MAY 29–JUNE 2, 2019 | WASHINGTON, D.C.
KICKING OFF THE
MONTH-LONG CELEBRATION OF PHOTOGRAPHY IN THE NATION’S CAPITAL
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table of contents Welcome to focus on the story. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2 Festival Chair Carl Juste . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3 The Festival Team . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4 Making an Impact . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5 Turning June into a Celebration of Photography. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7 Click DC Exhibits. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9 Click DC Calendar of Events. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12 2019 focus on the story award winners. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16 Kick-off Party and Silent Auction. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19 the Live Photo Challenge. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20 Gear loans at #FOTS19. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23 featured Speakers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26 #FOTS19 Lineup. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28 focus on the story 2019 Schedule . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34 Thank You to our sponsors!. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39
■■ Focus on the Story 2019 is a production of Focus on the Story ■■
P.O. Box 91224, Washington, DC 20090 • Washington, D.C. 20001 • focusonthestory.org • info@focusonthestory.org
■■
© 2019 Focus on the Story. All rights reserved.
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Welcome to focus on the story Welcome to Focus on the Story 2019. We’re thrilled that you’re here to help us celebrate some of the world’s best visual storytelling. For many of you, welcome back for our second year. Seeing so many familiar faces underscores one of our guiding principles—that this be a place where we can reconnect each year with a community of like-minded, passionate photographers. There are two big differences this year. The first is that Focus on the Story is now run by a nonprofit organization, with a board of directors and a mission to support visual storytelling that has a social impact. The second is that our signature event, Focus on the Story 2019, is now part of a bigger, month-long celebration of photography in the nation’s capital. Focus on the Story 2019 kicks off Click DC, which includes events and exhibits for photography lovers for the entire month of June. On page 12, you can see a calendar of Click DC events that were available at press time. Be sure to head over to www.ClickDC.org for a full rundown of what’s happening in June. Meanwhile, we hope you are ready for an all-star lineup of storytellers. We built Focus on the Story 2019 around the theme “Witness.” One of our most important responsibilities as documentary storytellers is to provide a truthful, lasting record of some of the day’s most critical issues. The speakers we’ve convened walk the walk. Prepare to be inspired. Lastly, don’t hesitate to stop me or any other member of the Focus on the Story team to tell us what’s on your mind, whether it’s where you should go for dinner, who you’d like to see at next year’s event or just to say hello. In appreciation,
Joe Newman Executive Director
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Festival Chair Carl Juste Carl Juste, this year’s honorary festival chair, is an award-winning photojournalist at the Miami Herald, where he has carried extensive assignments in conflict zones and was part of a team that won the Pulitzer Prize. He will deliver the welcoming remarks on this year’s festival theme: “Witness.” Juste, known for his passionate visual storytelling, is deeply involved in the South Florida community where he is a frequent lecturer, educator and curator. One of Juste’s projects, “I Witness,” is a photo exhibit that includes the work of 25 internationally-celebrated photojournalists who have contributed images that explore conflict – personal, internal, psychosocial, military, cultural and religious experiences – while maintaining the truthful and ethical principles of journalism. The 50-image exhibit, which includes the work of Lynsey Addario, Colin Finlay and Maggie Steber, will be projected at the festival’s opening night party. “The powerful image is one that rests on our conscience, constantly demanding not to be forgotten,” Juste said. “I Witness,” however, is more than an exhibit, it is also the inspiration for a multi-day symposium Juste is planning for Miami in 2020 to help prepare photojournalists and documentary storytellers to thrive in today’s changing marketplace. Juste is an original member of the Iris Photo Collective, a collaboration he co-founded with André Chung, Pablo Martínez Monsiváis and Clarence Williams III, that explores and documents the relationship of people of color to the world. Juste, Chung and Martínez Monsiváis, will lead the closing session of the festival – judging and critiquing the festival’s live photo competition.
