Meet the creators behind OWN and Hulu's upcoming series The Hair Tales and Disney+'s Growing Up, as they share the process from developing an idea and pitching networks and streamers, to what goes into shooting footage and post-production. Learn about the many different production roles and how to get hired.
Presented with the Mayor’s Office of Media and Entertainment and Macaulay Honors College New Media Lab
This program is supported, in part, by public funds from the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs in partnership with the City Council.
The Center's programs are made possible by the New York State Council on the Arts with the support of the Office of the Governor and the New York State Legislature.
All those entering Macaulay Honors College need to be fully vaccinated with an FDA / WHO authorized vaccine and must show proof of vaccination and government-issued ID upon entrance. “Fully vaccinated” means at least 14 days past the final dose of the vaccine received. All visitors are encouraged to wear an acceptable face covering over their nose and mouth at all times
Seating is first come, first served.
This event will be recorded. By entering and by your presence at the event, you consent to be photographed, filmed and/or otherwise recorded. By entering the event premises, you waive all rights to payment or royalties in connection with any exhibition, streaming, webcasting, televising, or other publication of materials recorded within, and you consent to being recorded and their image being aired worldwide, in all media, in perpetuity. By remaining in the area, you confirm that you are 18 or older or that you have your parent’s consent to be here.
NICOLE GALOVSKI, FOUNDING PARTNER, CULTURE HOUSE; SHOWRUNNER, GROWING UP
Nicole Galovski is Co-Founder and Executive Producer at Culture House. She is one of the creators and the showrunner of Growing Up, a hybrid docuseries for Disney+ with Brie Larson, she is also the executive producer of The Hair Tales for Hulu and OWN and an upcoming Netflix docuseries about race and gender in America. She produced the 2022 Tribeca premiere Of Medicine and Miracles about Dr. Carl June's ground-breaking cure for childhood leukemia, and Netflix's What Would Sophia Loren Do which was shortlisted for an Academy Award. Scripted feature film credits include NYTimes critic pick All Creatures Here Below (Samuel Goldwyn) and Tribeca premiere Poor Boy (Indican Pictures). Credits also include Showtime Documentary Tough Guys, and Jon Stewart’s Emmy Nominated HBO special Night of Too Many Stars. She has produced award-winning brand work for Toyota, Microsoft, Apple, Orangetheory, Serena Williams, University of Utah, and Visit Philadelphia. Nicole’s work has received support from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, UN Foundation, Impact Partners, Artemis Rising Foundation, Rockefeller Foundation, and the Utah Film Center.
CHERICE HUNT, STORY PRODUCER, THE HAIR TALES, PRODUCER, GROWING UP
Cherice Hunt is a producer, writer, and aspiring director passionate about creating unbounded stories for, with, and inspired by Black people, women, and other marginalized communities. After studying Film and TV at Boston University, she went on to become an assistant and coordinator at RadicalMedia and freelanced as an associate producer on multiple premium documentaries and documentary series until joining Culture House in 2020 as an Associate Producer. She is now a Story Producer at Culture House, a Black, Brown, and Women led production company, where she is developing and producing groundbreaking series for Disney+, Netflix, Hulu, Conde Nast Entertainment, and more.
EKWA MSANGI, DIRECTOR, GROWING UP
Ekwa’s award-winning and critically acclaimed feature film Farewell Amor premiered in competition at the 2020 Sundance Film Festival, garnering 98% on Rotten Tomatoes. The film won the Sundance Amazon Producer’s Award, and NYWIFT Directing Award amongst other distinctions, and was bought for distribution by IFC Films for North America, MUBI and Netflix for Worldwide. Previous to that, Ekwa has written & directed several shorts, including award-winning comedy Soko Sonko (The Market King), and Farewell Meu Amor starring Tony Award nominee Sahr Ngauja, and Nana Mensah. For Farewell Amor Ekwa was awarded the NYWIFT Director’s Award, the 2020 Durban International Film Festival award for Best Screenplay, and the 2021 Indie Spirit “Someone To Watch” Award. Recent awards include 2020 Sundance Momentum Fellow, 2020 BAFTA Breakthrough, 2022 USA Artist Fellow, and 2022-2024 ReFrame Rise Director. One of Ekwa’s key goals as an artist is to transform our society’s images and relationships with African cultures, and to empower African filmmakers in telling their stories.
MODERATOR: RAESHEM NIJHON, FOUNDER, CULTURE HOUSE, EXECUTIVE PRODUCER, THE HAIR TALES
Raeshem Nijhon is the founder of Culture House - a Black, Brown and Women owned production company where she and her partners, Carri Twigg and Nicole Galovski, produce entertainment forward work at the intersection of pop and politics. Select current projects include premium doc-series for Netflix, Disney+, Hulu, OWN and YouTube and projects with Amazon, CNN, Freeform and AMC Studios in development.
Raeshem sits on the board for the Center for Communication, an organization dedicated to bringing more diversity to the media and entertainment industry, serving over 4500 students from 185+ colleges and universities annually. She serves on the Creative Council for EMILY'S List and is an active member of Brown Girls Doc Mafia and the Dell Women’s Entrepreneurship Network.
Prior to founding Culture House she held multiple creative leadership positions including Executive Producer of Viacom’s MTV World where she produced Clio/Webby winning nonfiction series Rebel Music, about youth using art for change in conflict zones, and The Music Experiment, featuring artists like Of Monsters and Men, Santigold and Arcade Fire. Select pro-social work includes partnerships with Planned Parenthood, the National Council for Behavioral Health and the Committee to Protect Journalists.
In 2020, Raeshem and her partners launched the Culture House Consultancy, a resource for films, series and multi platform projects to engage with a range of experts across issues like race, gender, mental health and socio-economic diversity that require nuance and knowledge when being addressed through entertainment and media.