Announcing the 2024 Dear Producer Mentees

By Rebecca Green

“As you grow older, you will discover that you have two hands, one for helping yourself, the other for helping others.” – Audrey Hepburn

As part of the Dear Producer Award, each recipient (Jamie Gonçalves, Beth Levison, Leslie Norville, Laura Wagner), was asked to choose an emerging producer to mentor and to provide them with consistent and reliable mentorship for one year. This commitment to share their time and knowledge helps to create a structure of support for the next generation of producers and in turn, makes the independent film community stronger.  

I am thrilled to shine a light on the four talented producers who were chosen for this year’s mentorship program. Below you can read more about them and get a glimpse of why their mentor felt drawn to them for this opportunity.

DAWNE LANGFORD expanded her role to producing after years as a broadcast television editor in public media after her acceptance to the PBS Producers Academy in 2013. She shifted her focus to working on making independent feature documentaries, including CHECK IT, KANDAHAR JOURNALS, and FINDING JOSEPH I. Recently, she produced THE BODY POLITIC, which is scheduled to air nationally on POV/PBS in late 2024; WHO KILLED ALEX ODEH, currently in the late stages of editing; and YOU DON’T KNOW MY NAME, a project in production, recently supported by Catapult Film Fund. Previously, Dawne worked on projects for CNN Films, CGTN, Discovery Channel, and Moxie Pictures. She was a 2023 Sundance Producers Lab Fellow cohort member and the 2024 Sundance + Adobe Women to Watch Fellow. Her primary interest is amplifying traditionally suppressed narratives and presentations of historical events to deepen understanding, support learning, and stimulate community dialogue.

Why Leslie Norville chose Dawne as her Mentee… 
I have known Dawne for over 5 years and had the chance to work alongside her and it became clear that she is truly a rare gem. Dawne’s background in art and curation greatly influences her storytelling and contributes to her success in the field. What distinguishes her is not only her talent, but also her unwavering dedication to the welfare of her collaborators and subjects. In addition to her expertise, Dawne possesses the rare ability to handle film shoots effortlessly. She always brings a quick-witted sense of humor to any situation.
 

EMILY MCCANN LESSER is a producer born, raised, and based in New York City. Emily’s films have screened worldwide, premiered at prestige festivals including Sundance, TriBeCa, SXSW, and Outfest, and been distributed by HBO, Samuel Goldwyn Films, Orion Pictures, IFC Films, and more. She is committed to telling powerful and entertaining stories about underrepresented communities and working with diverse filmmakers. She has been selected to participate in the Gotham Week Project Market twice, once for US features in development, and once for US features in post, Film Independent’s Fast Track program, the Inside Out Film Finance Forum, and the Producer’s Guild Mentorship program. She attended the University of St Andrews in Scotland and The City College of New York. 

Why Laura Wagner chose Emily as her Mentee… 
Emily and I met while making an indie film in 2015, and since then I’ve had the pleasure of getting to know her as a friend and watching her grow as a producer, acquiring a broad range of experience and building her own slate of projects. She’s creative, resourceful, and driven by a deep curiosity. Emily has told me she’s wanted to be a producer since middle school, and despite gaining a clear understanding of the complications of producing, she has remained undaunted by obstacles and challenges, and she is relentless in her commitment to her projects. She is someone to watch! 
 

IVAN MACDONALD is an Emmy Award-winning filmmaker and an enrolled member of the Blackfeet tribe. His most recent project BRING THEM HOME  won the Big Sky Award at the 2024 Big Sky Documentary Film Festival. BRING THEM HOME is Executive Produced and narrated by Oscar-nominated actress Lily Gladstone. He was an inaugural fellow for the Netflix and Illuminative Producers fellowship and was an inaugural recipient of the Hulu and Firelight Kindling fund. Currently, he is the 2024 Mark Silverman honoree for Sundance’s Producing Lab. With his sister Ivy, he is also directing WHEN THEY WERE HERE, which is a feature-length documentary about the missing and murdered indigenous women and girls crisis told through the lens of their family and community. Sundance, ITVS, and IDA have supported his work. 

Why Jamie Gonçalves chose Ivan as his Mentee…
I have encountered Ivan’s work repeatedly and he’s always stood out as incredibly tenacious and kind. Ivan is a multi-faceted filmmaker, working between documentary and fiction, has a litany of repeat collaborators and is doing regionally specific work. I love that he’s genre agnostic, that he doesn’t have a classic film school background, and that he is both young in career and yet so active. His ability to figure it out in the indie space and hustle forward fills me with optimism and feels like a mirror to my younger self. What moves me the most, however, is his commitment to community. I’m beyond excited to spend the next year working with and learning from him. 
 

MARS VERRONE is a filmmaker and musician from Los Angeles, CA, now based in Brooklyn, NY. As a first-time producer, Mars produced the feature documentary UNION, (dir. Stephen Maing, Brett Story) which premiered at the 2024 Sundance Film Festival in the U.S. Documentary Competition and won a Special Jury Award for The Art of Change. In 2022, Mars directed and produced award-winning short documentary GOLDEN VOICE, which continues to be programmed at LGBTQ+ festivals and events across the globe. Mars is a Sundance Documentary Producers Fellow, NBC Original Voices Artist Mentor and Fellow, PGA Create Fellow, and Brown Girls Doc Mafia Sustainable Artist Fellow. Their work has been supported by Sundance Institute, Ford Foundation, Field of Vision, and the International Documentary Association, among others.

Why Beth Levison chose Mars as her Mentee…
Producer Mars Verrone and I started corresponding about a year ago. Immediately, I was struck by their smarts, confidence and maturity. Then, I saw UNION—an artful and powerful film that they produced—and after continued conversations, realized that Mars is one intuitive, creative, resourceful filmmaker and soul—and only at the beginning of developing their craft. Now, I’m looking forward to a year of mentor/mentee work with Mars and am excited to carry the mentor baton that my own mentors carried for me. Ultimately, I expect to learn as much from them as they glean from me, and I’m honored to have any kind of role in Mars’ promising, professional path forward!