Both panels are free to attend, but registration is required; space is limited.
Register online by Thursday, May 9. For information, call 919-814-7028.
For Filmmakers
Legal Insights for Filmmakers, a panel discussion on current legal issues affecting the film industry, with filmmaker Jameka Autry and legal insights from Ashley Felton, Shelia Huggins, and Mike Tadych; moderated by Beth Yerxa
Saturday, May 11, 2 to 3 p.m.
Demonstration Gallery (lobby level). Bring your questions!
Legal issues can be confusing—especially when they affect getting your work done. Copyright? Fair use? Distribution? Contracts? Privacy/trespass? Employees? Drones? Learn the latest on legal issues that impact the film industry and have your questions answered by this panel of Triangle-area lawyers. Plus, hear from an experienced film producer on her experiences with legal issues in filmmaking.
Let everyone know you’re coming!
Jameka Autry is a director and creative producer of feature documentaries, narrative films, commercials, short films, and multimedia campaigns whose work has screened at Sundance Film Festival, Tribeca Film Festival, SXSW Film Festival, and the New Directors/New Films festival. She is a 2018–2019 associate of the Investigative Reporting Program (a professional newsroom and teaching institute) at the University of California, Berkeley, and, in 2018, was selected to the inaugural DOC NYC 40 Under 40 list (DOC NYC is America’s largest documentary film festival). Jameka started her career at Break Thru Films, with the award-winning duo of Ricki Stern and Annie Sundberg, and she worked on the original productions team at Cinereach. She recently completed work on the feature documentary Ernie & Joe, which just had it’s world premiere at SXSW; has worked with director Loira Limbal on Through the Night, a coproduction of ITVS that is scheduled to premiere in 2020; and is currently directing her first feature film, The United States of America v. Billie Holiday, which has been awarded one of four inaugural A&E IndieFilms and Sundance Institute Brave Storytellers Awards. Originally from Durham, Jameka is an alumna of the Center for Documentary Studies at Duke University and currently lives in New York City.
Ashley Felton is a founding partner of Felton Banks PLLC where she focuses her practice on business transactions, employment defense, and unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV/drone) law. With an undergraduate degree from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and her JD from Campbell Law School, Campbell University, Ashley has been selected for a 2018 Legal Elite award, for her work in employment law, and been named to the 2019 Super Lawyers Rising Stars list, for her work in business law. Ashley’s UAV/drone practice focuses on business startups and defense and helping a variety of clients and drone pilots to navigate local, state (North Carolina), and FAA regulations. To further assist local enterprises, she founded a Meetup group called Droning on about the Drone Industry in RTP, which holds monthly educational and networking meetings for drone pilots and enthusiasts. She has also represented several Part 107 pilots for minor UAV/drone infractions in North Carolina.
Shelia Huggins practices law in Durham, focusing primarily on business, contracts, arts and entertainment, social media, sports, and Internet law. She serves on the Board of Visitors for the School of Business at North Carolina Central University and on the advisory board of the Small Business Center at Alamance Community College. Shelia has taught business and entertainment law at the NCCU School of Law and she speaks on topics such as film financing, independent contractor agreements, social media law, and employment law at workshops across the state. Shelia has received an Ella Fountain Pratt Emerging Artist Award (photography), and she has earned a Certificate in Documentary Arts (photography) from the Center for Documentary Studies at Duke University. Her work includes production management at StoryMineMedia and production of her own documentary short film Mechanics Hill, which was completed in 2015.
Since beginning to practice law in 1997, Mike Tadych has worked on matters ranging from multifamily construction project disputes and trademark litigation to negotiating the contract for a National Public Radio personality. In addition to litigation, First Amendment, and professional licensing work, Mike enjoys representing the interests of creative individuals such as authors, singers, journalists, and artists. He has served as general counsel to the Watercolor Society of North Carolina and Justice Theater Project and is a frequent speaker on areas of interest to creative individuals, especially those regarding business structure, intellectual property, and transference of ownership. A graduate of Indiana University, where he earned a degree in telecommunications, Mike has experience in television production, aerial video photography, graphic design, desktop publishing, editing corporate newsletters, and public relations.
Beth Yerxa, who will moderate this panel, is executive director of Triangle ArtWorks, a nonprofit that works with arts organizations, economic development agencies, and small businesses to ensure artists in the Triangle have resources they need to thrive and to increase the visibility and power of the arts community as a business segment. Prior to helping found Triangle ArtWorks, Beth served on the Raleigh Arts Commission and was chair for an unprecedented three years; she is currently a member of the City of Durham’s Small Business Advisory Committee and speaks frequently on the role and impact of the arts community as a vital business segment in the Triangle. Beth began her career in Washington, DC, as a litigation attorney handling toxic tort claims and advising trade associations regarding emerging environmental laws. In Raleigh, she expanded her practice to include compliance and regulatory matters for businesses of all sizes and providing advice on environmental issues.
Photo courtesy Indy Week, Durham
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visit our main Longleaf 2019 Registration and Ticket Information page.
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