“So, You Want to be in Pictures? How to Make it in the Mass. Film Industry”

Panel of Film Industry Leaders in Mass. to Give the Inside Scoop at Fan Expo Boston 2023 on August 4

Calling all aspiring actors and film lovers!  FAN EXPO Boston, the three-day pop-culture extravaganza, will feature Mass. Film Industry leaders on a panel, “So You Want to be in Pictures? How to Make it in the Mass. Film Industry,” on Friday, Aug. 4, 2023, at 6 pm, at the Boston Convention and Exhibition Center (BCEC). Fan Expo attendees will learn firsthand about how to break into the film industry in Massachusetts which continues to be a hotbed of activity for making movies.

The panel includes producers, actors, casting directors, talent managers, film festival directors and educators who will share their expertise and tell stories about what it is like to make films in Massachusetts. Panelists have worked on Mass.-made films and television series including Academy award-winner CODA, the Whitney Houston biopic I Wanna Dance with Somebody, Knives Out, Equalizer 2, Patriots Day, Fever Pitch, Stronger, The Fighter, Free Guy, Daddy’s Home, Bucky F*cking Dent, Dexter, Castle Rock, Defending Jacob, The Town, The Finest Hour and Chappaquiddick, and more.

Panelists include:

Emma Barber, Directors Guild of America (DGA) First Assistant Director. She has extensive experience spanning over 50 Film and Television Productions nationwide. She actively contributes to the Directors Guild, most recently working on the Proposals Committee that led to the latest DGA contract.
Shaun Clarke, Chair of Emerson College Department of Visual and Media Arts. His work has been screened at numerous film festivals nationally and internationally and has been recognized and awarded by the Massachusetts Cultural Council, the University Film and Video Association, Mosesian Center for the Arts, and the National Endowment for the Humanities.
Brad Davidson, Founder of Ging Management Group, a full-service management company whose founding client is two-time Golden Globe Winner David Duchovny. Davidson served as Duchovny’s Directors’ Assistant when making the film, Bucky F*cking Dent, recently selected to the Tribeca Film Festival. He is currently directing and producing Lightning in a Bottle, a documentary on UMass Basketball. He is a Professor at the University of Massachusetts Lowell and taught prior at NYU Tisch School of the Arts.

Robin Dawson, Executive Director of the Boston Film Festival and producer of Twin Lights Entertainment
Naheem Garcia, Actor, and teaching artist
Kris Meyer, Emmy nominated and award-winning producer, co-founder of Muddhouse Media. Worked on MA-made movies including Fever Pitch, On Broadway, Lost Son of Havana (ESPN), Plimpton (PBS American Masters, Super Troopers 2, Last Night in Rozzie (Hulu.)
Lisa Simmons, Artistic Director and Curator of the Roxbury International Film Festival.

Monica Madeja, Reporter and Anchor at NBC 10 Boston and necn, will moderate the panel discussion. The panel is free for Fan Expo attendees. Fans who have Friday tickets are welcome to participate. The Film Industry panel is part of Fan Expo Film Fandom Weekend that will feature the Geek Film Fest. Fans can also enjoy a panel with celebrity guest Henry Winkler, an Emerson College alum following the Film Industry panel.

Also on Friday, Aug. 4 at 7:30 pm, there will be a special screening marking the 20th anniversary of the cult classic film The Room, with actor Greg Sestero, who played the character Mark. Sestero is also the author of his memoir, the book The Disaster Artist: My Life Inside The Room, the Greatest Bad Movie Ever Made, which was adapted into a Golden-Globe winning film by Warner Bros and A24. At the Fan Expo screening, Sestero will show fans an exclusive first look at Bob Odenkirk as Tommy in a full scene from the upcoming remake (a charity project supporting Acting with a Cause) starring Odenkirk, Bella Heathcoate, Mike Flanagan and more. Sestero will also meet and greet fans after the screening.

On Saturday, Aug. 5 at 2.30 pm be among the first audiences to catch a screening of a new Star Wars documentary featuring Academy Award-nominated director Rian Johnson, “The Space Western of the Southwest.” There will be a Q and A with the documentary’s Director and Composer after the screening.

The full schedule with details can be found here.

ABOUT FAN EXPO HQ 
With over a million fans and counting, FAN EXPO HQ attracts pop culture enthusiasts, locally and internationally, to come together to celebrate all things fandom. Collectively it hosts nearly one million fans annually at FAN EXPO San Francisco, FAN EXPO Dallas, FAN EXPO Canada, MEGACON Orlando, FAN EXPO Boston, FAN EXPO Denver, CALGARY EXPO, FAN EXPO Chicago, FAN EXPO Philadelphia, FAN EXPO Portland, FAN EXPO New Orleans, FAN EXPO Cleveland, FAN EXPO Vancouver, Toronto Comicon, Dallas FAN FESTIVAL, and EDMONTON EXPO. The latest schedule of events is available here on their website, along with up-to-date ticket information. Discover. Celebrate. Belong.

Author Profile

Al Mega

I'm Al Mega the CEO of Comic Crusaders, CEO of the Undercover Capes Podcast Network, CEO of Geekery Magazine & Owner of Splintered Press (coming soon). I'm a fan of comics, cartoons and old school video games. Make sure to check out our podcasts/vidcasts and more!