NBPT DOCU FEST
Festival
Judges
We are proud to introduce our 2026 Festival Judges
Erin Trahan
Erin is an arts journalist and documentary filmmaker. For the last two decades she has reported on independent film for outlets such as 90.9 WBUR and The Boston Globe. Her short documentary, “Dukakis: Recipe for Democracy” (co-directed by Jeff Schmidt), played film festivals throughout the U.S. and earned Best New England short honors from the Newburyport Documentary Film Festival. She has been teaching in Emerson College’s Journalism and Film, Television, and Media Arts departments since 2016 and is currently working on several new documentary projects.
Geoff Poister
Geoff is an award-winning documentary filmmaker and an Associate Professor at Boston University, where he teaches documentary production. After attending Berklee College of Music,he studied filmmaking at NYU and earned an M.S. in film and television and a Ph.D. in SocialScience from Syracuse University. He worked on television productions, including PBS’s NOVAseries, and developed documentaries for U.S. Public Televisionprior to becoming an independent producer/director. His most recent film, Sanctuary of Her, has screened internationally and won seven awards.
Margo Guernsey
Margo is an award-winning documentary director, producer, impact strategist, and founder of Time Travel Productions LLC. Her films include Councilwoman, No Time To Fail, The Philadelphia Eleven, and The Officials. A former union organizer, nonprofit leader, and Spanish-English translator, her work has been supported by organizations including ITVS, Chicken & Egg Pictures, Doc Society, the Ford Foundation, and the Democracy Fund. She holds degrees from Brown University, UMass Amherst, and the University of Miami, teaches producing at Emerson College, and is a member of the Documentary Producers Alliance and Global Impact Producers Alliance. Her honors include a 2026 Mass Cultural Council Creative Individuals Grant, Film Independent Fast Track, DOC NYC's Only in New York Pitch, and a Mass Cultural Council Artist Fellowship.
Tim O'Donnell
Tim co-founded Pixela Films and is an Emmy-nominated and award winning documentary filmmaker. His work has appeared on ESPN, NBC, PBS, OutsideTV, the Sundance Film Festival and events around the world. His films have garnered the Audience Award at the Independent Film Festival of Boston, Jury Prizes at the Phoenix Film Festival and Woods Hole Film festival, and IndieWire’s Project of the Month. His most recent film Not a War Story opened at #1 for all iTunes Documentaries and premiered at the Academy of Motion Pictures. HBO’s Mary Carillo said of Tim’s work, “The story is so beautiful, so lovingly told and so incredibly moving.” For more visit PixelaFilms.com
Ben Fundis
Ben is co-owner of The Screening Room in Newburyport, MA. He is also the editor, narrator and composer for the YouTube series Acorn To Arabella. Before moving to the north shore, Ben worked in post-production houses in Nashville and Boston on a wide range of programs on channels such as Discovery, The Food Network, and CMT. His documentary project Border Stories, screened internationally and has been used by hundreds of educators to accompany their classroom discussions. Ben has spent the past 25 years working throughout the industry but adores most the chance to host audiences, show movies, and make the popcorn.
Laura Azevedo
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Laura is the Executive Director of Filmmakers Collaborative and co-founder and current director of the Boston International Kids Film Festival. For more than 25 years, she has worked at the intersection of storytelling, education, and community, creating programs that support filmmakers and inspire young people to find their creative voices. Earlier in her career, Laura worked in production and post-production on nationally broadcast programs for WGBH, including NOVA, FETCH! with Ruff Ruffman, American Experience, and Antiques Roadshow. She is especially passionate about bringing people together through film and creating opportunities for the next generation of storytellers.