Cindy Burstein

Background

About Cindy Burstein

Experienced producer, project manager and educator with a diverse background in delivering socially-engaged educational programming in school, community-based and cultural settings. Seeking to use my unique skillset to engage communities in creative opportunities that foster empathy, promote access to resources and build connections. I am committed to an arts practice that connects media making and community building, bringing together my experience as a community organizer and filmmaker. For ten years I served as the Regional Outreach Coordinator for the Independent Television Service (ITVS) Community Connections Project and Community Cinema Program—a groundbreaking public education and civic engagement initiative featuring social issue documentaries from the Emmy Award-winning series Independent Lens. I have a long history of collaborating with independent filmmakers and distribution companies to launch theatrical and broadcast premieres and educational releases for social issue documentaries, including the New Yorker Films release of Sandi DuBowski's unprecedented feature, Trembling Before G-d (Films That Change the World). My award-winning documentary Concrete, Steel & Paint, about a remarkable journey of men in prison and victims of crime, demonstrates the power of art as a catalyst to bridge difference and inspire common ground through dialogue about harm, accountability and social responsibility. The film garnered major funding from the Ford Foundation and festival accolades for Best Documentary, Best Director, and Social Justice Achievement. Selected to tour in the American Film Showcase - a premiere American film diplomacy program sponsored by the State Department’s Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs and the University of Southern California School of Cinematic Arts, the film is a testament to the power of media to nurture empathy and understanding across cultures. As an Adjunct Professor in Temple University's Klein College of Media and Communication I teach key concepts and skills for using digital media to create effective messages across multiple platforms and as a tool for civic engagement. I’m a recipient of an Independence Foundation Artist Fellowship and Leeway Foundation Transformation Award—recognizing women artists engaged in social change. I'm also a proud member of the filmmaker-owned and operated educational distribution co-operative, New Day Films.