This recognition honors a filmmaker from a self-identified underrepresented community in relation to gender identity, ability, people of color, Indigenous/Native and LGBTQIA+, telling stories about wildlife, conservation and science.
Pragna Parsotam-Kok & Noel Kok
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Noel and Pragna Kok are each established filmmakers and storytellers in their own right. Noel is a producer, creative director, and storyteller with a passion for natural history and stories of African conservation. After dropping out of law school, Kok began his 25-year career in management, marketing, music and media production. Noel has produced, directed and distributed a number of albums, live shows, documentary shorts, and a conservation TV series. Pragna is an award-winning film and television producer with a Bachelor’s Degree in Social Science (majoring in Culture, Communication & Media Studies as well as Drama & Performance Studies). After producing their first conservation television series for broadcast in 2017 and experiencing first-hand the barriers to entry for African filmmakers in nature and wildlife genre and passionate about diversity, inclusion and conservation, Pragna and Noel co-founded NEWF (Nature Environment and Wildlife Filmmakers). An organization dedicated to unlocking the barriers to entry and building capacity in order to enable access, support inclusion and create a culture of equity for African nature, environment and wildlife visual storytellers. They serve as executive directors and are directly involved in the conceptualization of initiatives and day-to-day operations.
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Colleen Thurston
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Colleen Thurston is an award-winning media producer and documentary filmmaker from Tulsa, Oklahoma. She is an Assistant Professor of Journalism and teaches documentary studies and film production. As an Indigenous non-fiction storyteller, her films explore the relationships between humans and the natural world and focus on Native stories and perspectives. She holds an MFA from Montana State University’s Science and Natural History Filmmaking program, where she also earned a graduate certificate in American Indian Studies. Her BA in Media Arts and Anthropology is from the University of Arizona. Colleen has produced work for the Smithsonian Channel, Vox, illumiNATIVE and museums, public television stations, and federal and tribal organizations. She produced and directed short documentaries for four seasons of the Cherokee Nation’s series, “Osiyo, Voices of the Cherokee People,” earning two Emmy awards for her work on the show. She is currently in production on her first feature documentary “Drowned Land” which explores water rights and the history of resource exploitation in the Choctaw Nation of Oklahoma. Colleen also curates film and storytelling events, with an emphasis on Indigenous programming and is currently the co-Executive Director of the Fayetteville Film Festival. Colleen is a 2019-2021 Firelight Media Documentary Lab Fellow, a citizen of the Choctaw Nation and a seventh generation Oklahoman.
Her newest feature documentary, Drowned Land, is in production . Here is the fundraising site with more information: https://redfordcenter.org/films/drowned-land |
Daniel O'Neill
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Dan O'Neill is a wildlife presenter, independent filmmaker, and biologist. After working internationally as a field researcher and video journalist, he completed a Masters in Wildlife Filmmaking at UWE Bristol in partnership with the BBC Natural History Unit where he founded Wilderland, the UK's first touring wildlife film festival. He has since produced and presented a number of projects from deep in the Amazon in search of jaguars to the Philippines learning the story of the world's most endangered eagles. Most recently, Dan directed and presented Snow Lopards: Ghosts in the Snow for BBC Earth and Last Eden: Guyana, for television distribution, following a 300 mile river expedition into the Guyanese Amazon.
Alongside independent projects, Dan works on the production side of the natural history television industry in development, working on a diverse range of presenter-led formats and is a member of the the Animal and Plant Sciences department at the University of Sheffield. |
Roshan Patel
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Roshan is a filmmaker in Washington, D.C. Currently, he is the media producer for Smithsonian’s National Zoo and Conservation Biology Institute where he produces short films, exhibit installations and social media content. He earned his MFA in Science and Natural History Filmmaking from Montana State University and has produced award-winning short films on a variety of topics, from Asiatic lions in western India to coral conservation in the Caribbean.
In addition to his independent films, he has produced films for the National Park Service, World Wildlife Fund and Smithsonian Institution. For more information visit: https://www.roshcpatel.com/ |
Anthony Ochieng
Anthony is a Wildlife Ecologist, Educator, Conservation Photographer and Filmmaker based in Nairobi, Kenya. He’s an International League of Conservation Photographer- Emerging League. His work is focused on creating conservation content that will inspire conservation action across all ages and races.
