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Barrett Doyle is an Atlanta/Washington DC based multidisciplinary artist,
working in theater, film and visual arts spaces. He has collaborated on numerous projects as a scenic
designer, cinematographer, photographer, fine artist, graphic designer, welder, actor and theatre-maker.
Most recently he worked as Production Manager of Spooky Action Theater in D.C. and is collaborating
on a documentary with George A. Morton (from HBO’s “Master of Light”). Originally from Clearwater,
Florida, he made his way to Atlanta after graduating with his BFA from the Savannah College of Art &
Design Savannah Campus. Following his completion of a professional acting internship at Atlanta’s
Actor's Express Theatre, Barrett went on to work with many Atlanta theaters as both an actor and
designer. These include Actor's Express, the Alliance, Aurora, Essential Theatre Festival, Georgia
Shakespeare, Pinch 'n Ouch, Seven Stages Theatre, Sky Creature Productions, Synchronicity, Theatre
Aris, Theatre du Reve, Vernal & Sere Theatre, Weird Sisters Theatre Project, and Working Title
Playwrights. In 2016 he co-founded Catalyst Arts Atlanta and began producing experiential theatrical
projects in non-traditional spaces, garnering several Atlanta Theater Nominations and Awards. In
addition to working in the Theater, Barrett has appeared on screen on shows such as Dead Silent, Halt
& Catch Fire, Ozark, Found and The Walking Dead as well as in some feature and independent films.
Behind the camera he has worked on a number of independent productions, including the visual album
TIT(us) which he shot and co-directed through Seven Stages Theatre in the fall of 2020, and Cracking
Zeus: Part 1 a filmed adaptation of the play for the Alliance Theatre’s 2021 Spotlight Initiative. He has
continued to shift his practice more toward the moving image, and has been working increasingly in the
fields of film production and cinematography, pursuing interests in documentary, narrative and
experimental production.Barrett Doyle is an Atlanta/Washington DC based multidisciplinary artist,
working in theater, film and visual arts spaces. He has collaborated on numerous projects as a scenic
designer, cinematographer, photographer, fine artist, graphic designer, welder, actor and theatre-maker.
Most recently he worked as Production Manager of Spooky Action Theater in D.C. and is collaborating
on a documentary with George A. Morton (from HBO’s “Master of Light”). Originally from Clearwater,
Florida, he made his way to Atlanta after graduating with his BFA from the Savannah College of Art &
Design Savannah Campus. Following his completion of a professional acting internship at Atlanta’s
Actor's Express Theatre, Barrett went on to work with many Atlanta theaters as both an actor and
designer. These include Actor's Express, the Alliance, Aurora, Essential Theatre Festival, Georgia
Shakespeare, Pinch 'n Ouch, Seven Stages Theatre, Sky Creature Productions, Synchronicity, Theatre
Aris, Theatre du Reve, Vernal & Sere Theatre, Weird Sisters Theatre Project, and Working Title
Playwrights. In 2016 he co-founded Catalyst Arts Atlanta and began producing experiential theatrical
projects in non-traditional spaces, garnering several Atlanta Theater Nominations and Awards. In
addition to working in the Theater, Barrett has appeared on screen on shows such as Dead Silent, Halt
& Catch Fire, Ozark, Found and The Walking Dead as well as in some feature and independent films.
Behind the camera he has worked on a number of independent productions, including the visual album
TIT(us) which he shot and co-directed through Seven Stages Theatre in the fall of 2020, and Cracking
Zeus: Part 1 a filmed adaptation of the play for the Alliance Theatre’s 2021 Spotlight Initiative. He has
continued to shift his practice more toward the moving image, and has been working increasingly in the
fields of film production and cinematography, pursuing interests in documentary, narrative and
experimental production.
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Kalsang Damdul was born in Karze,in the eastern region of Tibet and at age
7, embarked on a transformative journey, crossing the formidable Himalayan range on foot in
pursuit of education and freedom.Having completed his foundational education at TCV
Gopalpur (India) in 2006, Mr. Damdul demonstrated an early commitment to academic
excellence. He furthered his education at Madras Christian College, obtaining both a Bachelor's
and Master's degree in Communication Studies. Recognizing the importance of continuous
learning and specialization, he pursued advanced studies, earning an M.Phil degree in
Journalism and Communication from the esteemed University of Madras in 2012. With over a
decade of experience spanning various film projects, including short films, photography,
documentaries, and digital campaigns, Mr. Damdul has established himself as a versatile and
accomplished professional. Driven by a passion for storytelling and social advocacy, he
currently serves as a full-time independent documentary filmmaker and photographer. Mr.
Damdul's recent documentary film project, "Breaking Barriers – Geshema for Tibetan Buddhist
Nuns," represents a ground-breaking exploration of gender equality within the Tibetan
community, earning acclaim for its depth and impact. Currently, he is immersed in his latest
endeavour, "Tsem-thang," a documentary focusing on Tibetan embroidery thangka makers and
the preservation of this ancient art form within the exile community. Committed to making a
meaningful impact in the world through his work, Mr. Damdul continues to push the
boundaries of film and media, leveraging his talent and expertise to shed light on pressing
social issues and inspire positive change.
