NYFA
Faculty Directory

Faculty Directory

Paul Warner

Paul Warner is an award-winning director and educator, whose more than 50 productions span film, theater, and opera. He most recently directed the feature film, HAMLET/HORATIO, which premiered on Amazon in June 2021, and subsequently enjoyed limited theatrical release in 2022. HAMLET/HORATIO has been the recipient of 15 international festival awards. Prior to HAMLET/HORATIO, Warner directed a new musical, RIVER OF STONE by Drama Desk nominee Peter Melnick with book by Ty Defoe which premiered at the Jaffa Festival as well as Wendy Whelan of the New York City Ballet in the premiere of WOMEN: THE WAR WITHIN, a dance-opera by Pulitzer Prize-winning composer Du Yun and Obie-winning writer Matthew Maguire, which premiered at The Baryshnikov Arts Center. Film credits include the feature FALL TIME (Lionsgate) starring Mickey Rourke (nominated for The Grand Jury Prize in competition at Sundance), IN THE NAME OF THE FATHER (Sundance premiere), the disco movie musical, KAYA: TASTE OF PARADISE (lyrics and music by Anna K. Jacobs (Teeth) and book by Jerome Parker as well as David Michalek’s PORTRAITS IN DRAMATIC TIME, with Alan Rickman, William H. Macy, and Holly Hunter (Lincoln Center Festival premiere), for which he directed the actors and served as Executive Creative Consultant. Warner is a graduate of Harvard and The American Film Institute and the recipient of numerous honors including The Statue Award from the Princess Grace Foundation for sustained achievement in directing. He has served on the faculties of: NYU, SVA, and SUNY Purchase, amongst others. Currently, he is a senior instructor of Directing, Acting, and Producing at The New York Film Academy. Paulwarnerofficial.com

Matthew Webster

Matt Webster is a New York City based actor and writer. As an actor, Matt has been seen on Broadway, Off-Broadway, on National tours, and recently won Best Actor for his portrayal of Johnny Pope in A Hatful of Rain (BroadwayWorld.com). As a writer, Matt’s plays and musicals include: BACK; JAY AND THE CONTEST; ALEX FOX: AMERICAN HERO; and his original musical KINGDOM COME. With his frequent collaborator Taylor Ferrera, Matt has co-written several shows, including: a new 4 actor version of CINDERELLA; DEMOCRACY, DAY 1; COUNTY FAIR – A COUNTRY HITS MUSICAL; and PROPAGANDA! THE MUSICAL. Matt’s pilot script, BACK, won Best Pilot at the 2022 Santa Barbara International Film Fest. Matt received his BFA in Acting from West Virginia University where he was named the outstanding graduate from the College of Creative Arts. Matt is a founding member of the Magic Forest Theatre Company, and co-owner of the production company Propaganda Theatricals. Matt won the Johnny Mercer Award for Songwriting and currently works as the Creative Director for Broadway’s Andrew Lippa. www.TheOtherMattWebster.com

Neal Weisman

Neal Weisman is an award-winning film and television producer with over 25 years of international experience in Los Angeles, London, and New York. Producing credits include The Politician’s Wife (winner of BAFTA, International Emmy, and Peabody Awards), Seeing Red (winner of Christopher Award), and My Kingdom (World Premiere of Toronto International Film Festival), which starred Richard Harris in his last leading role. Let’s Talk About Sex, a documentary, was broadcast on TLC/Discovery, digital and DVD release through New Video. Neal was the Vice President of the Edward Pressman Film Corporation, which was responsible for producing films like Academy Award winners Wall Street (starred Michael Douglas, directed by Oliver Stone) and Reversal of Fortune (which won Jeremy Irons his Best Leading Actor Oscar starring opposite Glenn Close). Also Oliver Stone’s Talk Radio, Plenty, which starred Meryl Streep, Charles Burnett’s To Sleep With Anger, David Byrne’s True Stories, and Best Directing Oscar winner Kathryn Bigelow’s Blue Steel. He is a dual US/UK citizen and currently resides in New York City.

