Meet the Team .
Meet the industry professionals behind the 2024 festival. Our inspiring team has years of experience in programming, commissioning, publishing, production, curation and direction.
Aesthetica Team
Dale Donley
Festival Director / Animation, Drama & Family Friendly Programmer
Fruzsina Vida
Projects Administrator
Anna Gallon
Operations Coordinator
Megan Hobson
Media Sales & Partnerships Manager
Phoebe Cawley
Marketing Coordinator
Cherie Federico
Festival Director / Advertising & Fashion Programmer
Emma Jacob
Content Creator
Eleanor Sutherland
Creative Producer
Programming Team
Dale Donley
Festival Director / Animation, Drama & Family Friendly Programmer
Jack Denham
Games Programmer
Des Gayle
Games Programmer
Ana-Despina Tudor
VR & Immersive Experiences Programmer
Angel Cohn Castle
Dance Programmer
Tom Knights
Games Programmer
Matthew Spokes
Games Programmer
Tosin Alapafuja
Drama Shorts Programmer
Forms of Circulation
Artists' Film & Experimental Programmers
Cherie Federico
Festival Director / Advertising & Fashion Programmer
Martha Cattell
Music Video Programmer
Shaneila Saeed
Games Programmer
MarBelle
Comedy Programmer / Directors Notes
Abi Mitchell
Drama Shorts Programmer
Natalie Gee
Drama Shorts Programmer
Rachel Pronger
Documentary Features Programmer
John Rose-Adams
VR & Immersive Experiences Programmer
Heather McIntosh
Documentary Shorts Programmer
Rob Speranza
Drama Shorts Programmer
Alice Butterfield
Narrative Features Programmer
Mikey Murray
Thriller Programmer
Jury
Alice Bloomfield
Animation Juror / Ridley Scott Associates Films
Susi Wilkinson
VR & Immersive Experiences Juror
Daisy Francis
Thriller Juror
Tom Knights
Game Juror / Senior Narrative Designer at Ubisoft Reflections
Nancy Ryan
Comedy Juror / Ridley Scott Creative Group
Tom Bedford
Games Juror / à la mode games
Lola Oliyide
Narrative Features Juror / Head of Development Neal Street Productions
Nephertiti Oboshie Schandorf
Artists' Film, Experimental & Dance Juror
Annabel Grundy
Documentary Features Juror / Sheffield Doc/Fest
Alex Zepherin
Animation Juror / Don Dada Studio
Aubrey Clarke
Family Friendly Juror / BBC Children
Isabelle Croissant
Narrative Features Juror / Artist Development Programme Manager
Meera Kumar
Podcast Juror
Will Becher
Animation Juror / Aardman
Adipat Virdi
VR & Immersive Experiences Juror
Mick Audsley
Drama Juror / Editor
Myles McLeod
Family Friendly Juror / BAFTA Award Winning Writer
Paul Sng
Documentary Features Juror / Director
Tiago Faria
Thriller Juror / BlueBolt
Bex Cassie
Fashion Juror / London College of Fashion
Jack Wentworth-Weedon
Games Juror / National Science and Media Museum
Sarah von Fersen
Family Friendly Juror / Jellyfish Pictures
Christine Morrow
Artists' Film, Experimental & Dance Juror / Talent Executive
Ben Smithard
Narrative Features Juror / Cinematographer
Simon Nelson
Drama Juror / BBC
Patrick Craig
Comedy Juror / Blink Productions
Julie La’Bassiere
Advertising, Music Video & Fashion Juror
Roy Jox-Fredstie
Documentary Juror / Producer & Filmmaker
Alia Sheikh
VR & Immersive Experiences Juror / BBC
Caroline Cooper Charles
Narrative Features Juror / Screen Yorkshire
Paul Cheung
Advertising, Music Video & Fashion Juror
Bec Evans
Comedy Juror
Noirin Carmody
Games Juror / Founder & Executive Producer
Anna Price
Documentary Features Juror
Steve Melia
Documentary Features Juror / Video Production Manager Audible
Glenn Holberton
Animation Juror / Loose Moose Productions
Nick Brown
Thriller Juror / Neal Street Productions
Advisory Board
Julian Foddy
VFX Supervisor / Industrial Light & Magic / Drama Juror
Jess Loveland
Head of New Writing / BBC
MarBelle
Comedy Programmer / Directors Notes
Nyree Jillings
BFI
Max Park
Development and Production Executive / Film4
Sadie Clayton
Artist & Designer
Steve Jelley
Hammerhead VR
Daryll Smalley
City of York Council
Martin Roker
Black Dog Films
Richard Knight
Screen Yorkshire
