Ira Deutchman, President
Ira Deutchman has been making, marketing and distributing films since 1975, having worked on over 150 films including some of the most successful independent films of all time. He was one of the founders of Cinecom and later created Fine Line Features—two companies that were created from scratch and, in their respective times, helped define the independent film business. He was also a co-founder of Emerging Pictures, the first digital projection network in the United States and a pioneer in delivering live cultural events into movie theaters.
Currently Deutchman is an independent producer and a consultant in marketing and distribution of independent films. He is also Emeritus Professor in the School of the Arts at Columbia University, where he was the Chair of the Film Program from 2011-2015.
His current projects include serving as producer of Nickel & Dimed, based on the book by Barbara Ehrenreich and directed by Debra Granik (in pre-production); director/producer of the feature documentary Searching for Mr. Rugoff (currently available on the Criterion Channel and on various pay-per-view platforms); producer of the stage adaptation of Joan Micklin Silver’s Hester Street (recently opened on Washington DC); and executive producer of the mini-series based on the novel Radio Girls by Sarah-Jane Stratford (in development).
In 2017, Deutchman was awarded the Spotlight Lifetime Achievement Award by the Sundance Art House Convergence for his service to independent film marketing and distribution. Deutchman was awarded the Honorary Trailblazer Award at the 2024 Woodstock Film Festival.
Adeline Monzier, Vice President
Adeline Monzier, a Harlem resident, is currently a guest programmer at Metrograph downtown and the founder of the Harlem film series Uptown Flicks. She also organizes the year-round student screenings at Film at Lincoln Center and collaborates with Rosalie Varda and Ciné-Tamaris on an educational project centered around Agnès Varda’s The Gleaners and I. From 2013 to 2024, she served as the U.S. representative of Unifrance, promoting French cinema abroad, and oversaw the Rendez-Vous with French Cinema festival in partnership with Film at Lincoln Center.
After earning a Masters degree in Culture and Media Management from Sciences Po Paris and a Master’s in Contemporary German Studies from the Ecole Normale Supérieure d’Ulm, Monzier joined DIRE, a French syndicate of independent distributors, in 2005. She founded Europa Distribution in 2007, a network of 130 independent distributors from 26 European countries, which she managed until 2013.
Monzier also launched and ran the filmmakers’ program “US-in-Progress” from 2011 to 2016, connecting American independent films at rough-cut stages with European buyers and post-production funds. As a producer, through her company Black Rabbit Film, she produced her first short film, L’Héritage by Michaël Terraz, which was selected by 40 international festivals and won 10 awards. She has also been a script reader for French companies like Mars Distribution and the CNC. In 2018-19, she collaborated with Serge Toubiana on his book about Helen Scott, L’Amie américaine.
Beth Krieger, Secretary
Beth Krieger is the former Communications Director for the Calhoun School, responsible for marketing, public relations and communications for this independent school on Manhattan’s Upper West Side. During her 22 years in that capacity, she supported the school’s fundraising and admissions efforts, and created and managed the school’s website, social media, print and digital publications.
Prior to her professional work at Calhoun, Krieger was president of the school’s Parents Association and representative to the Board. Besides her school volunteerism, she has served on the Board of her current cooperative, as president of the Board of a former co-op, and was a Board member at Yaldanu, a preschool on the UWS attended by her two children. Most recently, Krieger was president of Upper West Side Save Our Stores, a community advocacy group that, pre-Covid, worked with local elected officials to research the reasons behind empty storefronts, and possible legislation and solutions to address the problems.
Beth received her BA from Northwestern University. She has lived on the Upper West Side with her husband for 40+ years.
Stephen Cohen, Counsel
Stephen Cohen is one of the premier real estate attorneys in the restaurant and retail industries. An expert in strategic planning, leasing, financing and development, Cohen provides trusted counsel for real estate- driven brands of all sizes including STK Steakhouse, BJ’s Restaurants, Einstein Bagels, Kona Grill, Hell’s Kitchen and many others.
Cohen has been practicing real estate law for four decades. After graduating third in his class from New York Law School, he joined Rogers & Wells in New York. His talent for tackling complex business and real estate transactions led to him to Minneapolis, where he served as in-house counsel for The Musicland Group, a national music and video retailer with hundreds of locations. Cohen then joined Rainforest Café as General Counsel and Senior Vice President of Real Estate, where he led the company’s national and international expansion.
