Nic Meloney is a mixed Wolastoqi/Canadian journalist and Executive in Charge of Production with CBC Unscripted. Working closely with independent creators from Inuit, Métis and First Nations communities (as well as non-Indigenous) in documentary and factual productions, he’s also an advisor to CBC/Radio-Canada’s new National Indigenous Office and is part of the Indigenous team leading the work on CBC/Radio-Canada’s National Indigenous Strategy. In his roles with CBC Unscripted’s documentary and factual entertainment units, Nic’s carried storytelling ventures of all shapes and sizes – from audio documentary and podcasts, to short films and premium limited documentary series. Previously, he worked as a journalist, writer, and video producer with CBC Nova Scotia and CBC Indigenous. His work has taken him to Indigenous communities across the country for the production and development of digital video features and television news documentaries, as well as syndicated, local and national news content. A member of Woodstock First Nation in Wolastokuk (New Brunswick) and a proud Cape Bretoner, he currently lives and works in Kjipuktuk (Halifax, Nova Scotia).

Theresa Navarro is Co-Director and COO at Catapult Film Fund, a San Francisco-based nonprofit providing early-stage support for independent documentaries.

Theresa is a Pinay cultural worker and working mama whose career spans two decades. Previously, Theresa was vice president of external affairs at American Documentary, the producer of iconic PBS series POV. An Independent Spirit Award-nominated producer, her credits include Peabody Award-winning anthology series America Reframed and sci-fi feature Advantageous, winner of the special jury prize at the 2015 Sundance Film Festival.

Jane Mote is Editorial Consultant for the documentary fund The Whickers. Jane nurtures and supports emerging documentary-makers to shape their stories through her work with The Whickers and as a mentor at story labs across the world. The former UK MD of Al Gore’s documentary channel Current and Executive Editor, BBC London has worked for Discovery, Turner, BBC Worldwide, UKTV and the Africa channel. She now runs the UK-based production company beechtobeach and is a  documentary director and producer. She also trains people to make films on smartphones for the BFI, Women in Film and TV and other organisations.

Katerina Cizek is an influential figure in international media, with over 25 years of experience as a Peabody- and Emmy-winning documentarian, author, producer, and senior leader working with collective processes and emergent technologies.

She is the co-founder, research scientist, and artistic director of the Co-Creation Studio at MIT Open Documentary Lab. She co-wrote the world’s first comprehensive book on co-creating media, Collective Wisdom, published by MIT Press in 2022. At the studio, she designs and leads innovative incubators, workshops, research projects, delegations, and fellowships fusing art, documentary, and journalism with emergent tech and science.

For over a decade, Cizek worked as a documentary director at the National Film Board of Canada. Cizek’s earlier human-rights documentary film projects — on subjects ranging from the handycam media revolution to people smuggling and the Rwandan genocide —  instigated criminal investigations, changed United Nations policies, and screened as evidence at an International Criminal Tribunal, as well as on television and at festivals around the world.

Currently, Cizek serves on multiple boards, including the inaugural Interactive Board of Jurors for the Peabody Awards. She has advised many media labs, including Sundance, ESoDOC (Italy), and CPH:LAB (Denmark). She is the Executive Producer for Assia Boundaoui’s 2022 Inverse Surveillance Project. Cizek was a Distinguished Visiting Professor at Toronto Metropolitan University and, prior to that, a Visiting Artist at MIT. She is a proud member of the Directors’ Guild of Canada.

Elizabeth Klinck is a producer, researcher and clearance specialist whose work on hundreds of international documentary films have garnered BAFTA, Emmy, FOCAL UK Awards, Canadian Screen Awards, Peabody, and Academy Awards. 

