THE MOXIE INSTITUTE
The Moxie Institute has made a name for itself creating and distributing socially minded films in exciting new ways by coupling traditional media like films, books, and live events with new technologies to engage people with the important questions of our day. Its projects address issues including the impact of technology, cultural identity, women’s rights, the environment, and how these elements interact in our complex global reality. Its projects also serve as case studies to test new ways of reaching people. The knowledge gained from these experiments helps the Institute to determine best practices that it then shares with other independent film and media makers through its website and conferencesThe founders are Tiffany Shlain and U.C. Berkeley professor Ken Goldberg, working with Carlton Evans Ph.D. and others, who together have over five decades of experience with films, the Internet, live events, symposia, and a variety of new media projects that deliver powerful and resonant experiences in support of social awareness and change. Their last project, The Tribe, was singled out by the Sundance Institute, the New York Times, and Variety as an example of innovative distribution using the Internet and engaging audiences with live events, and was the first documentary to reach #1 on iTunes. Other projects include Life, Liberty & the Pursuit of Happiness, about reproductive rights in America, and Yelp: With Apologies to Allen Ginsberg’s Howl, which explores the importance of unplugging occasionally from technology.
Find out more at www.moxieinstitute.org.
TIFFANY SHLAIN, DIRECTOR/ WRITER/ EDITOR
Honored by Newsweek as one of the “Women Shaping the 21st Century,” Tiffany Shlain is a filmmaker, founder of the Webby Awards, and co-founder of The International Academy of Digital Arts & Sciences. A celebrated thinker and catalyst, Tiffany is known for her ability to illuminate complex ideas in culture, science, technology and life through her unique films, dynamic talks, and innovative projects. She’s delivered the keynote commencement address at UCBerkeley and her films and work have received 50 awards and distinctions. Her last four films premiered at Sundance, including her 2011 acclaimed feature documentary, Connected: An Autoblogography about Love, Death & Technology, which The New York Times hailed as “Examining Everything From the Big Bang to Twitter,” and the US State Department just selected as one of the films to screen at embassies around the world in their 2012 American Film Showcase. She is currently working on a new film series which is paving the way for a new kind of collaborative filmmaking she calls CLOUD FILMMAKING. The series, titled “Let it Ripple: Mobile Films for Global Change,” will include twenty short 4-minute films about important aspects of life. The first film, A Declaration of Interdependence, with music by Moby, has been translated into 65 languages and she is currently creating free customized versions of the film for any nonprofit. The next film in the series that Tiffany and her film studio are in production on is Brain Power, which explores the best way to nurture young children’s brains as well as the global brain we are creating via the Internet.
Check out Tiffany’s: *Twitter *Website *Filmography *Newsletter *Director’s statement
KEN GOLDBERG, WRITER
Ken Goldberg is an inventor working at the intersection of art, robotics, and social media. At UC Berkeley, Ken teaches and supervises research in Robotics, Automation, and New Media. Ken was awarded dual degrees in Electrical Engineering and Economics from the University of Pennsylvania (1984) and MS and PhD degrees from Carnegie Mellon University (1990). He joined the UC Berkeley faculty in 1995 where he is craigslist Distinguished Professor of New Media. He is a Professor of Industrial Engineering and Operations Research, with secondary appointments in Electrical Engineering/Computer Science and the School of Information. Ken also has an appointment in the UC San Francisco Medical School’s Department of Radiation Oncology. Ken has published over 150 peer-reviewed technical papers on algorithms for robotics, automation, and social information filtering; his inventions have been awarded eight US Patents. He is Editor-in-Chief of the IEEE Transactions on Automation Science and Engineering (T-ASE), Co-Founder of the Berkeley Center for New Media, Co-Founder and CTO of Hybrid Wisdom Labs, Co-Founder of the Moxie Institute, and Founding Director of UC Berkeley’s Art, Technology, and Culture Lecture Series. Ken was awarded the Presidential Faculty Fellowship in 1995 by President Clinton, the National Science Foundation Faculty Fellowship in 1994, the Joseph Engelberger Robotics Award in 2000, and elected IEEE Fellow in 2005.
SAWYER STEELE, PRODUCER/WRITER Sawyer Steele is a writer and filmmaker. He has been with The Moxie Institute since its inception working on distribution for The Tribe. During production of Connected, Sawyer was a co-writer, associate editor, and production manager. He is now distribution manager for both Connected and The Moxie Institute. He is also working on a film called Transboom. Born and raised in New England, Sawyer graduated from Colby College in Maine.
SIMONE NELSON, DIRECTOR of MARKETING & DISTRIBUTION/PRODUCER Simone Nelson has worked with international, award-winning artists and companies to develop and produce film, digital media, theater and music projects, productions, festivals and events for over 20 years. She has worked with or for, among others: the former head of Walt Disney Studios & Theatricals—Peter Schneider; filmmaker/writer Rebecca Miller; Forensic Films; Film Arts Foundation; San Francisco Opera; and London’s Shakespeare Globe and Royal Court Theatres. Simone more recently has served on the Faculty of The Art Institute of California—San Francisco, co-produced the award winning documentary, CITY OF BORDERS, served as President of Bay Area Women in Film and Media, and co-produced the inaugural Social Change Film Festival & Institute in Bali, Indonesia. She is a graduate of Northwestern University’s School of Communication and Yale University’s Graduate School of Drama.
HALEY SEPPA, SPECIAL PROJECTS MANAGER Haley Seppa is a filmmaker and has been with The Moxie Institute for two years as partner development manager, social media manager, and a production coordinator on Connected. She is from Northern California with a background in festival coordination/production and is pursuing her bachelors in film.
JESSE WAKEMAN, PRODUCTION MANAGER Jesse Wakeman is an aspiring documentary filmmaker. While at Ithaca College’s Roy H. Park School of Communications, she produced three short documentaries covering a range of social issues including immigration. After graduating with a B.S. in video production, Jesse joined the Moxie Institute’s production team in 2010 as an intern and then as distribution coordinator. She now helps to manage festivals and screening for both Connected and Yelp.