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The Festival Team board of directors
Shamila N. Chaudhary, president
Chantale Wong, Finance Chair
KATIE JETT WALLS, SECRETARY
Joe Newman, EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR
MIKE JETT, MANAGING DIRECTOR
Mona Avalos, program Manager
Kirth Bobb, festival coordinator
Tim Hill, Web and Print Designer
Mike Lee, blogger
Staff
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Making an Impact
Focus on the Story 2019 is more than just an annual celebration of photography — it’s a fulfillment of our mission to support visual storytelling that has a social impact. We’ve packed this year’s lineup with photographers who are making a difference by shining a light on critical issues. They are not only masters of their craft but their work matters. After our inaugural event in 2018, we incorporated Focus on the Story as a nonprofit to manage and grow the festival — but it needed to be about more than just throwing a big party every year in the nation’s capital. It needed to be about doing good throughout the year by supporting visual storytelling that brings attention to critical issues, bridges cultural gaps and sparks social change. Beyond the annual festival, we’re developing a grant program that will pair emerging documentary storytellers with local nonprofits in order to bring attention to the essential work these organizations are doing in the community. We’re also establishing a year-round speakers bureau to provide an outlet and forum for important storytelling. And, this year our annual contest gave $3,500 in awards to photographers who are doing the kind of work that deserves recognition. In a big way, by registering and attending the festival, you’re also supporting the work we want to do year-round in the D.C. community. Thank you for helping support these visual storytellers who are making a difference.
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Turning June into a Celebration of Photography
For the month of June, photography organizations, clubs and collectives, along with galleries across the Washington, DC area are joining together to share their love of photography. They are hosting talks, workshops, photo walks, exhibits and other events that show the power of photography to entertain, enlighten and inspire us. Click DC is a collaboration between the many organizations, businesses and individuals who make DC such a vibrant community for visual artists. Each of the participating groups are solely responsible for the operation, coordination and entry conditions of their individual events. There’s a lot happening in June for you, whether you’re a photographer or just a lover of photography!
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Click DC Exhibits
“Ghost Trees” is part of an exhibit this month at Multiple Exposures Gallery © Sarah Hood Salomon
Celebrate photography by checking out these exhibits in the DC area during June. Please be sure to visit www.clickdc.org for the most up-to-date listing.
“Tonal Visions” at Multiple Exposures Gallery, Torpedo Factory Art Center #312, 105 Union Street, Alexandria, VA. This exhibit is an exploration of tonalities through the architectural images of Alan Sislen. May 7 – June 15.
“Based on a True Story” at the Leica Store DC, 977 F Street NW, DC. This exhibition features the work of street photographer Gus Powell. May 15 – Aug. 7.
“Moment’s Noticed” at Lost Origins Gallery, 3110 Mt. Pleasant Street NW, DC. A collection of vintage photographs & prints by Benedict Tisa, taken and developed in Ivory Coast and Bangladesh in the 1970’s. May 25 – June 9.
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Click DC Exhibits “The American Dream Revisited” at Photoworks, 7300 Macarthur Blvd, Glen Echo, MD. A group exhibit in which 12 artists attempt to show what the American Dream looks like in the 21st Century. May 31 – July 14.
“Raising Our Youth” at IA & A Hillyer, 9 Hillyer Court NW, DC. Photographer Tyra Mitchell’s first solo exhibit profiles different families of DC natives to show how they are navigating the gentrification of their city. June 1 – 30.
“Insider/Outsider” at Gallery O on H Street, 1354 H Street NE, DC. An exhibit curated and sponsored by Women Photograph explores the relationship between photographer and subject. June 3 – TBA.
“A Bloom is a Blur” at Sense Gallery, 3111 Georgia Ave. NW, DC. A two-person show with art by Eames Armstrong and Matt Storm, which engages with concepts of blur. June 3 – June 30.
“Structure” at Touchstone Gallery, 901 New York Ave. NW, DC. Travel vicariously with fine art photographer Ryan Feipel as he depicts the enduring desire to be near the waters edge. June 5 – June 30.
“Slow Walking – 2019” at Touchstone Gallery, 901 New York Ave. NW, DC. Documentary photographer Michael Lang presents a solo show of his most recent street photography. June 5 – June 30.
“Made You Look” at Thurgood Marshall Center Trust, 1816 12th Street NW, DC. Critical Exposure presents its annual exhibit of student photography. June 7
“Retratos Del Sur, Punta Arenas, and Valparaíso” at Art Museum of the Americas, F Street Gallery, 1889 F Street NW, DC. Black and white portraits of two cities in the south of Chile. June 12 – July 12 (by appointment only via fgoncalves@oas.org).
“Frame of Mind” at Lost Origins Gallery, 3110 Mt. Pleasant Street NW, DC. A long-overdue female-centric perspective on underground rock music, featuring photos by Antonia Tricarico. June 15 – July 14.
“Plans to Prosper You” at American University Museum, 4400 Massachusetts Ave. NW, DC. Photos that highlight the Black history of Montgomery County and western Washington, DC. June 15 – Aug 11.