Elizabeth was nominated for an Emmy in the Craft of Research in 2006 for her work on HBO’s Middle Sexes: Redefining He and She and has received three nominations for Best Footage Researcher at the FOCAL UK Awards. She has been the recipient of six Best Visual Research Awards at the Canadian Screen, Gemeaux, and Gemini Awards and in 2008 she was the first Canadian to be awarded the FOCAL International Lifetime Achievement Award. In 2014 she was awarded the inaugural DOC Star Award by the Documentary Organization of Canada in recognition of her mentoring and leadership in the Canadian documentary community.  The Academy of Canadian Cinema and Television gave Elizabeth the prestigious Board of Directors Tribute in 2019 for her body of work and volunteerism in the Canadian and international documentary film communities. In 2023 Elizabeth was the first non-director to be the “FOCUS ON” honoree at Hot Docs International Film Festival. 

A graduate of Queen’s University, she has presented hundreds of masterclasses and workshops at numerous international festivals, markets, universities, and film schools. Elizabeth has served on the board of WIFT, Canada’s Audio Visual Trust, World Congress of Historymakers, and is the founding chairperson of the Visual Researchers’ Society of Canada. She presently serves on the Executive Committee for FOCAL International (UK) and is a member of BAFTA, DOC Toronto and WIFT.

Genevieve Grieves is a proud Worimi woman and respected artist, educator, field builder, film director and oral historian. She is internationally recognised as a leader of community engagement and decolonising methodologies. Co-Creator and Creative Director of GARUWA, Genevieve champions projects that place First Nations knowledge and culture at the core. Central to her practice is intercultural and intergenerational knowledge transmission, in which she builds bridges between disparate communities and paves the way for future generations of First Nations storytellers, developing initiatives like the annual First Nations Impact Lab, co-presented with Doc Society. 

In 2024 Genevieve was awarded the Natalie Miller Fellowship in recognition of her “impressive career in the screen sector, collaborating with community along with a dedication and passion for content creation and storytelling”. 

Her profound commitment to positive systems change has led to numerous award-winning film and museum experiences including “First Peoples” at Bunjilaka Aboriginal Cultural Centre, Melbourne Museum, Lani’s Story on SBS and Power to Country a short film and impact campaign that saw the successful installation of renewable energy for Mumuthumburru (West Island, NT), enabling the community to return home. 

Her forthcoming publication “Art & Memorialisation: Truth-telling through creative practice in settler colonial Australia”, co-edited with Amy Spiers, will be published in late 2024.

Deb Spinocchia is the head of unscripted at BBC Studios Productions Australia, re-imagining British formats and firing up original productions for local broadcasters and international streamers.  Deb oversees the factual and entertainment slate including Top Gear Australia, Dancing With the Stars, The 1% Club, Mastermind, the award-winning The Great Australian Bake Off and The Matchmakers as well as being an executive producer on Ray Martin: The Last Goodbye.

Deb was previously at Screentime Australia where she was Executive Producer of SAS Australia and the AACTA-nominated The School That Tried to End Racism. Prior to this, Deb was an executive producer at Seven Studios where she oversaw productions including House Rules, Zumbo’s Just Desserts, First Dates and Back with the Ex. She has also worked as a producer for many leading companies including Southern Star Entertainment, Endemol Shine, Fremantle Media, SBS and ABC.

Vicki Keogh is the general manager and executive producer for New Zealand at Perpetual Entertainment. Over the past 25 years, she has commissioned and produced some of the highest-rating prime-time factual and documentary series for the BBC, ITV, Sky, TVNZ and Warner Bros. Discovery including recent hits Black Coast Vanishings, Couples Therapy, Real Crime & Nadia’s Farm.

After graduating with a degree in journalism, Vicki began her career as a producer/director in current affairs and factual television in the UK before making the move to New Zealand in 2012 and transitioning into commissioning at the nation’s state broadcaster TVNZ.

She joined Warner Bros. Discovery in 2022 to lead the ANZ commissioning team overseeing their extensive slate of content across all genres for all platforms in the portfolio. She has successfully championed and supported local productions on the world stage including original local format Tracked. 

She is an award-winning industry leader with a proven track record of commissioning must watch content that resonates with broad audiences across a range of platforms. She’s driven by a desire to bring local stories to global audiences. Her infectious passion for storytelling and authentic approach has made her a sought-after media professional.