Thomas Werner

Thomas is the author of the books The Business of Fine Art Photography, Routledge, New York, and The Fashion Image for Bloomsbury Publishing, London. A creative consultant, Thomas works one on one with students, creatives, businesses, cultural institutions, and not for profits helping them refine their communications, and achieve their goals in fashion and fine arts. He is a contributor to Adobe’s Lightroom Academy, an Editor at Large for IRKmagazine, a Paris based fashion and culture magazine and website, founder of Thomas Werner Projects Podcast, the Global Editorial Director at Les Loupes des Steppes Publishing, and past Photography Program Director at Parsons School of Design in New York. Werner also led a team developing a media and literacy web site and resource center in five languages, Spanish, French, Russian, Arabic and English for the United Nations Alliance of Civilizations/UNESCO.

He is the former owner of Thomas Werner Gallery in Manhattan’s Chelsea Art District, and a former National Board member and NY Chapter President for the American Society of Media Photographers. He has worked with the United States Department of State on cultural projects in Russia, and been a photography consultant for COACH and Rodale Publishing, among others. Thomaswernerprojects.com @Thomaswernerprojects

Jonathan Whittaker Chair of Short Term Programs

Chair of Short-term Intensive Programs

Jonathan Whittaker is a partner and founding member of ManInHat, a New York-based production company. With over 15 years of experience in the film industry, having produced, directed, and lensed short films, music videos, live concerts, commercials, TV shows, features, docs and 3D specials, he is never one to shy away from a new challenge. Nissan, Sony Pictures, DirecTV, Gillette, Hyundai, and Sports Illustrated are just a few of his clients and collaborators. When he is not on set or in an edit you can usually find him at the head of a lecture hall sharing his thoughts on the art of cinematography and the director’s craft. In addition to being a resident professor at the New York Film Academy, he has also given guest lectures all over the globe.

Jessica Wolfson

Jessica Wolfson has directed and produced many critically-acclaimed documentary films and series. In recent years she produced “Sacred” (IDFA, DOC NYC, Tokyo International Film Festival); “Revenge of the Mekons” with Fred Armisen and Jonathan Franzen (“Top 10 films of 2014” by Village Voice); “A Girl and a Gun”; “Next Year Jerusalem” and “Crazy Sexy Cancer” (SXSW, aired on TLC and OWN). She has created award-winning media content for ESPN, MTV, Conde Nast, NYU, Canon and many nonprofit organizations. At IFC TV Original Programming, she developed and produced documentaries including “This Film is Not Yet Rated” by Kirby Dick (Sundance, SXSW, Seattle International Film Festival); “Wanderlust” by Academy Award nominees Bob Pulcini and Shari Springer Berman; “The Bridge” by Eric Steele; “Greg the Bunny”; and Emmy-nominated “Dinner for Five” with Jon Favreau. Jessica directed and produced Netflix’s award-winning and critically acclaimed “Radio Unnameable” (Cine Golden Eagle, Full Frame, Silver Docs, “Top 10 Films of 2012” by the New York Daily News). Jessica is a consulting producer and mentor for filmmakers through the IFP and Tribeca Film Institute, and is currently in production for Discovery Channel.

Wysandria Woolsey

Wysandria Woolsey originated the role of The Sugar Bowl in Disney’s Broadway production of “Beauty and the Beast,” and is featured on the cast recording and in the national commercial. She performed the role of Carlotta in the Broadway production of “The Phantom of the Opera” and was in “Parade at Lincoln Center,” both directed by Hal Prince. Other original Broadway shows include: “Aspects of Love” and “Chess,” both directed by Trevor Nunn. In Europe she was Grizabella in the Austrian production of “Cats,” and has performed in numerous national tours including “Whistle Down The Wind” (dir. Hal Prince), “Zorba” with Anthony Quinn (dir. Joel Grey), “On the 20th Century” as understudy to Imogene Coca, and “Song and Dance” as stand-by to Melissa Manchester. She was a featured soloist in “The Music of Andrew Lloyd Weber” (dir. Arlene Phillips). Other regional and stock credits include: “City of Angels,” “Blood Brothers,” “A Chorus Line” and “Street Scene.” She has also appeared as a soloist with the Cleveland Pops Orchestra in both Cleveland and Breckenridge Colorado, and was featured in the Lincoln Center Tribute to Alan Jay Lerner and at in a “Tribute to Stephen Sondheim” at the Brooklyn Academy of Music.

Nicholas Yellen

Nick founded NYCA, a Manhattan based literary agency representing screenwriters, directors, playwrights, TV writers, and novelists where he has set up projects at almost every major studio and TV network.

