orange County School of the Arts, an award-winning CA charter school in Southern CA. She has proudly performed with Shakespeare Orange County, and served as Associate Artistic Producer 2018-2019.

When not on the stage, screen, or in the booth, Tess can be found baking, wrangling two rambunctious (and amazing) boys, and practicing her slow shred on the ski slopes. LEARN MORE