“The Spirit of the Woodlands,” Multiple Exposures Gallery, Torpedo Factory Art Center #312, 105 Union Street, Alexandria, VA. Photographer Sarah Hood Salomon found solace and healing in her many long walks in the woods. June 17 – July 28.
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Click DC Calendar of Events
The Click DC closing event includes an exhibition of work that explores “TENSION” © Kirth Bobb
There’s something happening in June for everyone, no matter what your photographic interests - walks, workshops, talks and exhibits. Be sure to check www.clickdc.org for the most up-to-date list of events.
June 6 6-8 p.m., Thurgood Marshall Center Trust, 1816 12th Street NW, DC. RECEPTION: Critical Exposure’s annual exhibit of youth photography for social justice. criticalexposure.org
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June 7
6-9 p.m., Gallery O on H, 1354 H Street NE, DC
6-8:30 p.m., Touchstone Gallery, 901 New York Ave. NW, DC
RECEPTION: Opening event
RECEPTION: Opening event for “Structure” and “Slow Walking - 2019.” touchstonegallery.com
6-9 p.m., IA&A at HIllyer, 9 Hillyer Court NW, DC. RECEPTION: Opening event for Tyra Mitchell’s first solo exhibition, “Raising Your Youth.” athillyer.org
for “Insider/Oustider,” an exhibit curated by Women Photograph. galleryoonh. com
7-9 p.m., Photoworks, 7300 Macarthur Blvd., GlenEcho, MD RECEPTION: An opening and gallery talk for “The American Dream Revisited,” featuring the work of 12 DC-area artists. glenechophotoworks.org
Click DC Calendar of Events June 9 1:30-4 p.m., Suntrust, 1800 Columbia Road NW, DC PHOTOWALK: Join the Shutterbugs Excursions photo community for a meetup to photograph the Drum Circle at Malcolm X / Meridian Hill Park.
2-3:30 p.m., S. Dillon Ripley Center, Room 3037, 1100 Jefferson Drive SW, DC TALK: Smithsonian Associates presents photojournalist and former official Obama White House staff photographer Lawrence Jackson who will
talk about journalism career. smithsonianassociates.org
7-9 p.m., Busboys and Poets, 2021 14th St NW, DC SOCIAL: Photographers vie for slots in a 2019 gallery show at Photoworks during this fast-paced competition glenechophotoworks.org
June 11 7-9 p.m., American Ice Co., 917 V Street NW, DC SOCIAL: Stop Motion’s quarterly photography slideshow presents — VOL 6:
Black & White Photography! The slideshow starts promptly at 8 p.m. This event is 21+. stopmotiondc. com
June 12 6-8 p.m., City Tap House Dupont, 1250 Connecticut Ave NW, DC SOCIAL: Come talk about photography at a happy hour hosted by Exposed DC, which connects photographers with networking, mentoring, and exhibition opportunities. exposeddc.com
Join Shutterbugs Excursions for a photowalk to the Meridian Hill Park drum circle on June 9.
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Click DC Calendar of Events June 13
June 15
June 28
7-9 p.m., Dupont Underground, 19 Dupont Circle NW, DC
7-10 p.m., Lost Origins Gallery, 3110 Mt Pleasant St NW, DC
6-10 p.m., Shopkeepers DC, 1231 Florida Ave NE
WORKSHOP: Join
RECEPTION: Opening event
photographer Geoff Livingston and Capital Photography Center for a lighting workshop.
for photographer Antonia Tricarico’s exhibit “Frame of Mind: Punk Photogrpahs 1997-2017.” lostorigins.gallery
is the official closing event for Click DC. Reception for opening of a group exhibit that examines the relationship between Tension, Life, and Art. Includes a talk with participating artists shopkeepersdc.com
capitalphotographycenter.com
June 14 6-9 P.M., Studiowerks DC, 415B Walker Ct. SE, DC PANEL + WORKSHOP: APA presents a panel on what professional photographers are looking for in an assistant, along with a hands-on shooting demonstration.
7-9 p.m., Sense Gallery, 3111 Georgia Ave. NW, DC RECEPTION: Opening event for “A Bloom is a Blur,” a two-person show with art by Eames Armstrong and Matt Storm. sensegallerydc.com
June 21 7-11 p.m., nion 206 Studio, 822 South Pickett St., Alexandria, VA RECEPTION + WORKSHOP + PHOTO SHOOT: A meet and greet event with fellow industry professionals and emerging artists, along with an optional workshop and private shooting sessions with spotlight models.
