Date: Thursday July 26, 2018 Time: Doors open at 6:00 pm; Discussion starts at 6:30 pm to 8:00 pm, Q&A until 9:00 pm. Place: SAE Institute-Atlanta, 215 Peachtree St NW #300, Atlanta, GA 30303

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Sponsors

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Panelist Questions:

Note: Panelist will do a brief introduction of themselves and their company.

Questions from moderator:

1.) How can independent filmmakers get their films distributed?

2.) What channels or options are available to independent filmmaker to get their films distributed?

3.) What are the specific steps independent filmmakers should take to get their films distributed?

4.) Is there an industry standard percentage on a film distribution deal?

5.) What are the benefits and disadvantages for an independent filmmaker's decision to do an

exclusive deal versus a non-exclusive distribution deal for their film?

6.) What resources are available in the State of Georgia that can help independent filmmakers with

the distribution of their films?

7.) What are some of the challenges/mistakes you have seen with independent filmmakers

attempting to get film distribution?

8.) How long is a typical distribution deal with a distribution company for a independent filmmaker?

9.) What is the life cycle of a film distribution deal?

10.) Where do you see the future of film distribution going?

Event Moderator

Mina “Mina G” Ghani

Company: MG Enterprise

Mina Ghani Brief Bio:

Mina G is a veteran in the media arena, working in several facets in the industry from television, radio,

film to even local and regional commercials. Born and raised in Cleveland, Ohio, Mina has more than 15

years in the industry. She started in high school writing and delivering the morning announcements,

then once she was in college Mina was the only freshman on the campus radio station of Clark Atlanta

University (CAU) in 2000, WSTU 88.1 FM going by the radio handle of “Mina Meen”.

Mina studied closely under the tutelage of Deb Moore and the late Ken Batey on Atlanta’s Jazz station,

WCLK 91.9 FM; also based on Clark Atlanta’s campus. By 2002, Mina was the News Director and a Field

Reporter for Georgia State TV (GSTV) station while still doing 2 on-air radio shifts at CAU. She graduated

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from Georgia State University in 2004 with a BA of Arts & Sciences (double major) in Broadcast

Journalism & PR/Marketing and minor in Theater.

Mina has worked as a Production Assistant on (film) Stomp The Yard: The Homecoming; (tv series) Tyler

Perry’s Meet The Browns; (film) Two Can Play That Game; (tv series) Drop Dead Divas ; Associate

Producer, Location Scout, and Set Designer on several other independent projects. Latest project (2016),

Mina was the Associate Producer, Script Supervisor and Sound Operator on an independent feature film,

'The Plug’, which is currently on Amazon.

Panelist

Drew Waters

Company: Argentum Entertainment

Drew Waters Brief Bio

Drew Waters began work in the entertainment industry nearly 15 years ago after finishing a successful

military career and work as an international model. With 60 acting credits to his name, Drew is best

recognized for his role as Coach Wade Aikman on the critically-acclaimed series Friday Night Lights. He

has also guest starred and held recurring roles on some of the most successful television franchises of all

time including Breaking Bad, True Detective, NCIS, Major Crimes, Magic City, The Lying Game, and

Bones. His work also extends to the big screen with films like The Ultimate Life, 13 Hours, Home Run,

Parkland, Cowgirls ‘n Angels, The Hit List, The Redemption of Henry Myers, and Mad Money.

In his expansive career he has worked alongside some of the best actors in the business including Kyle

Chandler, Diane Keaton, Matthew Broderick, Josh Brolin, Colin Farrell, Aaron Paul, Jeffrey Dean Morgan,

and James Cromwell. With the opening of his production company, Argentum Entertainment, Drew has

taken a major shift in focus toward his passion for directing. Inspired by his work with such acclaimed

directors as Oliver Stone, Michael Bay, Justin Lin, and Peter Landesman, Drew has flourished as a

director in both web series and short films.

Panelist

Bernie Lawrence Watkins

Company: B. Lawrence Watkins & Associates, PC

Bernie Lawrence Watkins Brief Bio

Bernie Lawrence-Watkins is a seasoned transactional attorney and principal in the law firm of B.

