Disability, Eastern Diversity Steering, Latino, LGBTQ+ and Women’s Steering Committees Announce Election Results

Directors Nick Copus, Ashley Eakin & Afia Serena Nathaniel have been elected as Co-Chairs of the Disability Committee; Directors Melissa Haizlip & Afia Serena Nathaniel & UPM Canella Williams-Larrabee as Co-Chairs of the Eastern Diversity Steering Committee; Directors Alejandro Brugués, Eli Gonda & Andrew Molina as Co-Chairs of the Latino Committee; and Directors Shaz Bennett, Jade Jenise Dixon & Valerie Weiss as Co-Chairs of the Women’s Steering Committee.

Additionally, for the Disability Committee, Director Rachel Raimist has been elected as the Western Director category representative, 2nd AD Alex Martini and 1st AD Thomas McAuley Burke as the Western and Eastern AD/UPM category representatives and Associate Director Dan Bowen as the Western AD/SM/PA category representative. For the Latino Committee, Director Carlos Lopez Estrada has been elected as the Director category representative and 1st AD Rene Villarreal as the AD/UPM category representative. For the Women’s Steering Committee, Director Mary Lou Belli has been elected as the Director category representative.

The LGBTQ+ Committee has also completed its representative elections with Directors Peter Paige, Jessica Lowrey and Steven Canals elected as Western Director category representatives; 1st AD Mark Hansson and UPM Steak House elected as Western AD/UPM category representatives; 1st AD Sarah R. Fairchild elected as Eastern AD/UPM category representative and Production Associate David B. Cooper elected as Eastern AD/SM/PA category representative. Directors Rhys Ernst and Kimberly Peirce and 1st AD Mark Hansson will continue in their posts as Co-Chairs of the Committee.

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About the Disability Committee Co-Chairs

Nick Copus Copus has served as a producing Director on series including Bel-Air, Titans, Animal Kingdom, Lethal Weapon, Siren, Into the Badlands, Salem, Damien, Alphas, True Tales of Terror and I Shouldn’t Be Alive. He has directed over 160 television episodes on 43 different series including episodes of American Gods, The Right Stuff, Queen of the South, Gotham, Arrow, Sleepy Hollow, Revolution, Nikita, The 4400 and The Dresden Files. A DGA member since 2006, Copus previously served as a Co-Chair of the DGA Disability Committee.

Ashley Eakin Eakin’s directorial credits include episodes of the series Growing Up and Best Foot Forward; and the shorts Forgive Us Our Trespasses, Blue and Exo. Her other short films, Single and Roommates, earned nominations for the Narrative Short Grand Jury Award at the 2020 and 2022 SXSW festival. Eakin became a DGA member in 2021.

Afia Serena Nathaniel Nathaniel’s directorial credits include the feature Dukhtar, which was Pakistan’s official submission for Foreign Language Film at the 87th Academy Awards; episodes of Chicago Med; and the shorts Nadah, Toba Tek Singh, Long After and Don’t be late, Myra. Nathaniel became a DGA member in 2022, and also serves as a Co-Chair of the Eastern Diversity Steering Committee.

About the Disability Committee

The   mission of the Disability Committee is to examine a broad range of issues DGA members with disabilities face on sets, with the goal of developing recommendations to address these matters. The Committee was created in 2023 where DGA members could lead the work to destigmatize disability as a way to empower other members to feel comfortable with disclosing their disability identity and push the industry towards greater acceptance of Directors and Directorial Team members with disabilities. In 2024, the Committee was designated a permanent committee by the DGA National Board.

About the Eastern Diversity Steering Committee Co-Chairs

Melissa Haizlip Haizlip’s directorial credits include the documentary features Satisfied and Mr. Soul! and an episode of the documentary series Independent Lens. Haizlip has been a DGA member since 2018.

Afia Serena Nathaniel Nathaniel’s directorial credits include the feature Dukhtar, which was Pakistan’s official submission for Foreign Language Film at the 87th Academy Awards; episodes of Chicago Med; and the shorts Nadah, Toba Tek Singh, Long After and Don’t be late, Myra. Nathaniel became a DGA member in 2022, and also serves as a Co-Chair of the Disability Committee.

UPM Canella Williams-Larrabee Williams-Larrabee’s credits include features such as Jingyi Shao’s Chang Can Dunk and Dayna Hanson’s Confession; and episodes of The Night Agent, The Crowded Room, The Best Man: The Final Chapters, Evil, Raising Dion, NCIS: New Orleans and the DGA Award-nominated limited series, The Undoing. A DGA member since 2019, Williams-Larrabee also serves as the Chair of the Eastern AD/UPM Council, and as a Second Alternate on the DGA National Board This is her third term as a Co-Chair of the EDSC.

About the Eastern Diversity Steering Committee

The Eastern Diversity Steering Committee represents the concerns of Guild members of African, Asian, Native American, Arab-Middle Eastern or Latino descent residing in the East. Committed to improving the employment opportunities, working conditions and the skills of ethnically diverse Guild members, the Committee sponsors workshops, seminars, round-table discussions and networking events to showcase the talents of its members, recognize their contributions and increase their visibility

About the Latino Committee Co-Chairs

About the Latino Committee

The Latino Committee was created as a networking group to advance career and job opportunities for Latino DGA members by improving craft skills, networking, and making Latinos better known to the Hollywood creative community. To achieve this mandate, the LC sponsors workshops, seminars, networking sessions and major events to showcase members’ talent, enhance qualifications, improve employment opportunities, and recognize our contributions to the industry.

About the Women’s Steering Committee Co-Chairs

Shaz Bennett Bennett’s directorial credits include the feature film, Alaska is a Drag — based on her short of the same name — as well as episodes of the series Billions, Queen Sugar, Animal Kingdom, Ordinary Joe and Bosch; and the short films Desert Rats, Top of the Circle and Tunnels. She has been a member of the DGA since 2019 and previously served as a Co-Chair of the Women’s Steering Committee.

Jade Jenise Dixon Dixon’s directorial credits include the features Truth Hall and Dog Park; and episodes of Raven’s Home and Kold x Windy. She has been a DGA member since 2022.

Valerie Weiss Weiss’s directorial credits include the feature films, Mixtape, The Archer, A Light Beneath Their Feet and Losing Control; the movie for television, An American Girl Story: Maryellen 1955 – Extraordinary Christmas; and episodes of Star Trek: Strange New Worlds, Echoes, Monarch, Outer Banks, Why Women Kill, Suits, Impulse and Echoes. A DGA member since 2016, Weiss currently serves on the Sustainable Future Committee and previously served as a Co-Chair of the Women’s Steering Committee.

About the Women’s Steering Committee

The Women’s Steering Committee was created to advance the professional interests of its members, and to heighten their visibility and career opportunities. The WSC currently promotes diversity through sponsoring networking events, screenings and seminars, and fosters relationships between the members to provide support, mentoring and networking opportunities.

About the LGBTQ+ Committee

The LGBTQ+ Committee was founded in 2021 as a provisional committee to explore ways to educate, inform, address the concerns of and create opportunities for members who identify in these categories. At the DGA National Board meeting on January 8, 2022, the Board voted make the LGBTQ+ Committee an official standing committee. The Committee is dedicated to empowering and advancing the professional interests of LGBTQ+ and to promoting and working for employment equity throughout the entertainment industry.