Vince Austin-Cole returns to the Festival this year - he was first involved as a Juror of Short Films in 2004. He has enjoyed films for many years, and has attended previous Philadelphia Gay & Lesbian Film Festivals (now QFest) viewing over 30 films each season. He is a true cinephile, and looks forward to joining this year’s crew of devoted film jurors.

Jhett Bond is a Philadelphia native who works as a videographer and a building manager. She is currently interested in the intersections between health, healing and the vibrations of sound and light in film. To her, a great film includes: love and lovingness, fear that is overcome, poetry of motion/words/expression, a sense of place, and a renewal of spirit.

Amanda Leahy produces events and film in Philadelphia, including for PIGLFF and the award-winning Fabric and G-Room parties. She works in a range of roles in the film industry including production management and development. Leahy has been recognized for her production work in multiple publications including GO NYC Magazine’s “100 Women We Love” in 2006 and this year she will add the short Looking For to the list of films she has worked on that have screened at QFest.

Keith Brand is an Associate Professor of Radio Television and Film at Rowan University, where he teaches sound and radio production. For twenty years, he has been the host and producer of “Sleepy Hollow,” a weekend morning program of eclectic music on WXPN FM. He is also an audio documentary producer who has contributed stories to various NPR programs. Keith is a film geek who welcomes the opportunity to sit in a darkened theater and watch the images flicker on the cave wall.

Frank Danay thanks his mom for all he’s gotten out of four decades of moviegoing – he could identify Judy Garland and James Cagney before he could read. He attended Catholic school, but he learned more about empathy from Drugstore Cowboy and Bad Lieutenant, and gained more discipline from the films of Andy Warhol and Mike Leigh than from any nun’s paddle. With a B.S in Film Studies, he wrote two screenplays that might’ve made halfway-decent art films had he had more focus. An unapologetic film snob, Frank currently lives in Germantown with his partner, who doesn’t much care for movies but who has many other fine qualities.

Philip Thomas is a Web Developer at eCity Interactive and is involved in local performance art including the First Person Arts Philadelphia Complaints Choir, the Walking Fish 24-Hour Stand-Up Comedy Marathon, the 2008 Live Arts Festival & Philly Fringe and most recently with Philly Improv Theater’s flash mob at 30th Street Station. Phil was one of Philadelphia Magazine’s sexy singles in 2008 and this is his first year as a Festival juror.

Joe’l Ludovich is an Emmy-nominated producer and independent filmmaker. She won several Telly and Communicator awards as producer of “Philly LIVE”, a nightly live call-in talk program on WYBE, and she has worked for CNN, Globalvision and In the Life Media. Her filmography includes the award-winning The UnBirth, Cradle, which screened at PFF 2003, From the Top: The Making of Quiescence and her most recent independent documentary, The Man with the Magic Hands, which was recognized with two Telly Awards in 2008.

Maggie Boccella’s love for film brought her back to QFest this year, having previously served on the jury in 2004. Philly born and raised, she enjoys capturing the sights around town with a digital camera and notepad in hand. Her background includes film review, television production and short film scriptwriting, and her day work as a business development director for an architectural firm provides her with fantastic material for her illustrated novel in-the-making. Maggie lives in Pennsport with a boy named Sue.

Tiffany Thompson is the Manager of Community Education Programs at CHOICE, a non-profit that provides sexual and reproductive health education, counseling and referrals, focusing on the growing number of LGBT youth coming out and the sexual health education barriers they face. She is also pursuing a Masters in Communication Management at Temple: she hopes through media and communications she can increase LGBT awareness, especially for lesbians of color. Tiffany also sits on the Board of Equality Forum and GALAEI and is a community activist.