June 25 6:30-9 a.m., IA&A at Hillyer, 9 Hillyer Ct NW, DC TALK: Join Hillyer for an artist talk with their June exhibiting artist Tyra Mitchell. Hear about her creative process and inspiration behind the work in her exhibition, “Raising Our Youth.” athillyer.org
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RECEPTION + TALK: This
June 29 7-9 p.m., Sense Gallery, 3111 Georgia Ave NW, DC RECEPTION: Closing event for the “A Bloom is a Blur” exhibit, which features by Eames Armstrong and Matt Storm. the work engages with concepts of blur. sensegallerydc.com
LEARN MORE AT CLICKDC.ORG
2019 focus on the story award winners
© Fabio Bucciarelli
The winners and runners up of the 2019 Focus on the Story Awards embody our mission of bringing attention to critical issues, bridging cultural gaps and sparking social change. The winner of the “Best Series” category is Italian photojournalist Fabio Bucciarelli for his coverage of Central American migrants at the U.S.Mexico border. He received a $1,000 award.
© Ezra Acayan
Sandra Stokmans, a Dutch family documentary photographer, and Ezra Acayan, a Manila-based photojournalist shared the first place prize in the “Best Single Image” category. The each received $750 awards.
Stokmans’ image showed a father with his infant son who was born with a congenital heart defect. The image was part of Stokmans’ work in support of a Dutch children’s medical center.
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Acayan’s photo shows a young girl with a toy guy at her brother’s funeral wake. Her brother was believed to have been a victim in Philippines President Rodrigo Duterte’s war on drugs. The runners up in the series category were Belgian photojournalist Alain Schroeder for his photo essay on the kid jockeys of Indonesia and Spanish documentary photographer © Sandra Stokmans Carmen Sayago for her look at several women living with multiple chemical sensitivity syndrome. In the single image category, the runner up was Washington, DC-based fine art photographer Manuel Morquecho for his portrait of his mother and dying brother.
The Winners Best Series 1st Place – $1,000: Fabio Bucciarelli (Turin, Italy) 2nd Place – $500: Alain Schroeder (Brussels, Belgium) 3rd place – $250: Carmen Sayago (Madrid, Spain)
Fabio Bucciarelli
Best Single Image 1st Place (tie) – $750: Sandra Stokmans (Maarssen, Netherlands) 1st Place (tie) – $750: Ezra Acayan (Manila, Philippines) 3rd Place – $250: Manuel Morquecho (Washington, D.C.)
We would like to thank this year’s jurors: John Christopher Anderson, co-founder of Momenta Workshops
Ezra Acayan
Xyza Cruz Bacani, a Hong Kong-based documentary photographer James Whitlow Delano, a Tokyo-based documentary photographer Carl Juste, a photojournalist at the Miami Herald Molly Roberts, a senior photo editor at National Geographic Magazine
Sandra Stokmans
Susan Sterner, director of New Media, GW’s Corcoran School of Arts & Design Amber Terranova, an educator with Magnum Photos.
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Kick-off Party and Silent Auction
© Geoff Livingston
We’re taking over Dupont Underground, the former subway spur that has been converted into an underground arts space, to kick off Focus on the Story 2019 and the month-long Click DC celebration. Come meet many of the acclaimed photographers participating in Focus on the Story 2019, listen to music by DJ Kenny M. and check out slide projections featuring the work of some of the world’s best visual storytellers.
Friday, May 31 7-10 p.m. Dupont Underground 19 Dupont Circle
There’s also a special silent auction of photographs donated by select DC photographers. All proceeds raised from this event will benefit Focus on the Story, a nonprofit whose mission is to support visual storytelling that brings attention to critical issues, bridges cultural gaps and sparks social change. The slide projections include ■■ The winners of the 2019 Focus on the Story Awards. ■■ “I Witness,” which includes the work of 25 internationally-celebrated photojournalists who have contributed images that explore conflict – personal, internal, psychosocial, military, cultural and religious experiences. ■■ The WPOW: Women Photojournalists of Washington’s traveling exhibit, including the winners from their 2018 call for entries. ■■ Work from Women Street Photographers curated by founder Gulnara Samoilova, one of the speakers at Focus on the Story 2019. ■■ And more....
