Emerging Educational Filmmaker Grant Recipients – Fall 2025

Congratulations to all the filmmakers in the Fall 2025 cycle. We’re excited for what comes next in your work. Thank you to all that submitted projects and thank you to the grant panel.

Project: Eclipse

Logline: While seeking to observe a lunar eclipse, Qing Dynasty astronomer Wang Zhenyi and a curious teenager, Luna, uncover a ritual that exploits fear and ignorance. As their journey unfolds, they rise to confront a world unprepared to accept women as seekers of truth.


 

Professional headshot portrait of Ziqi Yang wearing a black sleeveless top, photographed against a neutral gray background. Ziqi has long dark hair styled to one side, wears small earrings, and smiles warmly at the camera. The image is set on a teal background with white frame borders. Text at the top reads '2025 EMERGING EDUCATIONAL FILMMAKER GRANT WINNER' in orange, with 'Ziqi Yang' labeled at the bottom. The Learning Times Foundation logo appears in the bottom right corner.

Ziqi Yang is a Los Angeles-based director and cinematographer. She graduated from the prestigious USC School of Cinematic Arts with an MFA in Film and TV Production. She holds a bachelor’s degree from Boston University, where she double-majored in Film & TV Production and Advertising, with a minor in Business Administration.

Born in Guangzhou, China, and having lived and worked in multiple global cities, Ziqi is passionate about exploring diverse cultures and perspectives. She believes in the transformative power of storytelling to connect people and fulfill the universal need for recognition and understanding. Her portfolio spans narrative, documentary, and commercial projects, with her films selected for and awarded at various festivals.

In 2023, Ziqi was nominated and selected for the Sony Future Cinematography program. Her film script and proposal “ECLIPSE” was awarded the 2024 Sloan Production Grant by the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation, being one of the two award winners for this Grant. In the 2024 summer, she was selected from over 7,000 applicants for the 2024 Academy Gold Rising Program, a talent development initiative by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. In 2024, Ziqi was also awarded USC Jon M. Chu Endowed Student Fund Scholarship for her achievement as an upcoming Asian filmmaker.

Project: Dead on Dykman

Logline: The “Dead On” series pairs an anthological, fictional murder mystery podcast “Dead On: Dyckman” with companion documentary shorts “Dead On: A People’s History” to entertain, educate, and archive the endangered history of uptown (Manhattan & The Bronx) through the voices of its community members.

Black and white selfie portrait of Michael Wells, Jr. taken indoors. Michael hair is braided and styled with decorative beads, a full beard, and wears a black shirt. He looks directly at the camera with an indoor setting visible in the background. The image is set on an orange background with white frame borders. Text at the top reads '2025 EMERGING EDUCATIONAL FILMMAKER GRANT WINNER' in orange, with 'Michael Wells, Jr.' labeled at the bottom. The Learning Times Foundation logo appears in the bottom right corner.

Michael Wells Jr. is a 6th generation New Yorker born and raised in the South Bronx, bringing 15 years of professional experience as Director of Photography, Producer, and Editor to “Dead On.” He’s a lauded emerging writer, signed with HG Literary (repped by Ellen Goff). His uptown roots provide authentic insider perspective on the communities facing displacement that the project chronicles. Beyond his technical expertise, Michael has spent years as an educator, understanding how to make complex social issues accessible and engaging.

Michael’s production experience spans narrative and documentary formats, giving him the versatility required for this hybrid podcast-documentary project. His work has included both independent projects and larger productions, developing skills in managing complex shoots, working with non-professional talent, and crafting compelling narratives from real-world situations. As lead artist on “Dead On: Dyckman,” Michael oversees all creative decisions while ensuring the project remains accountable to community voices. His role extends beyond traditional directing. He’s facilitating a collaborative process where community members shape the story rather than simply appearing in it. Michael’s vision is to create a replicable model of community-engaged filmmaking that other creators can adapt, proving that social impact and artistic excellence aren’t competing priorities but complementary goals.

Black and white portrait photograph of Brian Neris smiling warmly at the camera against a dark background. Brian has short dark hair, a full beard, and a bright, engaging smile. The image is set on a teal background with white frame borders. Text at the top reads '2025 EMERGING EDUCATIONAL FILMMAKER GRANT WINNER' in orange, with 'Brian Neris' labeled at the bottom. The Learning Times Foundation logo appears in the bottom right corner.

Brian Neris, hailing from the South Bronx, brings extensive experience as a Location Sound Mixer and Post Sound Editor to his role as the project’s audio lead. His latest work can be heard on the upcoming final season of “P Valley,” demonstrating his ability to deliver broadcast-quality sound for high-profile productions.

