John Ackerly is the President of the International Campaign for Tibet (ICT), which he helped found in 1988 after a climbing trip during which he witnessed massive demonstrations in Lhasa. ICT now keeps offices in Washington, Amsterdam, Berlin, Dharamsala and Kathmandu. His work has led to collaborations with numerous mountaineers and filmmakers, including David Breashears, Galen Rowell, Conrad Anker and Jimmy Chin. In 2003, he helped found the Rowell Fund for Tibet to honor Galen and Barbara’s legacy in the Tibetan community.
Yogi Graham worked with the San Francisco-based Video Project from 2001 through 2004. The Video Project is one of the nation’s leading distributors of independent documentaries, and its collection includes numerous Oscar- and Emmy-award winning titles. In 2005, he joined Current TV as director of original programming & acquisitions. Chaired by Al Gore, Current TV’s mission is to redefine what news and information means to the 18- to 34-year-old demographic, and the channel’s success is now apparent in 28 million homes nationwide.
Tony Huston comes from one of the most celebrated film families in Hollywood: His father, John, was a legendary director (The Maltese Falcon); his grandfather, Walter, was a celebrated actor; and his sister is Anjelica. All have won Academy Awards, and Tony’s screenplay for The Dead, based on the short story by James Joyce, was also nominated. As well as being a writer, Tony is a passionate falconer and outdoorsman.
Tom Piozet is a director/cinematographer and the owner of Home Planet Productions, a California-based company that specializes in producing high-definition television, documentaries and digital cinema. His recent documentary credits include Tibet: Cry of the Snow Lion (2003), Equator HD Travel Series ('04-'05), and Operation Sethos: High Tech in the Tomb of the Pharaoh (2001). Tom is currently finishing two films: one about extreme body-piercing rituals in Thailand and another that explores a transgender beauty contest. Whether he’s shooting a pilot for Animal Planet in the Pantanal region of Brazil, behind the scenes on a Dreamworks/Paramount feature or diving in Papua New Guinea, Tom is always ready for the next challenge.
Flo Stone is the founder and artistic director of the Environmental Film Festival in Washington, D.C., which highlights 100 documentary, feature, animated and archival films from over 20 countries for an audience of 20,000. She has been professionally involved in presenting films for 35 years, a career that has included collaboration with the American Museum of Natural History in New York City, the Margaret Mead Film Festival, Earthwatch Film Awards for the National Geographic Society, Festival of Indonesia and Smithsonian Institution.
JOHN ACKERLY
YOGI GRAHAM
TONY HUSTON
TOM PIOZET
FLO STONE
