Sam Barnett
After graduating from the University of Michigan’s Screen Arts and Cultures program with a screenwriting concentration, Sam Barnett grew tired of his home state of Michigan and relocated to the ancient homeland of his parent: New York. In addition to his writing, he has served as a longtime story analyst for Lionsgate, and has worked on feature films and documentaries at production companies such as Big Beach, Ideal Partners and Keshet Studios. His work has been featured on websites such as The A.V. Club.
Leah Gottfried
Leah Gottfried is an award winning writer/director and actor who draws on her life in the Orthodox Jewish community to tell authentic stories about her world. Her short film THE SETUP won Best Short at the Washington Jewish Film Festival where critics called it “clever, whimsical and sneakily poignant”. Leah is best known for her web series SOON BY YOU (“a Kosher version of Friends”), which she writes, directs and stars in and which has garnered fans all over the world. She is the founder of Dignity Entertainment, a production company dedicated to creating meaningful visual content. Leah was named one of The Jewish Week’s “36 Under 36” celebrating young Jews influencing change worldwide. She studied film at Yeshiva University and NYU, and lives in Greenpoint with her rabbi husband.
Samuel Franco
Samuel Franco graduated from NYU’s Tisch School of the Arts with a BFA in Writing and Producing for Film. Shortly afterwards, he secured an apprenticeship as a researcher under investigative journalist Mike Wallace at CBS News’ 60 Minutes, and six months later he joined The Charlie Rose Show as a research writer. A year later Samuel was recruited to work for The Howard Stern Show, where he focused on marketing, strategic sales and branding, creating Howard’s first-ever ad campaign: Stern Warning.
Samuel then went on to work for Infinity Broadcasting (CBS Radio), Paramount Pictures, and CBS Daytime Television, before moving to Los Angeles to focus on writing and producing. His credits include writing the feature scripts: Keeper of the Diary (Fox Searchlight) and Mayday 109 (Thunder Road Productions), and TV shows: The Fall of the House of FIFA (FX Networks), and Camelot (NBCUni’s Peacock), alongside writing partner Evan Kilgore. On the producing end, Samuel is executive producing a documentary about the Isabella Stewart Gardner museum art heist titled Ghosts of the Isabella (Ample Entertainment), and producing a feature film, which he is also co-writing, about heavyweight boxer Rocky Marciano titled Unbeaten (Impossible Dream Entertainment). Samuel lives in Los Angeles with his wife and two children.
Charlotte Lan Steiner
Charlotte Lan Steiner is a filmmaker born and raised in the Washington, D.C. area. Following her graduation from Middlebury College with a degree in Film and Chinese, she spent several years working, writing and studying in Shanghai, Hong Kong and Beijing, before returning to the U.S. to attend a TV Writing Intensive program at Columbia University. She is currently back in D.C., where she recently produced and directed episodes of “GROWN the web series.” When not making films or writing, Charlotte enjoys rock climbing and trying to convince other folks to rock climb with her.
Jacob Fiskus
Jacob Fiskus is a New York-based filmmaker who has produced several independent documentary shorts. He has also edited short-form promotional videos for social justice organizations, and was a contributing writer for SLAM Magazine. Jacob is currently a co-producer on a documentary about antisemitism in America. His main passion is screenwriting. Jacob has written several screenplays and a pilot with his writing partner, Tal Robbins. His passion for screenwriting is matched only by his passion for Torah and Judaism. Jacob is dedicated to telling stories that encapsulate Jewish life and express Torah ideas and concepts.
Kyra Brown
Kyra Brown is a comedy writer and performer from just north of the middle of nowhere Massachusetts. She recently graduated from USC’s School of Cinematic Arts where she studied — you guessed it — cinematic arts. Kyra prides herself on writing every genre (within comedy of course) from rom-coms, to angsty YA dramedys, to musical parodies. She has worked in various writer’s room support staff roles at The Late Late Show with James Corden, NCIS: New Orleans, and currently on Them: Covenant, an upcoming Amazon Prime show. In addition to that, she has written for several web series and created and produced an all female sketch comedy website called www.yesbitches.com. Kyra is also a producer and host of a popular West Hollywood monthly stand up comedy show called Spilled Milk @spilledmilkcomedy. She has produced several other shows in the past and has performed stand up all over the country, including at the Comedy Store in Los Angeles. In her spare time, Kyra can be found painting, skiing, sleeping, eating chocolate, or cuddling a stranger’s dog on the sidewalk.
Noam Ash
Noam Ash first gained recognition as the creator of the hit web series My Gay Roommate and subsequent TV pilot Boy•Friends from Keshet Studios, which garnered over 11 million views and received critical acclaim from Vanity Fair and The New York Times. He appeared in HBO MAX’s The Other Two as well as starred in and executive produced The Influencers on Amazon Prime. Noam recently wrapped his debut feature, BOOKENDS, which he wrote as part of JWI and starred opposite Academy Award® Winner F. Murray Abraham and SAG Award® Winner Caroline Aaron. He is repped by Sweeney Entertainment and HJTH Law.
Rachel McKay Steele
Rachel McKay Steele is a writer and comedian from Charleston, SC, who recently left bagels and Brooklyn for sunny Los Angeles. She has studied comedy at the Upright Citizens Brigade Theater and has performed improv and stand-up around the country. Her solo show, Shiva for Anne Frank, premiered at the 2019 Hollywood Fringe Festival to rave reviews and won a Producer’s Encore Award. She has worked on numerous award-winning independent films, from Gayby to creative development for the Oscar-nominated What Happened Miss Simone? She is thrilled and humbled to be a part of the inaugural Jewish Writers’ Initiative, even though she never spells Initiative correctly on the first try. Rachel loves breakfast sandwiches, yoga, and her two rescue cats, Roxy and Esther.
Zack Bornstein
I know him as Uncle Nathan. As my Nana’s stoic, kind-eyed brother-in-law, whose name was sewn into the lining of my Bar Mitzvah suit. But to Colonel Mendel Marshak, the Soviet overseer of defeated Germany, Nathan Freisinger is the only tailor in East Berlin fit to fashion his leather jacket. And the suit maker Stalin […]
Laurel Gans
Natalie knows that time is valuable, and she is determined to not waste a moment. A top efficiency expert, she has helped hundreds of businesses succeed through her time management techniques. She swears that if she had been with the Maccabees, she could have made the oil last for way longer than eight days. Unfortunately, […]