He had a unique interest in nature as a teenager, realizing the unique bond between himself and relationships with others. This informed his way of life, from being a Conservation Leader in school to date, pursuing a Wildlife Management degree and working for conservation organization such as Giraffe Center (African Fund for Endangered Wildlife A.F.E.W.) Laikipia Wildlife Forum and Birdlife International-Africa Secretariat. He currently runs TonyWild. A platform for promoting conservation action by creating awareness on wildlife conservation through photography, film and science.
He collaborates with organization such as Chimpanzee Trust, Just Digit, Earth Optimism Nairobi-Tropical Biology Association of Africa, Action for Cheetahs Kenya, Grevy Zebra Trust, The Pangolin Project, Adventure for Rhinos, Last Male Standing Rhino Cup-Olpejeta Conservancy and Game Rangers Association of Africa (GRAA).
He is a InfoNile- EverydayNile Photojournalism Fellow 2021, Jackson Wild Media Lab Fellow 2020, Nature Environment Wildlife Filmmakers (N.E.W.F) Pitch Winner 2020, Jackson Wild Emerging Filmmaker Scholar 2019, WWF Education for Nature Grantee, WWF Africa Youth Award Nominee 2018, Top 100 Youth in Conservation 2021, Top 35 Under 35 Awardee 2020 and 2020 EE 30 under 30 –NAAEE (North America Association of Environmental Educators)
His images have been featured in National Geographic Espana and Africa, Climate Tracker, Climate Visuals Org, Sustainable Travel International and Global landscape Forum. He is a bronze winner of the Safal Eye in the Wild Photography Competition 2019 and Finalist for Earth Photo 2021, British High Commission Nairobi Climate Changemakers photography competition. Global Landscape Forum –Kyoto and Accra, Heart of Kenya, a Nikon Kenya Competition, and Picfair Celebrating Africa: City life category. His images have been exhibited at the Royal Geographical Society (with IBG), London, Dalby Forest, North Yorkshire, Moors Valley Country Park and Forest, Dorset and Grizedale, Cumbria.
His newest project Forest Guardian is supported by NEWF.
He had a unique interest in nature as a teenager, realizing the unique bond between himself and relationships with others. This informed his way of life, from being a Conservation Leader in school to date, pursuing a Wildlife Management degree and working for conservation organization such as Giraffe Center (African Fund for Endangered Wildlife A.F.E.W.) Laikipia Wildlife Forum and Birdlife International-Africa Secretariat. He currently runs TonyWild. A platform for promoting conservation action by creating awareness on wildlife conservation through photography, film and science.
He collaborates with organization such as Chimpanzee Trust, Just Digit, Earth Optimism Nairobi-Tropical Biology Association of Africa, Action for Cheetahs Kenya, Grevy Zebra Trust, The Pangolin Project, Adventure for Rhinos, Last Male Standing Rhino Cup-Olpejeta Conservancy and Game Rangers Association of Africa (GRAA).
He is a InfoNile- EverydayNile Photojournalism Fellow 2021, Jackson Wild Media Lab Fellow 2020, Nature Environment Wildlife Filmmakers (N.E.W.F) Pitch Winner 2020, Jackson Wild Emerging Filmmaker Scholar 2019, WWF Education for Nature Grantee, WWF Africa Youth Award Nominee 2018, Top 100 Youth in Conservation 2021, Top 35 Under 35 Awardee 2020 and 2020 EE 30 under 30 –NAAEE (North America Association of Environmental Educators)
His images have been featured in National Geographic Espana and Africa, Climate Tracker, Climate Visuals Org, Sustainable Travel International and Global landscape Forum. He is a bronze winner of the Safal Eye in the Wild Photography Competition 2019 and Finalist for Earth Photo 2021, British High Commission Nairobi Climate Changemakers photography competition. Global Landscape Forum –Kyoto and Accra, Heart of Kenya, a Nikon Kenya Competition, and Picfair Celebrating Africa: City life category. His images have been exhibited at the Royal Geographical Society (with IBG), London, Dalby Forest, North Yorkshire, Moors Valley Country Park and Forest, Dorset and Grizedale, Cumbria.
His newest project Forest Guardian is supported by NEWF.
