DIRECTOR HALEY GEFFEN
Haley Geffen is a six-time Emmy award-winning director and filmmaker, branded content specialist with a focus on sports, celebrities, and comedy. She is also co-founder of Coed Studios based in Brooklyn, NY.
Haley’s unique ability to supervise projects from inception through final mix largely appeals to agencies and brands. She’s directed multiple Super Bowl Opens and Olympic campaigns plus six different Sunday Night Football Opens. Most recently, Haley directed a Dove campaign centered around empowering women and self-love during the pandemic. She co-directed the 2021 NBA All-Star Game open featuring VP Kamala Harris and Michael B Jordan, as well as a series of Crest commercials for Proctor and Gamble. She also directed two long-form shows centered around the life and legacy of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg.
Haley’s directing work has been featured multiple times in Free the Work including the latest article on Motherhood and Directing.
Haley’s celebrity work includes Michael B Jordan, Kamala Harris, Jimmy Fallon, Lebron James, Tom Brady, Seth Meyers, Mark Wahlberg, Mandy Moore, Milo Ventimiglia, Kim & Khloe Kardashian, Alec Baldwin, Sean Combs, Jill Soloway, Dee Rees, Kobe Bryant, Jamie Foxx, John Legend, Drake, Usher, Alicia Keys, Bon Jovi and more.
Her clients include: P&G (Crest), Dove, Nike, Under Armour, Vanity Fair, Los Angeles Lakers, Hewlett-Packard, Volkswagen, Mercedes, Viacom, Comedy Central, NBC Universal, NBC Sports, NBC Olympics, Discovery Networks, Charter Communications, ESPN, Turner Sports, J. Walter Thompson, Facebook, Amazon Studios, HBO, Showtime.
Haley has two daughters and a husband. She keeps all of them in a small zoo in Brooklyn under the care of her dog Gizmo.
POET MELISSA LOZADA-OLIVA
Melissa Lozada-Oliva is a nationally-recognized writer & performer living in New York City. Her book peluda (Button Poetry 2017) explores the intersections of Latina identity, feminism, hair removal & what it means to belong.
She performs her poems in universities & venues across the country. She also does workshops on incorporating humor into poetry & general creative writing classes. She is the co-host of podcast Say More with Olivia Gatwood where they interview guests about things they are experts on.
Her work has been featured or is forthcoming in REMEZCLA, PAPER, The Guardian, BreakBeat Poets, Kenyon Review, Vulture, Bustle, Glamour Magazine, The Huffington Post, Muzzle Magazine, The Adroit Journal, and BBC Mundo!
DANCER KAILEY MCCRUDDEN
2014 Diamond Research Scholars Grant recipient, Kailey McCrudden received a BFA in dance from Temple University in May 2015, summa cum laude, performing in works by Andrea Miller and Larry Keigwin while there. Now a NYC based choreographer and dancer, Kailey's work has been performed at various venues in NYC, Philadelphia, New Jersey, and Atlanta.
Kailey is currently a community actionist dancer at Gibney Dance Center, in addition to dancing for Tyke Dance, Erick Montes/Danceable Projects, J Bouey Dance Projects, Mizantymoves, Designated Movement, Nikki and the Noise, among others. she also teaches contemporary forms at Gibney Dance Center.
Her work has been commissioned by Nacre Dance Company, Ballet Forte, and Periapsis Music and Dance. She has been an artist in residence at Wilson College, Bridge for Dance, and Nimbus Dance Works.