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Brent E. Huffman is an award-winning director, producer, writer, and cinematographer of documentaries and television programs. His work ranges from documentaries aired on Netflix, VICE, The Discovery Channel, The National Geographic Channel, NBC, CNN, PBS, MTV, and Al Jazeera, to Sundance Film Festival premieres, to ethnographic films made for the China Exploration and Research Society.
He has also directed, produced, shot, and edited documentaries for online outlets like The New York Times, TIME, VICE NEWS, Salon, The Atlantic, Huffington Post, and PBS Arts.
Huffman has been making social issue documentaries and environmental films for over two decades in Asia, Africa, and the Middle East. These films have gone on to win numerous awards including a Primetime Emmy, Chinese Academy Award, Silver Plaque from the Chicago International Film Festival, IAFOR Documentary Film Award, MacArthur Foundation Grant, Best Film at CinemAmbiente International Environmental Film Festival, Grand Prize and Audience Award at Arkhaios Archaeology and Cultural Heritage Festival, Best Conservation Film-Jackson Hole, ten Cine Golden Eagle Awards, and a Grand Jury Award at the American Film Institute’s SILVERDOCS.
Huffman was also an editor of Julia Reichert’s and Steven Bognar’s Primetime Emmy winning PBS documentary series "A Lion in the House” now on Netflix.
Huffman’s documentary "Saving Mes Aynak,” about the fight to save a 5,000-year-old ancient city in Afghanistan threatened by a Chinese copper mine, has won over 35 major awards and has been broadcast on television in over seventy five countries. It can currently be seen on Netflix, iTunes, Amazon, Google Play, OVID, and on special edition DVD from Icarus Films.
Huffman recently finished producing “Finding Yingying”, an Emmy-nominated Kartemquin Film about a Chinese family searching for their missing daughter in the U.S. "Finding Yingying" won the Breakthrough Voice Award at SXSW and the Chinese Academy Award for Best Foreign Documentary in 2020. "Finding Yingying" is being distributed by CBS/Paramount+/MTV Films in the US.Huffman is currently directing/producing a new feature length documentary in Yemen about Yemeni woman saving cultural heritage threatened by climate change, looting, and war. Huffman is also a professor and the Director of Documentary Journalism at the Medill School of Journalism, Northwestern University.
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A movement builder at heart, with more than 20 years of experience in strategic communications and nonprofit leadership roles, Betsy is energized by opportunities to harness the power of strategy to drive social impact. Through diverse career roles, she has built and led groundbreaking programs and high-performing teams — propelling movements and empowering changemakers.
Most recently, as PEAK Grantmaking’s first chief strategy officer, Betsy Reid drove PEAK’s strategy forward, helping to advance the organizational vision to transform philanthropy through equity-centered, values-driven grantmaking practices by empowering its membership community as change agents in leading the way. In this highly collaborative role, she ensured internal strategic alignment and helped strengthen organization culture, working across departments to provide executive guidance and feedback on the development and deployment of an integrated portfolio of programs, initiatives, partnerships, and campaigns to ensure all are mission-aligned, responsive to the needs of PEAK’s community, and designed to maximize impact on the broader field of philanthropy.
As PEAK’s senior communications director from 2019 to 2023, she guided the organization’s reach and influence strategies to members, the profession, and the larger field of philanthropy. Through a multi-faceted narrative, content, and marketing program, she led a high-performing team that drove progressive growth in membership, rising participation at both in-person and virtual events, record attendance at annual conferences, and dramatically increased online engagement and resource utilization.
From 2010 to 2019, she served as vice president, marketing and communications, at the Georgia Center for Nonprofits, empowering its thousand-member network through knowledge-sharing, thought leadership, and community-building initiatives. She also led Georgia’s annual Giving Tuesday campaign, GAgives, for its first seven years, which raised $28 million for the state’s nonprofits during that time (and continues to grow year over year.)
Prior career experiences include serving as education director at the Professional Photographers of America, founding executive director of the Stock Artists Alliance, and in roles as an advertising photography and video producer.
Betsy is an active pro-bono and community volunteer, having served on committees at United Philanthropy Forum, Independent Sector, the American Society of Association Executives, and the Tufts University Alumni Association; as a Taproot volunteer consulting on nonprofit fundraising projects; as a reading tutor with AARP’s Experience Corps; as a community advocate for the Chesapeake Bay Foundation; and as a former board member for Atlanta’s Theatré du Rêve. She earned her bachelor of arts from Tufts University, graduating summa cum laude, and is a member of Phi Beta Kappa.
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Park Krausen harkens from Milwaukee,Wisconsin and Hartford,
Connecticut then attended school at Brillantmont in Switzerland, then Emory University in Atlanta,
where she received a BA in theater and in French, began acting professionally and then continued her
education at CNSAD in Paris France, the National Conservatory of Dramatic Arts.