Lawrence Watkins & Associates, PC, concentrating in the areas of Entertainment, Licensing, Copyright,

Trademark, Business Transactions, and Company Formations. Throughout her career Ms. Lawrence-

Watkins has negotiated a multitude of contracts for Grammy Award winning songwriters and producers

of top charting recording artists such as Drake, 50 Cent, Beyoncé, Sean “Puffy” Combs, T.I., Lil’ Wayne,

Nicki Minaj, Rihanna, Usher, and Justin Bieber. She has represented a wide range of artists like the

legendary Jennifer Holiday, Perri “Pebbles” Reid, Jagged Edge and Roscoe Dash. Some of her more

recent clients include “21 Savage”, “Young Nudy”, “Silentó”, “Taylor Girlz” and “Joe Gifted”, to name a

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few. She also represented film and television producers and talent on several Reality TV shows and

served as the legal consultant for a television series and production attorney for a full-length feature

film. With over 19 years of experience, Ms. Lawrence-Watkins has been able to leverage her clients’

brands to secure multi-million dollar entertainment deals on their behalf. Ms. Lawrence-Watkins

periodically appears as a guest lecturer at colleges, law schools and conferences, both nationally and

internationally.

Ms. Lawrence-Watkins received her Bachelors degree in Business Administration from Howard

University and her Juris Doctorate Degree from the University of Baltimore School of Law. She is

admitted to practice law in Georgia in all lower courts and state and superior courts, the United Stated

District Court Northern District of Georgia, Georgia Court of Appeals, and the Supreme Court of Georgia

Panelist

John Adcox, CEO

Company: Gramarye Media, Inc.

John Adcox Brief Bio

Over the course of a 20-year career in advertising, marketing, and new media, John Adcox has held a

number of titles including Executive Producer, Vice President of Digital Media, Creative Director, Vice

President of Marketing and Creative Services, and CEO. A few of his clients have included AT&T,

Mercedes-Benz, Holiday Inn, Coca-Cola, UPS, SCANA, AutoTrader.com, Time Warner, Disney, Delta

Airlines, 3M, Ford, and many more.

In addition, he has hosted a radio show, acted professionally (although not since age 15), designed and

written scripts for games, written a play for a professional theatre company, taught university

astronomy, and written articles on topics including mythology, psychology, technology, religion, and

marketing strategy.

John Adcox is the founder of Gramarye Media, a company incubated through Georgia Tech’s prestigious

Flashpoint program, which advocates rigorous process for reliable innovation. Gramarye applies that

same “Silicon Valley” incubation approach to content innovation, building and vetting engaged

audiences before a single frame of film is shot. That process, along with proprietary technology and the

Georgia business environment, allows Gramarye to reduce both the risk and costs of developing original

event tentpole franchises.

Panelist

Shaun Mathis

Company: Laconic Productions

Shaun Mathis Brief Bio

After relocating from Philadelphia to Atlanta in 2010, Shaun Mathis retired from life as a novelist and

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began writing for the screen. Now writer, director, producer, and co-owner of Laconic Productions, his

role as a single father to his 9 year-old daughter is his greatest honor.

In 2012 an internship with Sharon Tomlinson of Studio 11 Films kickstarted his professional career. After

completing Tomlinson’s writing program, Mathis began penning scripts for the independent production

company. Later interning at Ralph Wilcox Productions, Mathis gained continued experience as a

production assistant and script reader.

In 2014 Eyeam Cinema commissioned Mathis to write an 8-episode web series, the success of which led

to the development of several other projects for the independent production company.

With confidence in his craft, Shaun decided to step out on his own by writing & directing 2 web series.

His first was Rich Brothers (Drama) the next was Threesome (Comedy) which have a combined 57 film

festivals selections and several wins.