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the Live Photo Challenge
Last year’s live challenge winner: Ray Alvareztorres
Win Prizes from Fujifilm & Peak Design! The live photo challenge returns to the Focus on the Story photo festival, bigger and better than ever. Literally. This year’s theme is “We have the biggest….” We’re giving festival attendees 96 hours during the festival (May 29 – June 2) to shoot, edit and submit a spectacular image that best fits this year’s super-sized theme. We’re not limiting your imagination – enter street photography, portraits, landscape or fine art. It’s up to you how you interpret the assignment. Be creative, be funny, be bold — but don’t miss our 9 a.m. Sunday, June 2 deadline to submit. A panel of award-winning photographers (André Chung, Carl Juste and Pablo Martínez Monsiváis of the Iris Photo Collective) will critique the finalists and choose the winners during a live judging session to close the festival.
How to Enter ■■ Submit up to five images electronically through wetransfer.com to info@focusonthestory.org by Sunday at 9 a.m. ■■ Images should be 2,000-3,000 pixels on the long side. ■■ Name your files with the following format: LastName_FirstName_1, LastName_FirstName_2, etc.
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First Place: A Fujifilm XT30 with an 18-55mm f.2 zoom lens and a Fujifilm Instax printer.
Second Place: Peak Design Everyday Backpack 20L and a Peak Design Travel Backpack 45 L Third Place: Peak Design Everyday Backpack 20 L. The contest is free to enter for all paid festival registrants, which includes holders of three-day registration passes, singleday passes and workshop participants.
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Gear loans at #FOTS19
Don’t pass up a chance to try out some gear from our terrific sponsors—Fujifilm, Leica Store DC and Tamron. All three brands will have tables set up in our exhibit room, offering attendees the opportunity to borrow gear for free during Focus on the Story 2019. Why not check something out out and use it to create your entry into our Live Photo Challenge? (See details on page 20.)
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WWW.CONFLUENCEMAG.COM CONFLUENCE Magazine is an online magazine elevating the work of emerging photographers creating serious documentary projects. It can be exceedingly difficult in our fast-paced culture to protect space for the telling of stories by new voices. At CONFLUENCE Magazine we believe there is a need for new voices, for stepping stones to wider audiences, and for collaboration between emerging documentarians and the gatekeepers of the publishing world.Â
featured Speakers Radcliffe “Ruddy” Roye is a New York City-based photojournalist whose work appears in many major publications. He might be best known for the work he shares on Instagram, which is aimed at starting conversations on race and inequality. Roye, who TIME magazine named the Instagram Photographer of the Year in 2016, has helped change the way photojournalists use social media.
3 P.M., Friday
Andrea Bruce is an acclaimed conflict photographer; winner of the Niedringhaus Courage in Photojournalism Award, and named Photographer of the Year by the White House News Photographers Association four times. While she has reported extensively from war zones, she is currently working on a project that examines the state of democracy in America.
3:45 P.M., Saturday
Lucian Perkins is a documentary photographer and filmmaker, who has won honors, including two Pulitzer Prizes, for everything from covering wars abroad to documenting the effects of poverty in the DC. A former photojournalist with the Washington Post, he is a “World Press Photo of the Year” winner and was named “Newspaper Photographer of the Year.” .
4:30 p.m., Friday
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featured Speakers Sharon Farmer was the first African-American woman to be hired as an official White House photographer, as well as the first African American and first woman to serve as Chief White House Photographer. She served as Director of the White House Photography Office from 1999-2001, and as White House photographer from 1993.
 2:30 p.m., Sunday
Kathy Vargas is an internationally celebrated Chicana photographer and artist known for her composite hand-colored photographs that abstract loss and hope, life and death, and social justice. From 2000 to 2013, she served as Chair of Art at the University of the Incarnate Word where she is currently Professor of Art/ Photography..
 2:30 p.m., Saturday
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#FOTS19 Lineup
Mark Alan Andre is an
Xyza Cruz Bacani is a
Svetlana Bachevanova is
architectural designer and award-winning photographer who has been featured by the Washington Post, The Weather Channel, and Modern Luxury DC Magazine.
documentary photographer based in Hong Kong. She is particularly interested in the intersection of labor migration and human rights and her work has often examined the plight of migrant workers.
a long-time photojournalist and the publisher at FotoEvidence, a publishing house and activist organization that supports documentary photography focused on human rights and social justice.
Mallory Benedict is a
Kirth Bobb is a wedding,
Sheila Pree Bright is a fine
photo editor for National Geographic where she works on original cross-platform storytelling on mobile, digital and print platforms. She is also the Managing Director of Women Photograph.
family documentary, fine art and street photographer based in Washington, D.C. His work has appeared in numerous national and international publications. He is the festival coordinator for Focus on the Story 2019.
art photographer whose work has examined the legacy of black activism from the 1960s to the present Black Lives Matter movement. Her project #1960Now was published as a book last year.