Brian’s role encompasses multiple phases: during pre-production, he’s designing the sonic palette for the podcast’s fictional Dyckman world and planning location audio strategies for documentary interviews; during production, he’s recording and mixing on location while mentoring the sound intern in professional techniques; in post-production, he’s sound designing, mixing, and mastering both podcast episodes and documentary shorts. His experience working on character-driven television like “P Valley” translates perfectly to capturing authentic community voices for both project components.

Brian’s South Bronx background gives him cultural fluency with the uptown communities we’re documenting. He understands the sonic textures of these neighborhoods: the cadences of speech, the ambient soundscape, the music that pulses through the streets. As producer, Brian also contributes to overall project strategy and ensuring technical decisions serve the story’s emotional and educational goals.

Black and white portrait photograph of Kenyatta McLean on an orange background with white frame borders. The close-up shot shows Kenyatta with short natural hair and a pearl stud earring, photographed from a slight upward angle. Text at the top reads '2025 EMERGING EDUCATIONAL FILMMAKER GRANT WINNER' in orange, with 'Kenyatta McLean' labeled below. The Learning Times Foundation logo appears in the bottom right corner.

Kenyatta McLean is a seasoned project manager and researcher whose years of work focused on neighborhood resource distribution and heritage conservation. This makes her the ideal producer for “Dead On’s” community-engaged mission. She co-founded and created community connections within Blackspace.org, a platform connecting Black communities to spatial and cultural resources, and has served as a research fellow for the Center for the Preservation of Civil Rights Sites, bringing rigorous archival and oral history methodology to the project.

Kenyatta’s role is multifaceted: she manages production logistics, timelines, and budgets, ensuring the project stays on track while maintaining flexibility for the organic, community-responsive approach our work requires. She’s the primary liaison to community organizations, activists, and potential documentary subjects. Her expertise in heritage conservation directly informs how we approach documenting Inwood’s endangered cultural landscape, ensuring we’re not just capturing content but creating an archive that serves future education and preservation efforts. She’s developing partnerships with local schools and community centers for distribution and curriculum integration, managing the data cataloging system that will make our research accessible to educators and researchers, and documenting our production model for others to replicate. Her work transforms “Dead On” from creative project into a sustainable community resource.

Project: Ola i ka Wai

Logline: Could the fragile existence of Hawaiʻi’s fresh water become a plastic dream?

Behind-the-scenes photograph of Daniel A. Kelin II, a man with glasses and gray hair wearing a dark long-sleeved shirt, working with an elaborate multi-layered diorama set. The set features painted cutout layers depicting a natural landscape scene with stylized trees, foliage, flowers, and sky elements creating depth. Professional video cameras are visible in the foreground, positioned to film the miniature set. The scene is lit against a black background. The image is set on an orange background with white frame borders. Text at the top reads '2025 EMERGING EDUCATIONAL FILMMAKER GRANT WINNER' in orange, with 'Daniel A. Kelin II' labeled at the bottom. The Learning Times Foundation logo appears in the bottom right corner.

Daniel A. Kelin, II
Director/Producer/Writer

Daniel A. Kelin II is a theatre artist and film-maker dedicated to highlighting underappreciated stories. His film “After the Endling,” about Hawai‘i’s endangered, endemic snails, received a Pacific Islanders in Communication development grant and has been featured in ten international film festivals and on PBS. He expanded his research into an award-winning website (Hawaiikahuli.org) and “Whorled Away,” a children’s play that was part of a play development program in New York City in June 2025.

Other short, experimental puppet films have been featured in multiple film festivals in various countries. The latest, “When I Waked, I Cried to Dream Again,” was awarded the 2025 Best Experimental Animation Short Film in El Festival Internacional de Animación in Uruguay.

Project: Rooted in Conversation

Logline: Rooted in Conversation follows the launching of Raíces y Voces, an interdisciplinary youth media literacy and reforestation project. Two Montessori schools —one public, one private— learn about native trees to plant at their schools, driven by the loss of 30 million trees to Hurricane María and the growing climate change.

Portrait photograph of Pilar Álamo on a teal background with white frame borders. Pilar has curly dark hair, wears clear-framed glasses and turquoise earrings, and is dressed in a dark top. Text above reads '2025 EMERGING EDUCATIONAL FILMMAKER GRANT WINNER' and below identifies 'Pilar Álamo.' The Learning Times Foundation logo appears in the bottom right corner.

