Kwamé Berry is an award-winning filmmaker, actor, and writer originally from Columbus, Ohio. A graduate of The New York Conservatory for Dramatic Arts, Kwamé has performed at The New York Theater Festival, American Theatre of Actors, and The Tank, among others. His debut film, the 2018 hybrid documentary KAM, was recognized by Harlem’s Black Web Fest and went on to win the Best Homegrown Filmmaker and Buckeye Choice Awards at the Columbus Black International Film Festival, as well as Best Cinematography at Miami’s Urban Film Festival.
Based on his 2013 stage play, his latest project Ursula — co-directed with Peter Samuel — has screened at numerous festivals, including England’s GASP! Horror Festival, The Black Film Festival of New Orleans, and the New York No Limits Film Summit. Ursula was also recognized as a 2025 Best Short Narrative Finalist at Texas’s Denton Black Film Festival. Kwamé is thrilled to return to the Summit Jury and is cultivating his next film The Preference, a thriller due in 2026. Instagram: @kwameberry.
Sakinah Iman is a Brooklyn-born filmmaker, actress, and singer-songwriter of Jamaican and Garifuna descent. Her comedic, diasporic films have earned 26 national and international awards and screened at 68 festivals worldwide. With over 15 years in theatre, music, and film, she fuses raw truth, generational healing, and the richness of the Black experience. Her breakout short He Wants To Know My Number aired on Showtime and Paramount+, and now also streams on Hulu, Apple TV, and Prime Video. Sakinah’s film “Hood Meditations: Manifesting a Lick” was screened as part of the New York No Limits Film Series: Art of the Short and the 2024 Summit. Instagram @Sakinahluvs
Jessie Klueter, Jessie is a director, actor, and creative based in New York City. Her award-winning short film Gold Rush, a dark satire of the beauty industry, screened at festivals across the country (including the 2024 NYNL Summit). She has directed and acted in numerous stage productions, recently serving as the Associate Director for the Broadway and Off-Broadways productions of the new play JOB. Across mediums, she is passionate about bringing nuanced characters to life with humor and heart. Proud graduate of Northwestern University. Instagram @Jkluet