Nick co-founded Edwards-Yellen Entertainment (EYE), a literary management/film and television production company based in Los Angeles. While with EYE, the company had a 2-picture production deal with ABC-Productions. He produced I Know What You Did with Rosanna Arquette, the VH1 TV movie Out of Sync, Retribution for the SAT1 cable network, and the feature If Tomorrow Comes with James Franco. EYE also had development deals with many of the major networks and studios including ABC, Hearst Entertainment, VH1, Phoenix Pictures, Edward R. Pressman, Warner Bros., Alan Landsberg Productions, The Wolper Organization, Lifetime Network, All Girl Productions, and Wilshire Court among others. Nick also worked on the movie Intent for Columbia/Tri-Star.

Theatrically, Nick helped produce the musicals Lucky in the Rain, for the Goodspeed Opera House and Say Yes at the Berkshire Theatre Festival. Nick started his career in film and television at International Creative Management (ICM), then the world’s largest talent agency. After leaving ICM, Nick managed the Geffen Records recording artist Graveyard Train. Nick began his career as an FM-Radio disc jockey in Saratoga, NY and San Antonio, TX.

Andrew Young

Andrew Young is an award-winning filmmaker, photographer, and professor based in New York City. His visual and lighting work has been featured in film festivals all over the world: from New York, Seoul, Edinburgh, and Cannes. Andrew loves hitting the campaign trail, having filmed and photographed progressive candidates like Senator Elizabeth Warren and former Congressman Joe Kennedy.

Andrew has an MFA in Cinematography from Boston University, and is now thrilled to be teaching film, photography, and visual storytelling at NYFA and SUNY WCC.

His creative work centers around the concept of magical realism, or finding meaning and magic in mundane things.

Joey Zangardi-Dixon

JOEY ZANGARDI-DIXON is the Director of Musical Theatre Recruitment at the New York Film Academy (NYFA) and has been in the entertainment industry for decades. He has worked in Casting for MTV, FOX, Nickelodeon, and NBC, as well as an Agent, Director, Teacher, and Performer. He now uses his industry experience to scout talent, teach workshops, and adjudicate acting and musical theatre auditions around the globe. Regional Performance Credits include: Les Miserables, The Wizard of Oz, Mame, 1776, Make Me a Song, On the Town, Follies, The Immigrant, and The Who’s Tommy. NYC Casting Credits include: VH1 / Vogue Fashion Awards, Say What Karaoke, Nickelodeon Live, Jail Bait, and MTV 2 Large. Joey has been fortunate to work on projects featuring celebrities, such as Madonna, Celine Dion, Britney Spears, Kelly Clarkson, Justin Timberlake, Christina Aguilera, Gwen Stefani and Jay-Z.

Tina Zaremba

Tina Zaremba is a professional voice over actor. Based in New York City, she brings fifteen plus years of experience and has lent her voice to hundreds of commercials, promos, and corporate videos that include clients such as: BNY Mellon, Tide Plus Bleach, Airwick, Pantene, Blue Cross Blue Shield and the United Way.

In addition to working as a voice-over talent, Tina works with artists 1:1 as well as in workshops helping them create a blue print to developing a career in entertainment/new media as a soloprenuer.

She also teaches voice overs at New York Film Academy in NYC.

Tina studied theater at Western Michigan as well as The Lee Strasberg Theatre Institute where she was a recipient of the Sidney Kingsley scholarship.

When Tina isn’t providing her voice to various voice over work, you can find her venturing around Harlem with her husband; son and French Bulldog Jojo.

To learn more about Tina go to http://www.tinazaremba.com

Joshua Zecher-Ross

JOSHUA ZECHER-ROSS has worked on over 100 productions in New York and around North America as a music director, supervisor, conductor, arranger, and electronic music designer, and has been a music director and accompanist at PCMT @ NYFA since 2014. Broadway: Be More Chill (conductor sub). Off-Broadway: Sweetee (music director/conductor), Broadway Bounty Hunter (rehearsal pianist). Recently: The Louder We Get directed by Lonny Price at Theatre Calgary. Other NY credits include songs in Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade, and many shows at clubs and venues around NYC. Other regional credits include Barrington Stage Company, Repertory Theatre of St. Louis, George Street Playhouse, Florida Studio Theatre, Sharon Playhouse, The Village Theatre in Seattle, WA, and The Little Theatre on the Square in Sullivan, Illinois. Joshua is also a musical theatre instructor at Actor Therapy, and he holds a Bachelor of music in vocal performance from the Steinhardt School at New York University. www.joshuazr.com @joshuazr1311

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