Independent Filmmakers Unite to Create Their Own NYC Showcase After Withdrawing from Festival

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact: Felicia Greenfield

Phone: 917.974.2676

Email: Felicia@FeliciaGreenfield.com

Company: Right Pit Productions

Website: FriendsNotFoodtheFilm.com

Independent Filmmakers Unite to Create Their Own NYC Showcase After Withdrawing from Festival

A Filmmaker-Led Model for How Independent Work Can Reach the Screen

NEW YORK, NY — January 20, 2026 — A group of international independent filmmakers have launched

their own screening event in New York City, The Network NYC: A Filmmaker-Led Television Showcase,

after withdrawing from participation in a previously accepted NYC film festival due to undisclosed

post-acceptance changes.

The filmmakers were initially told their projects would screen live at the SVA Theatre on January 21 and 22,

but on January 2, just 19 days before the event, they received an email stating that films would be removed

from the live program and shifted to online-only unless each filmmaker sold upwards of 30 tickets, a

requirement that had not been disclosed at acceptance. A separate error by the festival organizer, a

mass email sent without blind copy, unexpectedly connected the filmmakers.

Rather than disengage or proceed individually, the group chose to move forward together. Planning began

with a group call on January 4, and in less than three weeks the filmmakers organized and self-funded a

two-night showcase featuring 12 independently produced television pilots, along with a reception and

networking event. “This wasn’t about making noise for the sake of it,” said Chris Jaddalah of Calliope Films.

“Once we started talking to each other, it was clear silence was the expectation. We chose to build something better

together.”

The Network NYC will take place January 21 and 22 at the SVA Theatre from 6:00 p.m. to 11:00 p.m. each

evening. The organizing process has been filmed and will continue to be recorded as part of a forthcoming

documentary examining transparency, power, and collective action in independent film culture.

The Network NYC stands as both a celebration of independent television and a testament to what artists

can accomplish when collaboration replaces silence and integrity replaces intimidation.

Event: The Network NYC: A Filmmaker-Led Television Showcase

Dates: January 21 & 22, 2026, 6:00 p.m.

Venue: SVA Theatre

333 West 23rd Street, New York, NY 10011

The SVA Theatre is a professional cinema located in Manhattan’s Chelsea neighborhood and is operated by the

School of Visual Arts.

The Network NYC: A Filmmaker-Led Television Showcase Participants

Chris Jadallah

Kitty get a Job

Sketch Comedy Pilot

Kyle More & Nino Mancuso

Fatal Konflict:Behind the Blood

Hybrid Animated Comedy

Felicia Greenfield

Friends Not Food

Sitcom Pilot

Glen Evelyn

Our Family Pride

LGBTQ Comedy/Drama

Hayden Roper

The Independent Newspaper Company

Sitcom

Janet Torreano Pound

Motor City Casting

Sitcom Pilot

Allie Del Franco

Witch City

Comedy TV Pilot

Janet Torreano Pound

Home Again

Drama

Julia Wackenheim

Ethel & Ernie

Comedy Sitcom Pilot

Max Reinhardsen

Sports Talk Right Now!

Comedy Talk Show Pilot

Patrick Sheehan

The Scott & Jeff Show w/ Doug & Kip

Sketch Comedy

Pola Rapaport

PANORAMIC VIEW: Portrait of Artist Francine

Tint

Documentary Short

Timothy Kukucka

Hazel

Sci Fi/Drama

Yolanda Brown Melian

Los Aspirantes (The Applicants)

Comedy TV Pilot

XXX

• Email: fgreenfield@gmail.com
• Website: https://www.friendsnotfoodthefilm.com/
• Company: Right Pit Productions
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• Name: Felicia Greenfield
• Phone No: 9179742676
• Address: 167 East 61st St
• City: New York
• State: NY
• Country: United States

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