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The Toyota Matrix FREE YOUR STORY contest jury

Sapana Sakya is Media Fund Director at the Center for Asian American Media where she manages CPB funding initiatives and supports independent filmmakers. Sapana’s background is in independent documentary and journalism. She produced and directed, “Daughters of Everest”, an award winning film about the first Nepali women’s Everest expedition. Her other works include “Oklahoma Home”, about two Filipino doctors living and working in rural Oklahoma, part of the series, “Searching for Asian America”. She also produced and directed, “Red White Blue November” a portrait of a Hmong American family from Fresno, California.

Ellen Park is the Media Fund Associate for CAAM. She was born in Chicago, and lived in South Dakota and Ohio before moving to New Jersey, prompting her to wonder ever afterwards “why oh why oh why oh did I ever leave Ohio?” After attending Smith College in Massachusetts and living in New York, Ellen moved to San Francisco where she worked as a bartender, music promoter, and rape crisis counselor with SFWAR, a non-profit sexual assault advocacy group, before joining CAAM. In her spare time, Ellen suspects (hopes) she might be the 5th Cylon and ponders over whatever happened to Dale Cooper and Bob.

Christine Kwon is Program and Publications Manager at the Center for Asian American Media. Born in San Francisco, Christine grew up in Fremont and attended Gomes Elementary where she majored in tetherball and foursquare. Christine also studied literature and film at UC San Diego and the University of KwaZulu-Natal. The youngest of four, Christine is also the shortest in her family, a lifelong motif that many speculate led to her famous tagline, “I get no respect.” After trying her hand as a futbol player, a reporter and finally a barista, Christine was inspired by many friends and teachers to pursue positive political work through the arts.

Stephen Gong is the Executive Director of the Center for Asian American Media. Stephen joined CAAM after working for 18 years at the University of California, Berkeley Art Museum and Pacific Film Archive, most recently as Deputy Director. Previously, he held positions at the National Endowment for the Arts in Washington, D.C. He has been a lecturer in the Asian American Studies program at UC Berkeley, where he developed and taught a course on the history of Asian American media.

Sonjia Hyon is the festival director of the Asian American International Film Festival and manages the “Archives Project” at Asian CineVision. She is a Ph.d. candidate at the University of Minnesota in American studies, and is an adjunct instructor in Asian American studies at Hunter College.