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#FOTS19 Lineup
Patrick Brown is an
André Chung is freelance
Michelle Frankfurter is
award-winning documentary photographer based in Bangkok. He won the 2019 FotoEvidence Book Award with World Press Photo for his project “No Place on Earth,” documenting the plight of the Rohingya. FotoEvidence is publishing the work as a book.
photojournalist and portrait photographer based in the Washington, D.C. - Baltimore area. Previously, he worked at the Baltimore Sun where he won the prestigious Robert F. Kennedy Journalism Award.
an award-winning documentary photographer who has reported extensively on the caravans of migrants traveling through Mexico. Her work on the subject was published in a book by FotoEvidence.
Holly Garner is the
Jason Hamacher is an
David Scott Holloway is a
founder of IGDC, a trailblazing Instagram community. Over the past 8 years, she has established herself as one of the Washington, D.C area’s top social media influencers.
internationally recognized musician, photographer, writer, and public speaker. He is the founder and director of Lost Origin Productions and the Lost Origins Gallery in Washington D.C.
documentary and commercial photographer and filmmaker based in New York City. His work includes covering the rise of the white supremacist movement and serving as the still photographer for Anthony Bourdain’s CNN series Parts Unknown.
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#FOTS19 Lineup
Lauren Joseph is photo
Kirsten Lewis is a docu-
Geoff Livingston is an
editor at WIRED magazine in San Francisco. Originally from Northern Virginia, she previously worked as the assistant photo editor at Washingtonian magazine in our nation’s capital.
mentary family photographer based in Denver, Colorado. She has taught on Creative Live and is the co-founder of the Documentary Family Awards.
award-winning professional photographer in the Washington, D.C. area. He is also a digital marketing pioneer who has helped brands and nonprofits launch products and enact corporate marketing initiatives.
Robert Miller is Deputy
Leah Millis is a senior pho- Pablo Martinez Monsivías
Director of Photography for the Washington Post overseeing the news sections, which includes the National, Foreign, Metro and Investigative desks. He is also an emerging street photographer.
tographer for Thomson Reuters based out of Washington, D.C. Originally from Denver, Colorado, she spent the first part of her career working in newspapers, the San Francisco Chronicle being the most recent.
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is a staff photojournalist for the AP’s Washington Bureau, where he primarily covers the President. In 1999, he won the Pulitzer Prize for Feature Photography for team coverage of the impeachment during the Clinton Administration.
#FOTS19 Lineup
Michael A. McCoy is a
Huy Nguyen is a former
Angela B. Pan is one of the
professional photographer in the Washington, DC area. He specializes in photojournalism, portraits, documentary, and street photography. His work has been in The New York Times, TIME Magazine, and Rolling Stone, among others.
photojournalist and wedding photographer. He is the founder of Fearless Photographers, the premier global directory and essential network of wedding and family photographers.
leading Washington, D.C. landscape photographers. Her book, “Snap DC, Your Guide to Taking Extraordinary Photos of the National Mall and Beyond”… is the essential guide to photographing the nation’s capital.
Ibarionex Perello is a
Molly Roberts is a
Jamie Rose is a photojour-
photographer, author and podcaster. He is the host and producer of The Candid Frame podcast, which for the past 13 years has featured conversations with some of the world’s best established and emerging photographers.
photography editor, curator and photographer. She is a Senior Photography Editor at National Geographic Magazine.
nalist and humanitarian photographer. She is co-Founder and COO of Momenta Group, LLC, which owns Momenta Workshops, Momenta Creative, and manages Wildfire Media, a nonprofit dedicated to documentary storytelling.
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#FOTS19 Lineup
Gulnara Samoilova is a
Chris Suspect is a street
Carolyn Van Houten is an
street and fine art photographer based in New York City and the founder of Instagram feed and the traveling exhibition, which is aimed at increasing the visibility of women street photographers.
and documentary photographer who has been exhibited at various venues in the U.S. and internationally. His documentary work on the underground music scene in Washington, D.C., was published as a book, Suspect Device, in 2014.
award-winning staff photographer at the Washington Post. She recently won the Robert Capa Gold Medal from the Overseas Press Club for her coverage of the Central American migrants seeking asylum in the U.S.
Sarah L. Voisin has been a
Katie Jett Walls is a
staff photographer at The Washington Post for more than 20 years. She has dedicated much of her career to the coverage of Latin America, the Caribbean and immigration issues in the U.S.
