The Color of Film Collaborative is a non-profit organization that supports and fosters the individuals and organizations in the creation of diverse images of people of color in film, video, theater and other media, by providing artists with opportunities to exhibit, distribute and find funding for their work, as well as provide a supportive environment where they can share and develop their ideas, their vision and their work with their peers.
Lisa Simmons, President
With a background in film and video production, Ms. Simmons has for the past 6 years run an independent film company focusing on historic and contemporary multicultural video production. In addition, Ms. Simmons is the founder and president of, The Color of Film Collaborative, Inc. (TCOF), an organization of actors, producers, directors and others with an interest in creating and supporting positive images of people of color in film, theater, and other media. The Color of Film Collaborative co-produces the Roxbury Film Festival, a festival that celebrates the vision and the voice of independent filmmakers of color as well as the Kay Bourne Arts Report a multicultural arts newsletter.
Colette Greenstein, Publicist for RIFF and TCOF
Delilah DaSilva, Adminstrative Support RIFF and TCOF
Terri Brown, Program Director – Roxbury International Film Festival
Terri Brown has worked as an Arts Administrator in the Boston community for the past ten years. Being raised by two artists, Terri spent her entire life exposed to the arts. After acquiring a degree in Economics and working in non-profit finance for 10 years, she began her career in the arts at the Boston Center for the Arts. She then moved into the role of Program Manager at ACT Roxbury and currently working as the Programmer for the Color of Film Collaborative on the 12thAnnual Roxbury Film Festival. In addition to programming for the Roxbury Film Festival for the past, her experience has also been producing local theatre, fashion shows, music events and local fundraisers. In addition to her work as an Arts Administrator, Terri serves on many boards and committees, primarily focused on the arts. Terri is a true champion for the arts and has a sincere love of artists
Kay Bourne, Editor, Chief Writer for the Kay Bourne Arts Report
A journalist and educator, Kay Bourne is currently an adjunct scholar at Northeastern University doing research for a book on the black presence in the arts in Boston over the centuries. She also writes on the contemporary arts scene for “The Color of Film Collaborative Presents The Kay Bourne Arts Report,” a news letter distributed via email. With COFC founding director, publisher Lisa Simmons, she developed an oral history of Lower Roxbury based largely on the memories of 94-year-old resident Jimmy Guilford.
A board member of the Independent Reviewers of New England (IRNE), she gives a money prize to theaters which have promoted the careers of African American artists and emphasized humanistic values at the IRNE’s annual awards night. She also awards a grant at the annual Roxbury Film Festival to the Emerging Film-maker who shoots a film in Roxbury. She was the arts editor for 40 years for the “Bay State Banner,” from which she is retired.
Kay served on the very first Massachusetts Commission on the Status of Women under Gov. Frank Sargent where her specialty was the status of women in law enforcement and in trouble with the law. Later on she founded and ran the school at the Suffolk County House of Correction. She has taught in public high schools and store front agencies. She was the Dept. of Transitional Assistance’s education coordinator and its liaison to the Dept. of Education. She has a master’s in education from Harvard University.
A recipient of the Melnea A. Cass Award, she was an NEH journalism fellow at Fletcher School of Law & Diplomacy. She is listed in various editions of Who’s Who. She is a life member of the NAACP and served on its board in the years of Tom Atkins leadership when school busing was launched in Boston. She currently serves on the advisory board of EdgeBoston, an on-line publication for gay readers and others. She is widowed with two children and two grandchildren.
Robin Saunders, editor for the Kay Bourne Arts Report
Robin Saunders is an independent producer and urban events and theater consultant in the Boston area for over 20 years. She produces a Caribbean & African American cultural program on Boston Neighborhood Network, which airs weekly, for the past 11 years. She produces and edits video projects for corporations and non-profits. “Sustainable Homeownership” and “Norma F. Moseley – Homeowners’ Hero” are two documentaries produced for the non-profit ESAC. One is used to inform clients and raise awareness of their Lead Paint Abatement Program and Senior Homeowners’ Home Repairs program. The other honors the lifetime commitment of Ms. Moseley, nationally recognized as a trailblazer and advocate for homeowners’ rights and social justice issues, and is used to raise funds for the Norma Moseley Endowment Fund.
Robin received a Master of Science in Philanthropy and Media from Suffolk University’s Visionaries program, and Bachelor of Science in Business Administration from Northeastern University.
In addition to Robin’s video producing, she has served as Vice President of Finance for Solomon Industries, Inc. At Reebok International, Ltd., she served as Visual Merchandising Coordinator for U.S. Operations and Executive Assistant in the Event Marketing Department.
About This Website
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The Color of Film Collaborative
In collaboration with The Haley House Bakery Café, the Color of Film Collaborative presents our ongoing film series, featuring independent cinema and delicious food. 