Saturday, November 12, 2022
2 p.m. – 3 p.m.
Register here. Limited to 25 students.
Students interested in a career in filmmaking are invited to meet with producer Joseph Patel and director Ahmir “Questlove” Thompson for a Q&A session.
Joseph Patel is an award-winning producer, director, and writer on documentaries and short films. He recently produced the feature documentary SUMMER OF SOUL (…OR, WHEN THE REVOLUTION COULD NOT BE TELEVISED), directed by Ahmir “Questlove” Thompson, winner of the Academy Award for Best Documentary Feature.
Patel began his career as a music and culture journalist. He produced and directed television and digital content for MTV News & Docs and Vice Media and later served as Creative Director at The Fader and Vevo. Patel is directing an upcoming documentary based on the best-selling book Contact High: A Visual History of Hip-Hop.
The John F. Kennedy Jr. Initiative for Documentary Film and Social Progress
Student Events
Academy Award-winning filmmaker, drummer, DJ, producer, director, culinary entrepreneur, New York Times best-selling author, and member of The Roots – Ahmir “Questlove” Thompson, is the unmistakable heartbeat of Philadelphia’s most influential hip-hop group. He is the Musical Director for The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon, where his beloved Roots crew serves as house band. Beyond that, this 6-time GRAMMY Award winning musician's indisputable reputation has landed him musical directing positions with everyone from D'Angelo to Jay-Z.
In 2021, Questlove made his directorial debut with the Academy Award winning feature documentary Summer of Soul, which explores the legendary 1969 Harlem Cultural Festival. The movie broke the record for the highest selling documentary to come out of Sundance when it was acquired by Searchlight/Hulu and it has since gone on to win “Best Feature Documentary” at the 2022 Academy Awards, “Best Documentary” at the 2022 British Academy Film Awards and “Best Music Film” at the 2022 Grammy Awards.