Washington, D.C.-based documentary and family photographer, as well as founder and publisher of Confluence Magazine, which she created as an outlet for visual storytelling.
@WomenStreetPhotographers
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Capital Photography Center Join the fun, come learn photography with us!
No matter what your skill level is you’ll find a class that fits. Class topics include Photo Basics, Lightroom, Photoshop, Off-Camera Flash, Portraiture, In-The-Field-Shooting classes and more. Explore our CLASS OFFERINGS at
CapitalPhotographyCenter.com
focus on the story 2019 Schedule Friday, May 31 9:30-10 a.m. Marvin Center Grand Ballroom
Welcome to #FOTS19
Honorary Festival Chairman Carl Juste, a veteran photojournalist at the Miami Herald, will deliver the opening remarks on this year’s festival theme: “Witness.”
10:15-11:15 a.m. Marvin Center Grand Ballroom
Moving Wedding Photography “Beyond Beauty”
Huy Nguyen, founder of Fearless Photographers, on bringing storytelling to traditional wedding photography, moving past the “fashion show” and toward “real moments.”
11:30 a.m.-12:30 p.m. Marvin Center Grand Ballroom
Building a Career with Passion, Community and Happiness
Jamie Rose, COO of Momenta Workshops, shares the story of how she went from a working photojournalist to running successful photography workshops around the world. Gain knowledgeable insights on deciding when to take a big leap in your career, ways to build your network of peers and clients, and what it’s really like to work alongside your spouse.
1:45-2:45 p.m. Marvin Center Grand Ballroom
Celebrating the Women Street Photographers
Gulnara Samoilova, founder of Women Street Photographers, is on a mission to increase the visibility of female photographers. She’ll show the work of women street photographers from all over the world, who go to ordinary places to photograph unique and original perspectives.
3-4:15 p.m. Marvin Center Grand Ballroom
A Conversation with Ruddy Roye and Ibarionex Perello
Ibarionex Perello, America’s top photography podcaster, talks to Ruddy Roye, the famed storyteller who helped change the way photojournalists use social media. Roye, whose work explores race and inequality in the U.S., was named by TIME as the Instagram photographer of the year in 2016. It was on Instagram where many images from his acclaimed project, “When Living is a Protest,” first appeared.
4:30-5:30 p.m. Marvin Center Grand Ballroom
From Punk Rock to the Battlefield
From punk to fashion to war, two-time Pulitzer winner Lucian Perkins will explore his favorite photo stories over his forty-year career and share what he learned to better tell stories through both photography and video, as well as discuss how fast changing technologies may help or hinder our storytelling abilities.
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focus on the story 2019 Schedule 7-10 p.m. Dupont Underground
Click DC / Focus on the Story Kickoff Party
Join us at Dupont Underground, the former subway spur transformed into a event space and art center. We’ll have several projections, featuring several featured speakers, the winners from the 2019 Focus on the Story Awards, work curated by the Women Photojournalists of Washington (WPOW), and “I Witness,” an exhibit curated by Festival Chair Carl Juste, which includes the work of 25 internationally-celebrated photojournalists.
Saturday, June 1 6-9 a.m. National MLK Memorial
Golden Hour at the Tidal Basin
For those early risers, meet up with award-winning D.C. landscape photographer Angela B. Pan to photograph the tidal basin in the golden hour light of early morning. (FYI, sunrise is at 5:44 a.m. — feel free to get there early).
9 a.m.-Noon (Starting Location Emailed to Registrants)
The Beauty in Brutalism
Photographer Mark Alan Andre, who is also an architect, will lead a photowalk to some of DC’s iconic Brutalist structures. He’ll spend some time at each stop exploring the buildings, sharing tips, and garnering a new appreciation for the often-maligned slice of architectural history. (Pre-registration was required for this photowalk)
9:30-10:30 a.m. Marvin Center Grand Ballroom
Your Personal Project is Calling … Are You Going to Answer?
You’ve got several ideas for a personal project but where do you start? Once you start, how do you keep the momentum to actually finish what will truly be a labor of love? After the last image is shot, what exactly are you going to do with it all? Moderator André Chung and panelists Jason Hamacher, Kirsten Lewis, and Katie Jett Walls will talk about their personal projects and how they overcame all of these challenges and more.
