Virginia Film Festival industry guests are matched with local students and filmmakers to offer career and artistic guidance, as well as insights into the inner workings of the entertainment industry through one-on-one, 30 minute sessions.

Students and VA-based filmmakers interested in signing up for a session should fill out a brief application form, linked below. The deadline to apply is Thursday, October 8, 5pm EST.

VAFF staff will be in touch shortly after the application deadline with additional info.

See below for current roster of VAFF filmmaker/industry guests participating in the 2026 Connection Point, as well their expected availabilities.

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Guest Availability

The participant list may expand and will be updated. Specific availability is subject to change.
Find all film and industry guest bios on the Guest page.

Roxana Hadadi, National Media (Vulture)
Thursday, October 22 | Friday, October 23 | Saturday, October 24

Jai Jamison, Writer and Director (CW’s Superman & Lois), VAFF Board
Thursday, October 22 | Friday, October 23 | Saturday, October 24

Din Blankenship, Director (Love, Your Birth Mom)
Thursday, October 22 | Friday, October 23 | Saturday, October 24 | Sunday, October 25

Elizabeth Lodge Stepp, Producer (Love, Your Birth Mom)
Saturday, October 24 | Sunday, October 25

Genevieve Villaflor, Executive Director of Sag Harbor Cinema, VAFF Board
Friday, October 23

Iana Dontcheva, Producer (Welcome to the Fishbowl)
Sunday, October 25

Scott Feinberg, National Media (The Hollywood Reporter)
Friday, October 23

Jana Gallagher, Producer and Actor (The Leader)
Saturday, October 24

Jason Ikeler, Director (Safe for the Whole Family: How to Make a Christian Superstar)
Sunday, October 25

Kevin Jerome Everson, Filmmaker and Artist (A Suite of Short Films by Kevin Jerome Everson)
Saturday, October 24 | Sunday, October 25

Kevin Fallon, National Media (The Daily Beast)
Thursday, October 22 | Friday, October 23 | Saturday, October 24

Bilal Qureshi, National Media (NPR)
Thursday, October 22 | Friday, October 23 | Saturday, October 24 | Sunday, October 25

Robert Daniels, National Media (RogerEbert.com)
Thursday, October 22 | Friday, October 23 | Saturday, October 24 | Sunday, October 25

Marya E. Gates, National Media (RogerEbert.com) 
Sunday, October 25

Lisa Kennedy, National Media (Denver Post, New York Times) 
Thursday, October 22 | Friday, October 23 | Saturday, October 24

Michael Gallagher, Director (The Leader)
Saturday, October 24

Otilia Portillo Padua, Director (Daughters of the Forest)
Thursday, October 22

Sheryl Glubok, Director (Welcome to the Fishbowl)
Sunday, October 25

Steven Pressman, Director (Dust Bowls and Jewish Souls: Another Side to Woody Guthrie)
Sunday, October 25

Jeff Wadlow, Producer (Truth or Dare) and Director (Kick-Ass 2), VAFF Board
Thursday, October 22 | Friday, October 23 | Saturday, October 24 | Sunday, October 25

Whitney Fern, Producer (Safe for the Whole Family: How to Make a Christian Superstar) 
Sunday, October 25

Clay Tweel, Director (Andy Kaufman is Me), VAFF Board
Availability TBD

Colin Whitlow, Senior Director of Business Development at The Gotham Institute, VAFF Board
Saturday, October 24

Tarik Begic, Director (No More Punk Time: The Last Days of Crayola House)
Thursday, October 22 | Friday, October 23 | Saturday, October 24 | Sunday, October 25

Jason George, Actor (Grey’s Anatomy), VAFF Board
Saturday, October 24

Scott Safon, Marketing Consultant, Former CMO of CNN, VAFF Board
Thursday, October 22 | Friday, October 23 | Saturday, October 24 | Sunday, October 25

Andy Edmunds, Director (The Cashier), VAFF Board
Thursday, October 22 | Friday, October 23 | Saturday, October 24

Ben Mankiewicz, Primetime Host of Turner Classic Movies
Friday, October 23 | Saturday, October 24 | Sunday, October 25

Daphne Maxwell Reid, Actor and Producer (The Cashier)
Saturday, October 24

Kyle Johnson, Producer (No More Punk Time: The Last Days of Crayola House)
Thursday, October 22 | Friday, October 23 | Saturday, October 24 | Sunday, October 25

Noah Gray, Producer (One of a Kind)
Friday, October 23 | Saturday, October 24

Pat Jarrett, Producer and Folklorist (No More Punk Time: The Last Days of Crayola House)
Thursday, October 22 | Friday, October 23 | Saturday, October 24 | Sunday, October 25

John Terenzio, Panelist (Pitch Perfect: Get Your Project Made)
Thursday, October 22 | Friday, October 23 | Saturday, October 24 | Sunday, October 25

Tomáš Gič, Producer (Flood)
Saturday, October 24

Paul Copeland, Director and Documentarian (BBC, ITV, Channel 4)
Sunday, October 25