Guided by his passion for helping his clients navigate the complexities of the restaurant and retail businesses, Cohen opened his own practice in 2001. In addition to working with national operators, franchisees, independent restaurateurs and entrepreneurs, he speaks at national and regional conferences about real estate and commercial leasing. He also serves on the board of Red Hook Responds, a not-for-profit organization that responds to food insecurity and supports agriculture, emergency relief and other community needs in Dutchess County, New York. When he’s not working, Cohen enjoys traveling, reading, listening to jazz, practicing yoga and spending time with his two grown daughters in Brooklyn, New York.
David Huntington
A partner in the Capital Markets and Securities Group of Paul, Weiss, David Huntington focuses his practice on corporate finance and securities transactions.
Huntington has represented U.S. and foreign companies in a wide range of financial transactions, including initial public offerings, secondary offerings, Rule 144A offerings and other private placements of debt and equity securities, bank financings, debt restructurings and private equity transactions. He has extensive experience providing advice regarding corporate governance, disclosure and other requirements of the U.S. securities laws applicable to U.S. and foreign public companies. Huntington’s clients include Automatic Data Processing, Inc., CDK Global, Inc., Dana Holding Corporation, EP Energy Corporation, Hexion Inc., MPM Holdings Inc., Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings Ltd., Nutraceutical International Corporation, The Bon-Ton Stores, Inc. and Verso Corporation.
Prior to joining Paul, Weiss, Huntington served as counsel to Chairman William H. Donaldson and Chairman Christopher Cox of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission in Washington, D.C. and, prior to that, as senior counselor to the general counsel of the SEC. He was responsible for providing legal and policy advice on a variety of regulatory and enforcement matters, including securities offering reform, Section 404 internal control requirements, executive compensation disclosure, proxy access, market structure reform, corporate penalty guidelines, Fair Fund distributions, credit rating agency regulation, soft dollar regulation, mutual fund governance reform and hedge fund regulation. Huntington has also served as an attorney-advisor in the general counsel’s office of the U.S. Department of the Treasury.
Huntington is a member of the Financial Reporting Committee of the City Bar Association, the American Bar Association and the Securities Industry and Financial Markets Association – Compliance and Legal Division. He serves on the boards of directors of the Regional Plan Association and Princeton in Africa and is currently serving as a steward of Power Ten New York and chairman of the board of directors of Row New York.
Sally Klingenstein Martell
From 1994 – 2019 Sally was the Executive Director of The Klingenstein Third Generation Foundation. She earned her BA at Tulane University, MFA in Writing and Literature at Stony Brook University, and was a 2021 BookEnds Fellow. Sally has served on the boards of the 92nd Street Y and The Town School, and is a current trustee of Emma Willard School, The New York Historical, Klingenstein Philanthropies and is the President of the Klingenstein-Martell Foundation. She is now a full-time novelist.
Peter Koffler
Peter Koffler is a Senior Managing Director in the Legal & Compliance Group at Blackstone Inc. His previous positions at Blackstone include General Counsel and Chief Compliance Officer of the Blackstone Multi-Asset Group and Global Chief Compliance Officer of Blackstone.
Prior to joining Blackstone in 2006, Koffler served as General Counsel and Chief Compliance Officer of Twenty-First Securities Corporation, an institutional trading and investment firm. Koffler began his legal career at Baer Marks & Upham.
Koffler received a BA from the State University of New York at Binghamton. He received a JD, with honors, from Hofstra University School of Law, where he served as an editor of the Law Review.
Tim Blake Nelson
Tim Blake Nelson is an actor, writer, director, and producer who has appeared in over ninety films including O Brother, Where Art Thou?, Lincoln, Holes, Minority Report, The Ballad of Buster Scruggs, and Old Henry. Nelson is also an accomplished playwright and director. His playwriting credits include Socrates, The Grey Zone, Eye of God, and the soon to be produced And Then We Were No More. He directed the films O, Leaves of Grass, The Grey Zone, Eye of God, and Anesthesia, the last four of which he also wrote. His first novel, City of Blows, was published in 2023 and was released in paperback in early 2024.
Originally from Tulsa, Oklahoma, Nelson is a long-time resident of the Upper West Side.