10-11 a.m. Marvin Center Room 301
Creating a Buzz Around Your Work
This is no time to be modest. If you’re not spending a significant portion of your time marketing and promoting yourself and your work, you’re going to find it hard to compete with those who do. Coming up with an action plan is an essential part of surviving as a full or part-time professional photographer in today’s competitive market. Moderator Kirth Bobb and panelists Geoff Livingston, Holly Garner, and Angela B. Pan will talk about what works and what doesn’t, as well as ways to create a buzz around your work.
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focus on the story 2019 Schedule 11:00 a.m.-Noon Marvin Center Grand Ballroom
No Place on Earth
Photographer Patrick Brown will present his project “No Place on Earth,” which won the 2019 FotoEvidence Book Award with World Press Photo. The book, published by FotoEvidence, documents the plight of the Rohingya, world’s fastest growing refugee crisis and one of the most rapid human exoduses in recent history.
1-2:15 p.m. Marvin Center Grand Ballroom
Mental Health: Behind and in Front of the Camera
Documenting tragedies, disaster, and emotional events — and being able to explain in images when words sometimes fail — can take an emotional toll on documentary photographers. But at the same time, photography can also help us cope. Whether it is issues of depression, anxiety, PTSD, and access to help and treatment, moderator Ibarionex Perello and panelists Ruddy Roye, Sheila Pree Bright, and Michael A. McCoy will examine the different ways photography can be both informative and transformative.
2:30-3:30 p.m. Marvin Center Grand Ballroom
Media and Metaphor
Internationally-recognized fine art photographer Kathy Vargas will talk about her career, from her early days as a rock music photographer, to creating the double-exposed handcolored prints that define her style. As Kathy puts it, her talk will “mix time and magic with a little autobiography and a craving for the spiritual/eternal, all in the service of questioning the medium to see what it can do, where it can take us, and what journeys still lie ahead.”
3:45-5 p.m. Marvin Center Grand Ballroom
From Conflict Photography to the Everyday
From working as a community photojournalist to veteran war photographer, Andrea Bruce has a few stories to tell. After spending the last 15 years outside of the U.S., mostly in the Middle East and Afghanistan, Bruce is now living in the U.S. and is traveling to small towns across the country as part of a project on democracy in the United States. She will talk about how her time in war zones, where she saw too many friends lose their lives, and how that experience shapes the way she approaches her current work.
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focus on the story 2019 Schedule Sunday, June 2 10-11 a.m. Marvin Center Grand Ballroom
Travels with Anthony
David Scott Holloway, a New York-based visual storyteller, will talk about his travels with Anthony Bourdain as the still photographer for Bourdain’s CNN series “Parts Unknown,” as well as the three decades he has spent covering the white supremacist movement.
11-Noon Marvin Center Grand Ballroom
Two Different Photographic Journeys
A conversation between two visual storytellers who took markedly different paths to photographic success. Xyza Cruz Bacani, a Hong Kong-based freelance journalist, and Robert Miller, a deputy director of photography at the Washington Post, will participate in a free-flowing discussion about their work, and their approaches toward documentary storytelling.
1-2:15 p.m. Marvin Center Grand Ballroom
Migration Stories: Separating Truth from Rhetoric
World population migration is happening on an unprecedented scale. War, famine, corruption, poverty, climate change, and regime change are among the issues displacing people around the globe. In response, the photojournalists on this panel sponsored by Women Photojournalists of Washington attempt to unravel truth from rhetoric — telling stories of individuals, rather than mobs. Join moderator Molly Roberts, and panelists Michelle Frankfurter, Leah Millis, Carolyn Van Houten, and Sarah L. Voisin to discuss what they have witnessed.
2:30-3:30 p.m. Marvin Center Grand Ballroom
Eyeballin’ Life as a Visual Storyteller
A true trailblazer talks about how visual storytelling took her all the way to the White House and beyond. Sharon Farmer, the first African American woman to serve as the chief White House photographer, will talk about her career.
3:35-4:30 p.m. Marvin Center Grand Ballroom
Judging of the Live Photo Challenge
We gave festival registrants 96 hours to shoot, edit and submit spectacular images that best fit this year’s theme of “We have the biggest …” Our prestigious panel of judges—André Chung, Carl Juste, and Pablo Martínez Monsiváis—will provide a live critique of the finalists, picking an overall winner and runners up.
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Thank You to our sponsors!
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Don’t forget to tag your posts and tweets #FOTS19 and #CLICKDC. Find us on Instagram at @focus_onthe_story and @ClickDCFest Find us on Twitter at @FOtheStory and @ClickDCFest