Relatively new to documentary filmmaking, Park is a story-teller, theater maker and actor with over 20
years of experience. In 2021, she produced, filmed, and acted in an unnamed web series directed by
Tinashe Kajese which has yet to be released, as the writer is trying to sell the script. Her theatrical
experience is extensive, acting in, teaching and directing Shakespeare, Beckett, other classics in addition
to devising, curating, directing and performing in new works.
For 10 years, she served as the producing Artistic Director Théâtre du Rêve, the only professional
Francophone theater company in the U.S. During her tenure, she commissioned new work from
Francophone writers investigating, among other things, the dynamic and complicated relationship
between France and America. She brought art to public spaces in Atlanta, collaborating with the High
Museum, Elevate Atlanta, international farmers markets, creating free immersive happenings, animating
spaces and neighborhoods in unexpected ways. She also co-created cross-cultural and cross-disciplinary
dialogues asking audiences to reflect on timely questions and dynamize collaborations between fashion,
theater, film, music and culinary artists as she did in SO COCO, around icon Coco Chanel.
She is happily based in Chicago, again where she co-created a live/covid-safe walking tour/performance
during the pandemic with Chicago Immersive called "Wander”.
Recently for Theatre Emory, Park curated and directed : Midnight Pillow (inspired by Mary Shelley's
creation of Frankenstein). The title is ripped from Shelley's own reference to writing Frankenstein as
"the spectre that haunted her Midnight Pillow". For the project, Park commissioned 12 short plays
from women and transgender writers from around the world, giving them obstructions pulled from
Shelley's life or from her Novel, Frankenstien and asked them all the question: "what happens in the act of
creation in that liminal space between dreams and consciousness"?
As a bilingual artist, she also serves as a translator for artists and humanitarians from Africa, France,
Canada, Haiti and Switzerland. She even served as a French coach and translator for Owen Wilson in
the pilot episode of LOKI.
At heart, Park is a storyteller/story sharer. Recently, she was granted the incredible honor and
opportunity to reveal and support the telling of the story of His Holiness the Dalai Lama’s initiative to
foster the conversation between Buddhism and science and to share the stories of the remarkable
monastic scientists and academic scientists in the conversation. Since 2019, Park has traveled twice to
the Drepung Science and Meditation center, working with Dr. Nusslock and his colleagues, in
conjunction with the Emory Tibetan Science Initiative under the vision of HHDL and Geshe Lobsang
Tenzin Negi of Emory. As a lucid dreamer, she has become a subject of the monastic scientists’ research.
Since the start of the pandemic, she taught English to Buddhist nuns of all ages over zoom and works in
close collaboration with Ani Choyang. www.ParkKrausen.com.
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Dr. S. Gabriela Torres-Platas is a neuroscientist at Northwestern University researching the
neural correlates of Contemplative Sleep Practices (CSP), including Tibetan Dream Yoga. She is also interested in exploring dream yoga-inspired interventions to treat psychiatric symptoms.
Additionally, she seeks to understand the molecular mechanisms of CSP and their effects on the neuroinflammatory system.
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Dhondup T. Rekjong is a Tibetan scholar and doctoral candidate in religious
studies at Northwestern University. His writings have appeared in The Wall Street
Journal, Chicago Tribune, The Journal of Asian Studies, Lion’s Roar, and The Treasury of Lives. He
is an editor of The Tibet Reader, forthcoming from Duke University Press. Current Article in
Lion’s Roar: How Buddhism Met Science
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Amelia Pane Schaffner is a Partner at Lexicon Strategies, focusing her
practice on strategy consulting, ecosystem building, innovation agendas, and culture change
efforts, for clients across the globe.
Before joining Lexicon, Amelia co-founded and secured multi-million-dollar funding for the
Center for Entrepreneurship & Innovation at Goizueta Business School – Emory University,
ranked 22 among the 4,000+ American universities. During her time there, she fostered a novel
climate of entrepreneurship and innovation, successfully ran 15+ entrepreneurship initiatives,
built 14+ strategic partnerships in the southeast ecosystem and beyond, facilitated the funding
of 25+ startups, coached 100+ startups, and advised a $1M minority-focused fund.
Amelia is also an accomplished educator, with a summa- cum laude Master of Science in
Business, Finance, and Economics from LUISS Guido Carli University in Rome, Italy. She has
designed and taught various trainings around entrepreneurship & innovation topics, designed
corporate curricula and capability development programs, created playbooks and best practices
forums. Amelia has also moderator and panelist experience, including having led multiple
stakeholder sessions, and collaborated with the World Economic Forum.
Amelia has served on several boards and advisories, including Startup Atlanta, the RAISE
Forum, Innov8GA, CNBC Disruptor 50 Advisory Council, and Emory’s Advancing Healthcare
Innovation in Africa. She has received numerous awards and recognitions, including the
Emory-Goizueta 2022 Excellence Award for Influence, the Accenture A3 “Addo Agnitio” award
for connect/contribute/champion behavior, and a Deloitte-Bersin Learning leaders award for a
Strategy Podcast she designed while at Accenture. She has served as a startup mentor in
accelerators and incubators like Techstars, ATV, and Goodie Nation.