The Bridge: From Oregon to Industry
We are thrilled to announce the inaugural cohort for the Oregon Independent Producing Intensive, a landmark partnership between Sundance Collab, Portland Events & Film, and Oregon Film.
This select group of Oregon-based writers, directors, and producers was chosen for their distinct creative voices, original projects, and dedication to building sustainable careers within the independent film landscape.
A Path to Sustainable Storytelling
Through a dynamic hybrid curriculum of live online sessions on Sundance Collab and in-person programming in Portland, participants will dive deep into the essential pillars of the craft. The intensive offers expert guidance on:
- Business and Legal: Financing, legal affairs, and packaging.
- Strategy: Pitching, festival circuits, and distribution.
- Impact: Marketing, impact producing, and audience engagement.
Beyond the classroom, each filmmaker will receive one-on-one mentorship specifically tailored to the unique needs of their current project. We are proud to champion these artists as they sharpen their professional skills and cultivate a more robust, connected filmmaking community in Oregon.
Meet the inaugural participants below.
2026 Participants
Jacy A Mairs
Jacy Mairs is a multifaceted artist from Southern Oregon. Throughout her career, she has worked on an array of narrative features for Amazon and A24 before going independent to write, produce, and direct her debut feature, TRASH BABY. The script was named an Academy Nicholl Semi-Finalist, and the film celebrated its world premiere at SXSW in 2025. TRASH BABY has since won multiple festivals, taking home an Industry Choice Award, Audience Choice Award, Best Actress Award, and four Best Narrative Feature wins. She is currently seeking financing for her sophomore film, SWEET BOY.
Jared Leaf
Jared Leaf is a Bay Area born, award-winning writer & director based in Portland, Oregon. He directed Season 2 of CHURCHY for BET and developed his short film SPILLED MILK through Jordan Peele's No Drama Initiative. He's currently developing 37U, a half-hour comedy set in the world of semi-pro football.
Erika Bolstad
Erika Bolstad is a documentary director and the author of Windfall. As a journalist in Washington, D.C., she was a 2008 Pulitzer Prize finalist for breaking news. Her first short documentary, To Be Rich, was supported by Anonymous Was a Woman. Her current documentary explores Portland's reckoning with its toppled monuments to westward expansion.
Ime N. Etuk
Ime N. Etuk is a Portland-based, Nigerian-American filmmaker and founder of Lion Speaks, a nonprofit empowering filmmakers of color. His feature films explore themes of identity, belonging, and resilience — most recently Outdoor School and The Bride Price.
Desdemona Chiang
Desdemona Chiang is a Taiwan-born director and writer for theatre, film, and TV, focusing on stories about intergenerational immigrant experiences. Her credits include the Sundance Episodic Intensive, Film Independent Episodic lab, AFI DWW+, Women In Film Fellowship, Alliance of Women Directors, and Rideback Rise Circle. MFA: University of Washington.
Julia Morizawa
Julia Morizawa (she/her) is a Portland-based, Japanese American, middle-aged (yep, that’s right) writer/producer/actor with over 20 years of experience in film, television, new media, theater, and fiction podcasting. She is also a freelance script analyst, the Short Film Fund Manager at Shore Scripts, and the proud mom of two tiny superheroes.
Alina Diaz
Alina Diaz is a filmmaker who grew up across China, Russia, and Texas. Her work interrogates systems of belief and media manipulation. Alina's short film Camp Omega will be premiering this year.
Masami Kawai
Masami Kawai is a Los Angeles-born filmmaker who lives in Eugene, Oregon. She's of Ryukyuan descent from the island of Amami. Kawai's films have screened at venues including the Rotterdam Film Festival, LACMA, and Indie Memphis. She was a fellow at the Sundance Directing and Screenwriting Labs.
Olivia Accardo
Olivia Accardo is a writer/director based on the Southern Oregon Coast whose work is rooted in place, ritual, and rural American life. Her short Baby Tooth screened at 40+ festivals, including Tribeca. She's developing her debut feature film Cranberry Heaven, set in Bandon, Oregon.
Karina Lomelin Ripper
Karina Lomelin Ripper is a Mexican-American writer and director whose films focus on the rebels, misfits, and rule-breakers. She was selected for AFI’s DWW+ class of 2025, is a 2025 Princess Grace Honoraria recipient, a 2025 Spark Award recipient, and a 2026 Latino Film Institute’s Inclusion Fellow.
Mason Diaz
Mason Diaz is a former evangelical exploring themes of religious extremism and the occult. He co-directed the short film Camp Omega with his wife Alina and their first feature is a Final Draft Big Break quarter finalist.
Katie Prentiss
Katie Prentiss unexpectedly became an award-winning filmmaker and actor following the loss of her mom to frontotemporal dementia (FTD). She likes to say "grief doesn't get the final word" and her career is proof. Her debut feature, Wake Up Maggie, is currently in post-production.