Shaun’s first major break came in 2015 when he was asked to co-write & co-produce the short film,

"Take Over Your Trap”, starring Grammy nominated hip hop artist 2 Chainz, which premiered at the

2016 SXSW Film Festival. To date, the film has over 6 million views via Youtube & World Star Hi hop.com

With a major artist on his resume, in 2016 Shaun went on to write, direct and produce his first short

film, The Plug, which has distribution via Amazon Prime Video and has over 100,000 views since

December 2017. Furthermore, Shaun completed his first documentary, Miles in the Life, which has

obtained distribution at 2017’s AFM film conference.

When Shaun is not writing or filming he is teaching screenwriting at Bridge 17 Script Writer’s as well as

well as hosting the Atlanta division of the LA based, Blacklist.

Panelist

Stanislav,Shkilnyi

Company: Crogan Filmworks

Stanilav Shkilnyi Brief Bio

Stanislav’s dream of becoming an entertainment industry producer led him to earn his B.F.A. degree in

Film/Television producing from Savannah College of Art & Design (SCAD). He began his career as a

Location Manager, achieving the first step to realizing his dream. While his resume was being firmly and

steadily built he enjoyed various positions: Producer for Short-Films and a Coca-Cola advertisement. His

Feature Films involvement includes: Acting, Stunts, Location Management, Production Assistant,

Product Placement and Entertainment Insurance. This last, led him to the fascinating intricacies of the

insurance world where he sharpened his skills.

In time he accepted a position with Barrow Group, LLC as Director of its Film & Television Insurance

Department. This “knitting” of his already well developed Film and Television all-around skills was the

perfect match. He went on to develop the necessary connections to launch Crogan Filmworks, LLC with

Robert Barrow. Crogan Filmsworks, LLC acquires new titles throughout the year and attends all major

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film markets, including AFM, Berlin/EFM, Cannes Film Festival, Hong Kong/FilmArt, MIP-Com and

Toronto. Releasing films internationally into theaters, DVD, VOD, SVOD, & television.

Panelist

Kevin Greene

Company: Atlanta Idea Studio

Kevin Green Brief Bio

Kevin has worked in the entertainment industry for 25 years. He has produced independent films,

sports, music videos, television, and is currently the Studio Director of an award winning commercial

production company. He has two more independent films due out this year, and continues to stay active

in film along with his commercial production duties. Atlanta Idea Studio goal is to BUILD AWARENESS

THAT CREATES ACTION. So how do we do this? We help you create and produce the best video content

that adds value to your current marketing efforts.

Panelist

Erin Bethea

Company: Argentum Entertainment

Erin Bethea Brief Bio

With nearly 15 years in the entertainment industry, Erin brings an extensive and varied background in

the world of media and performance. Erin made her feature film debut starring in the #1 Independent

film of 2008 Fireproof. Fireproof opened the door to host a two-time Emmy® Award Winning series and

made her a household name in the faith and family film space. Since then she has appeared in nearly 30

feature films and television series. While living in Los Angeles, Erin began working as a producer’s

consultant and marketing creative director. Her connections at major studios like 20th Century Fox,

Sony, and Lionsgate as well as smaller independent studios and distributor provided a unique platform

to help producers with their entire development and release strategy including script work, casting,

production, and marketing. Now, through the opening of her production company, Argentum

Entertainment, Erin puts all of that knowledge to work in creating powerful, emotional content with

commercial appeal.

Panelist

Jason Brubaker

Company: Distribber

Jason Brubaker Brief Bio

Jason Brubaker is a Los Angeles based film distribution executive specializing in direct to consumer

release strategies. He currently serves as the VP of Worldwide Sales at Distribber. Distribber We are

filmmakers, musicians, artists, and digital media enthusiasts, united by a passion for film and a drive to

change this industry for the better. We come from all over the world, and bring the diverse experience

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needed to handle any situation that can arise in shepherding a film from final cut to its VOD live date.

Distribber We come to work every day because we want to help you put your film directly in front of

your audience with the least amount of compromise possible… and we want to make that easy. We

were founded on the idea that the entrenched model for film distribution is clunky, inconvenient, and

can even be predatory… and that there’s a better way.