Pilar Álamo – Director / Producer

Pilar Álamo is an educator, media producer, and former performance artist whose interdisciplinary and bicultural background informs her lifelong commitment to integrating media literacy into education. Her career began in New York City, where in 1998 she co-founded Kids Discover Radio 88.7 FM with her partner, Puerto Rican documentary filmmaker Pedro Ángel Rivera. The project, based in the East River Thomas Jefferson Housing Projects, empowered youth to develop their voices and civic awareness through community radio.

Since returning to Puerto Rico in 2001, Álamo has developed educational and community-based initiatives that merge artistic expression, environmental awareness, and social engagement. She has led media literacy projects in public, private, and alternative schools, including La Casa Montessori, espacio a, and Crearte, Inc.

At Saint John’s School in San Juan, she founded sjspr.radio Schoolhouse Media, a (K-12) media literacy program engaging students in authentic storytelling and community reporting through podcasting. Her latest project, Raíces y Voces: Conectándonos para reforestar a Puerto Rico, expands this work into collaborative filmmaking, bridging education, media, and environmental action.

Álamo holds a BFA from SUNY Purchase and pursued graduate studies at Teachers College, Columbia University, as a NYC Board of Education scholarship recipient.

Portrait photograph of Pedro Ángel Rivera wearing a black fedora-style hat and black shirt, photographed against a softly blurred background. Pedro has light-colored eyes, a gray goatee, and is gazing upward with a contemplative expression. The image is set on an orange background with white frame borders. Text at the top reads '2025 EMERGING EDUCATIONAL FILMMAKER GRANT WINNER' in orange, with 'Pedro Ángel Rivera' labeled at the bottom. The Learning Times Foundation logo appears in the bottom right corner.

Pedro Ángel Rivera – Co-Director / Cinematographer

Pedro Ángel Rivera is a multidisciplinary educator, filmmaker, and consultant whose career bridges education, communication, and documentary film. He holds a master’s degree in American Studies from SUNY Buffalo, where he first discovered his passion for documentary storytelling.

Rivera’s award-winning films Manos a la Obra: The Story of Operation Bootstrap and La Plena es Canción y Trabajo have been recognized internationally in educational and ethnographic markets for their historical depth and cultural insight. His work often centers on themes of identity, labor, and social transformation in Puerto Rico and the Caribbean.

An experienced educator, Rivera has taught social sciences and humanities in public schools and universities, designing media literacy and documentary production programs for young people. He has collaborated with the Puerto Rican Institute of Culture, the Museum of Contemporary Art, and other cultural institutions to foster community-based storytelling.

Rivera’s practice integrates pedagogy with the art of communication, viewing media as a tool for civic participation and empowerment. His collaboration on Raíces y Voces: Rooted in Conversation continues his lifelong commitment to education and documentary work that uplifts community voices and environmental consciousness.

Black and white portrait photograph of David Moscoso on a teal background with white frame borders. The close-up selfie shows David with short dark hair and a trimmed beard, looking directly at the camera with buildings visible in the background. Text at the top reads '2025 EMERGING EDUCATIONAL FILMMAKER GRANT WINNER' in teal, with 'David Moscoso' labeled at the bottom. The Learning Times Foundation logo appears in the bottom right corner.

David Moscoso – Editor

Born in Lima, Peru, David Moscoso studied at the prestigious Escuela Internacional de Cine y Televisión (EICTV) in San Antonio de los Baños, Cuba, where he graduated with a specialization in Editing under a full scholarship.

Based in Puerto Rico since 1997, Moscoso has worked across fiction, documentary, commercial, and television projects, building a career defined by precision, narrative sensitivity, and a deep respect for visual storytelling. His work as an editor has shaped numerous films and programs recognized for their artistic and social impact.

Moscoso’s editing credits include 15 Faros, Mona, tesoro del Caribe, Cuentas pendientes, Ser familia, Más allá del sol, Después de María: las 2 orillas, and Todos íbamos a ser reyes. His projects have received recognition from the Suncoast Emmy Awards and have been featured in film festivals both in Puerto Rico and internationally.

In addition to editing, Moscoso continues to explore photography, screenwriting, and directing, bringing a multidisciplinary eye to every project. His collaboration on Raíces y Voces: Rooted in Conversation reflects his commitment to stories that connect people, place, and purpose through film.

Photo of Sixto I. Ortiz. Sixto has short bleached blonde hair and wears a plaid flannel shirt over a yellow graphic t-shirt, with his right hand touching his face. Professional microphone and stand also in picture with a large tech cabinet in the background. The image is framed by decorative strips of white blossoms (possibly cherry blossoms) against green foliage at the top and bottom, all set on an orange background with white frame borders. Text at the top reads '2025 EMERGING EDUCATIONAL FILMMAKER GRANT WINNER' in orange, with 'Sixto I. Ortiz' labeled at the bottom. The Learning Times Foundation logo appears in the bottom right corner.

