Direct to TV

A visionary storyteller from Detroit, multiple award-winning director Christine Swanson earned her MFA in Film from New York University’s Tisch School of the Arts. Christine also earned a Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of Notre Dame double majoring in Communications and Japanese. Christine’s movie directing credits include the network and cable television records breaking The Clark Sisters: The First Ladies of Gospel, starring Aunjanue Ellis. The film won “Best TV Movie” from the African American Film Critics Association and the Satellite TV Award for “Best Television Movie.” The film was nominated for five NAACP Image Awards including “Outstanding Directing in a Television Motion Picture” for Christine and a Critics’ Choice Awards Nomination for “Best Television Movie.” Christine has also directed All About You, All About Us, To Hell and Back, Love Under New Management: The Miki Howard Story (which broke network ratings as the most watched original movie in the network’s history), and For the the Love of Ruth, for which Christine earned an NAACP Image Award nomination for “Outstanding Directing in a Television Motion Picture.” In addition to writing the above movies, Christine was a screenwriter for Woman Thou Art Loosed. Christine’s television directing credits include episodes of Chicago P.D., FBI, P-Valley, MacGyver, All American, Roswell, New Mexico, and Homecoming. Christine resides in LA with her husband and four amazing children.

Lily Parrish-Kruger is Director of Current Programming at Sony Pictures Television. She started her career at Creative Artists Agency and has since had the opportunity to hone her television skills at Sony. She has worked on notable titles like Goosebumps and The Afterparty and is currently working on two new series, Doc and Long Bright River. Lily is dedicated to advancing Sony‘s writer and director programs and is committed to discovering emerging talent. She is passionate about collaborating with talented creators and filmmakers to bring their visions to life. Originally from Nashville, she now lives in Los Angeles with her husband, dog, and two cats.

Shari Page is the Program Director for Half Initiative, launched by Ryan Murphy aiming to make Hollywood more inclusive by creating equal opportunities for women, BIPOC, and LGBTQ+ people behind the camera. She oversees the selection and facilitation of mentees for the Director Shadowing Program and PA Intensive across all of Ryan Murphy’s shows. Prior to Half, Shari worked at Film Independent as the Senior Program Manager for Global Media Makers, a mentorship and cultural exchange program in partnership with the U.S. Department of State’s Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs, designed to foster relationships between American and International filmmakers. She consulted for Annapurna Pictures in their effort to build mentorship programs to serve underrepresented filmmakers and support The Vidiots Foundation by writing grants and producing fundraising events that included VR events in collaboration with Chris Milk (Withn). Previously Shari also worked with Outfest – facilitating the Screenwriting Lab, panels, networking events and is most proud to have created and launched OutSet: The Young Filmmakers Project from Outfest Film Festival and The LA LGBT Center, an annual year long film lab in LA for LGBTQ+ youth. She got her start in Hollywood working for five years with award-winning casting director, Felicia Fasano, notably on the Golden Globe winning series, Californication for Showtime. Originally from Chicago, Shari grew up playing basketball and softball, always the recipient of the Most Improved Player award, never the MVP, which taught her perseverance and to continue cultivating your gifts. She holds a Bachelor’s in Education from Southern Illinois University, previously taught middle school and coached basketball in Chicago for 6 years and holds an MFA in Film from Columbia College Chicago. On the weekends you can find Shari and her wife at the beach with their 4 year old twins.

Will Schnabel is a Manager on the WBD Access Team. In this role he runs US scripted pipeline programs and helps facilitate submissions processes for the various pipeline programs. Before working at WBD, Will was an Associate of Talent Development for NBCUniversal, encompassing television, film and streaming. In that role he worked closely on several NBC pipeline programs focused on discovering and developing writers, comedians, directors, and below-the-line talent. Earlier in his career, Will worked for the Indiana Pacers before transitioning to Los Angeles as an NBC Page. Will holds a BS in Communication and Theatre from the University of Indianapolis. Now based in Indianapolis, Will enjoys spending time with his wife & toddler, watching/playing tennis, and traveling.

Yasmin Dunn was named Vice President of Diversity in August 2022. She reports to Tiffany Smith-Anoa’i, EVP of Diversity and Inclusion, Entertainment, West Coast. In her role Dunn oversees three diversity programs: Writers Mentoring Program Directing Initiative, and the ViewFinder Program for Emerging Directors. Dunn works closely with the Current and Development teams at CBS Studios, CBS Network, Paramount Television Studios, and MTV Entertainment Studios to provide access and opportunity to directors and writers from underrepresented populations. She also works across Paramount Global on issues of diversity, equity, and inclusion in content creation and production. Prior to joining Paramount Global, Dunn was Director of Education and Outreach at the Hollywood Commission, where she oversaw the creation of training programs across the industry. Dunn partnered with major studios, unions, guilds, and agencies to pilot and develop bystander training, harassment prevention, and unconscious bias trainings. Under the guidance of Anita Hill, Kathleen Kennedy, and Nina Shaw, Dunn helped to create the first ever industry-wide survey to measure workplace culture and instances of harassment and bias. Dunn also contributed to the reports that analyzed the data and advised on recommendations for the industry to address cultures of harassment and inequality. A graduate of Loyola Marymount University and a native Angeleno, Dunn has spent her career focusing on issues of equity and access. Dunn served on the on the Board of Directors for Peace Over Violence, a rape crisis and domestic violence advocacy center that serves Los Angeles and the San Gabriel Valley. She has volunteered for California CASA, the court appointed special advocacy program for children, Burbank Arts and Education Foundation, and Ventura Community College Scholarship Foundation.