Graduate Affiliates

MJ is a multi-generational Deaf and queer filmmaker that graduated from Rochester Institute of Technology in 2013 with a BFA in Film. She is currently in the Radio/Television/Film MFA Film Production program at the University of Texas in Austin. She worked with the award-winning Motion Light Lab housed at Gallaudet University as their production specialist, and is the Media Director for Copper & Water, where she collaborates on video projects for the Deaf community.

An avid cinematographer, she is licensed to film underwater with the PADI underwater videography certification. She also loves filming with 8, 16, and 35mm film.
 
She has directed and produced over 10 short films that have been submitted to various international film festivals. The Pastman, starring Sandra Mae Frank (New Amsterdam and Daybreak) and Russell Harvard (There Will Be Blood) was selected for 10 different film festivals, including “Other Worlds Austin,” and it won best Actress at the Shanghai International Deaf Film Festival and Clin d’Oeil Festival in France. Dimensions, a motion-capture short co-directed by MJ, was selected for 7 film festivals and won best 3D Animation at Clin d’Oeil.
 
MJ wants to share amazing stories from the Deaf community created by talented Deaf individuals with the rest of the world.

Monika Jane Browatzki, aka MJ Watz, grew up between the saguaros of Arizona and the redwoods of Northern California. She tells stories using magical realism and horror.

Monika earned her Bachelor of Arts in Film Production with a concentration in Cinematography and a Theater minor from UCLA's School of Theater, Film & Television. She studied sketch writing at Upright Citizens Brigade, where she wrote the short films: "Nite Terrors" and "Zara Bagan's Ghost Experiences."

Her previous directing work includes the sketch comedy short "Datch" produced by Funny or Die, 12 music videos - ranging from folk to hip-hop, PSAs for organizations such as UCLA's Healthy Campus Initiative, and the surreal found-footage thriller "Devil's Claw". Monika has also directed theatrical productions of "The Vagina Monologues," a fundraiser; "Murder in the Key of G," a murder mystery dinner; and "Bloody Awful," a double feature for the Hollywood Fringe Festival.

Her first feature "Leash Leader", which she wrote, produced, directed, and self-distributed, was selected for festivals including Straight Jacket Guerilla Filmmaking, Poor Life Choices Comedy Film Festival, and Tucson Terrorfest. In 2021, her documentary, "Hans Ulrich Browatzki Immigrates to America'', won Best Documentary in the LACC Cinema & Television Awards.

Jay is a MFA Film Production Candidate at the University of Texas at Austin. Jay found his way to Texas by way of Kentucky where he completed a double major in Acting/Directing at Western Kentucky University. After 10 years of performing/developing theater in New York City, Jay became interested in filmmaking. His first short film (For Hope) was his gateway to a new career. Since then, Jay has helmed 4 short films with two in pre-production. Jay works diligently as a TA for UT and where he excels in pre-production and development work. More information about his film can be found at Jwilliamthomas.com 

Cristina Pablos is an undergraduate student at the University of Texas. She is a senior majoring in Economics and minoring in Media and Entertainment Industries. She recently returned to Austin from Los Angeles after completing the UTLA program in the fall of 2022. Post-graduation, Cristina will pursue a law degree with the goal of specializing in music law to support musicians and their career objectives. In her free time, she enjoys exploring Austin’s vast live music scene and checking out local vinyl record shops.  

Experienced sport media professional passionate about brand management, marketing insights and leveraging sport as a catalyst to build communities and foster important values.

Current MBA Student, and most recent experience was at Back on My Feet, an organization that uses running, as well as health and wellness to aid house-less individuals.

Born and raised in Washington state, Annie Ward graduated from Western Washington University, with a BA in Literature and Philosophy in 2019. She has since shifted her study towards new media technologies, focusing specifically on the ways in which digital media changes how we tell stories and interact with our selves. She enjoys research and writing, and is interested in exploring the types of jobs that are available within different media industries.

Nandini is a marketing professional based out of Mumbai. Until recently she was heading the Brand and Marketing Department of Indian gourmet superfood start-up Pink Harvest Farms; having started work with the company while it was first making its shift to a B2C market, helping it grow from a hyperlocal business to a national brand. Before this she has been a brand strategy and design consultant, a copywriter, a creative director and holds a law degree from the University of Mumbai having worked with Disney India while specializing in intellectual property rights. She hopes to expand her knowledge of marketing, consulting through the MBA at McCombs, while expanding her knowledge of the media and entertainment industries through the affiliateship with CEMI.

Kellen Sharp is a first-year MA in the Radio-Television-Film department studying Media Studies. He is a Wisconsin native and recent graduate from the University of Wisconsin -Madison, where he earned a BA in Communication Arts: Radio, TV, Film and minored in Digital Studies. Kellen is passionate about media’s ability to connect communities and cultivate identities.

Laurel is a third-year PhD student and Assistant Instructor in the Radio-Television-Film Department. Her interests sit at the intersections of fandom, fan studies, and nostalgia, particularly the sites where fans, creators, and industry collide. She is interested in the “reboot culture” boom of recent adaptations, remakes, reboots, and new franchise entries, and how nostalgia factors into the production, marketing, and reception of these media texts.Her other research interests include online platforms, science fiction, and superheroes.

Caleb is an MBA candidate at the McCombs School of Business at UT Austin focusing on Strategy, Brand Management and Marketing. Prior to McCombs, he received his undergraduate degree in Supply Chain Management and a minor in Communications and Media Studies from Texas A&M University. After graduating, he worked in various supply chain roles across multiple industries focusing on creating tools to streamline processes for customers and internal stakeholders.

Outside of work, he worked on several entrepreneurial ventures and passion projects in the media space. He co-founded a networking and media entity to connect African Diaspora, called BunaTime, and was able to market and grow the social media presence to over 100k followers in one year across all platforms. He also started a music label to release and produce music for myself and other artists. Amazingly, the music created has garnered millions of views on YouTube and other music platforms, played on multiple television programs around the world (including MTV, Mnet [South Korea], and CityTV [Canada]), and has allowed him to perform several shows and festivals from SXSW here in Austin to Tokyo. His early success in the music industry has also given him the opportunity of being a Voting Member for the Recording Academy (Grammy Awards), his childhood dream.