Sixto I. Ortiz – Podcast / Documentary Post-Production Sound Editor

Sixto I. Ortiz is a Puerto Rican educator, poet, recording artist, and multimedia creator with extensive experience in sound design, radio, and content production. He holds a Communications degree from the Universidad del Sagrado Corazón, where he specialized in media production and marketing and graduated with top honors from the Escuela de Comunicación Ferré Rangel.

Ortiz has collaborated with major media organizations including PBS | Student Reporting Labs, Telemundo Puerto Rico, and the acclaimed podcast La Brega. His professional background also includes work with WORO 92.5 FM, WKVM 810 AM, and Bonita Radio, as well as serving as a music reviewer for Spark Of Magazine.

A multifaceted artist, Ortiz merges poetry, podcasting, and music to examine identity, culture, and the human experience. His creative practice bridges the technical and the emotional—transforming sound into a storytelling tool that connects audiences across generations and contexts.

As Post-Production Sound Editor for Raíces y Voces: Rooted in Conversation, Ortiz brings his distinctive auditory sensibility to amplify the voices of young storytellers and underscore the project’s spirit of community, learning, and transformation.

Project: Treasure Child

Logline: TREASURE CHILD is the story of my father, Abu the Flutemaker, an 85-year-old musician who transformed his life by creating unique instruments from discarded materials. The film explores the social and historical forces that shaped him and celebrates his impact and the legacy of Black Southern musical traditions.

Professional portrait photograph of Fatima Jibril smiling warmly at the camera against a neutral gray background. Fatima wears a vibrant yellow blazer over a colorful geometric-patterned top in yellow, blue, and other colors. She has long twisted braided hair and displays a bright, engaging smile. The image is set on a teal background with white frame borders. Text at the top reads '2025 EMERGING EDUCATIONAL FILMMAKER GRANT WINNER' in teal, with 'Fatima Jibril' labeled at the bottom. The Learning Times Foundation logo appears in the bottom right corner.


Fatima Jibril (Director) is an instructional designer, curriculum developer, and filmmaker whose creative journey began at the Baltimore School for the Arts and continued at Cornell University, where she earned a BA in Theater Arts and Film. A Teach for America alumna with a Master’s in Teaching, she has spent over two decades designing transformative learning experiences for K-12 students and educators. Fatima now returns to her filmmaking roots with her debut feature documentary, TREASURE CHILD, which has received the Docs in Progress and Saul Zaentz Innovation Fellowships, and blends her expertise in education, storytelling, and cultural relevance.

Black and white portrait photograph of Kyra Brands with voluminous curly hair, smiling joyfully at the camera with one hand resting against her face in a relaxed, candid pose. Kyra wears hoop earrings and a chain necklace. A decorative strip of white blossoms appears at the top of the frame. The image is set on an orange background with white frame borders. Text at the top reads '2025 EMERGING EDUCATIONAL FILMMAKER GRANT WINNER' in orange, with 'Kyra Brands' labeled at the bottom. The Learning Times Foundation logo appears in the bottom right corner.


Kyra Brands (Producer) is an arts administrator and filmmaker with experience in nonfiction programming, production, and artist support based in Bedford-Stuyvesant, Brooklyn. She holds a BA in Film from Northwestern University and is the Program Manager of the Production Assistance Program at Women Make Movies. Kyra has served on panels for the Brooklyn Arts Council and Salem Film Fest. She is a member of Brown Girls Doc Mafia, The D-Word and Media Mavens. She also collaborates with festivals and organizations including DOCNYC, Hot Docs, Gotham Film & Media Institute and UnionDocs. Her production work includes TIME PASSAGES (Cinequest 2024), 8X10, I CAN NO LONGER FIND WHAT NEVER EXISTED, and BEAUTIFUL ROOM IN VIBRANT AND CULTURAL NEIGHBORHOOD, which will have its New York theatrical premiere at the Roxy Cinema in October 2025.

Portrait photograph of JaMar Jones wearing clear-framed glasses with tinted lenses and a distinctive red jacket with text reading 'TILL DEATH DO US, PART.' The jacket features a bold black and white geometric patterned collar. JaMar has a goatee and wears a gold chain necklace with a pendant, photographed against a softly blurred background. The image is set on a teal background with white frame borders. Text at the top reads '2025 EMERGING EDUCATIONAL FILMMAKER GRANT WINNER' in teal, with 'JaMar Jones' labeled at the bottom. The Learning Times Foundation logo appears in the bottom right corner.

JaMar Jones (Cinematographer) is an accomplished director, cinematographer, and founder of Six Point Pictures. His directorial work spans documentary, narrative, and branded content. His film Breakthrough earned multiple awards for Best Documentary, recognized for its raw, immersive portrayal of resilience and transformation. He has directed work for clients including Disney, META, YouTube Originals, and Amazon, bringing depth and nuance to stories across formats.

Through Six Point Pictures, he continues to mentor emerging filmmakers and produce films that ask questions, spark dialogue, and leave a lasting impression.

Portrait photograph of Abu The Flutemaker smiling warmly at the camera, wearing vibrant traditional African-style clothing. Abu wears a purple bucket hat decorated with bold geometric patterns in purple, yellow, and blue, and a matching outfit featuring intricate African print patterns in purple, yellow, blue, and other colors over a lavender collared shirt. He has a gray beard and a welcoming smile. A decorative strip of white blossoms appears at the top of the frame. The image is set on an orange background with white frame borders. Text at the top reads '2025 EMERGING EDUCATIONAL FILMMAKER GRANT WINNER' in orange, with 'Abu The Flutemaker' labeled at the bottom. The Learning Times Foundation logo appears in the bottom right corner.

Abu the Flutemaker (Subject and Master Artist) has been making culturally-inspired musical instruments and performing musical crafts shows for over 50 years. He is known for his ability to recycle ordinary materials that have been discarded and transform them into unique musical instruments. His creative ingenuity and community impact earned him the DreamMaker Award and the ceremonial street naming of “Abu the Flutemaker Way” in Baltimore. Abu continues to create musical instruments and mentor young artists, preserving African American musical traditions through invention, education, and community engagement in the arts.


Elissa Blount Moorhead (Advisor) is an artist, producer, and director exploring the poetics of quotidian Black life through film and time-based installation. She co-directed Jay-Z’s 4:44; co-created the four-channel installation Back and Song; wrote and directed a PBS/Firelight Media’s Masters in the Making episode on Damon Davis; and served as a script consultant on Apple TV+’s Lady in the Lake (dir. Alma Har’el). Honors include USA Artists, Creative Capital, Baker Artist Award, Rubys, Ford JustFilms–Rockwood, Saul Zaentz Innovation Fellowship, Women at Sundance | Adobe Fellowship, Sundance Episodic Lab, and an Eyebeam residency.

Project: Untitled Paleontology Documentary

Logline: Dr. Alejandra Martinez-Melo, a Mexican immigrant and single mother, preserves ancient marine fossils at The Academy of Natural Sciences while raising her son, offering a powerful story of representation in STEM and the urgent fight to protect our planet’s past and future.

Portrait photograph of Kristal Sotomayor wearing a vibrant magenta wrap dress with puffed sleeves and a tie waist, standing outdoors against a softly blurred background. Kristal has long wavy dark hair with red highlights, wears dangling earrings, and smiles warmly at the camera. The image is set on a teal background with white frame borders. Text at the top reads '2025 EMERGING EDUCATIONAL FILMMAKER GRANT WINNER' in teal, with 'Kristal Sotomayor' labeled at the bottom. The Learning Times Foundation logo appears in the bottom right corner.


Kristal Sotomayor (DIRECTOR/PRODUCER) is an award-winning nonbinary Peruvian American director, producer, journalist and curator based in Philadelphia and Pittsburgh. Named one of “10 Latinx Filmmakers You Should Know About” by HipLatina, they are a 2023 DOC NYC Documentary New Leader Honoree and Rockwood Documentary Leadership Fellow. Their college thesis film To My Motherland streamed on Comcast Xfinity On Demand. Kristal’s short Latinx immigrant rights documentary Expanding Sanctuary won the Philadelphia Filmmaker Award at the 2024 BlackStar Film Festival and is distributed through OTV, Kanopy, and New Day Films. Their short experimental documentary Don’t Cry For Me All You Drag Queens won Best LGBTQ Documentary at the 2025 Poppy Jasper International Film Festival. Kristal’s debut narrative short film Las Cosas Que Brillan is a coming of age story about a Trans Latina mermaid and produced with support from BlackStar. They are in development on their debut feature documentary Untitled PARS Project about surveillance of immigrant communities, produced with support from the Sundance Film Institute. Kristal’s work has also been supported by the Outfest, If/Then, Points North Institute, MDOCS, DCTV, and NeXtDoc.