Creative Producer CV

(917) 776-7139 · betsy@rustleworks.com · https://vimeo.com/betsynagler/videos
Accomplished filmmaker with extensive experience in writing, producing, directing, editing, cinematography, and location sound.
Technical skills: screenwriting; picture, sound, and graphics editing work with Adobe Creative Suite; experience with sourcing from and compression, export and upload to online platforms including social media; proficiency with a variety of camera, lighting and sound equipment, including DSLR and mobile filmmaking gear.

FILMS
The Halloween House (2021) Producer, Director, Editor, Cinematographer. 4K, 7:28 min.
A short documentary on the most Halloweeny house in Brooklyn, and the community that loves it.

Flat Daddy (2011) Co-Director, Producer, Editor, Sound.  DV/HD, 82 min.
Independent feature documentary exploring the impact of the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq on four military families from across the United States. Further information at flatdaddydocumentary.com.

‘do  (2005) Director, Producer, Videographer, Co-Editor.  DV, 46 min.
A mid-length documentary that follows five New Yorkers through five years and 14 hairstyles to explore the connection between appearance and identity. Further information at dofilms.com.

Fear of Dogs (1995) Writer, Director, Producer, Editor. 16mm film, 23 min.
Narrative thesis film for the Graduate Film Program at NYU.

Dinosaurs are Different (1993) Writer, Director, Producer, Editor. 16mm film, 13 min.
Narrative second year film for the Graduate Film Program at NYU.

BROADCAST
Flat Daddy
PBS America, 2014-2016

FESTIVAL EXHIBITIONS AND HONORS
Flat Daddy  
Fallbrook Film Festival, 2013
Oceanside International Film Festival, 2012
California Independent Film Festival, 2012 
Montclair Film Festival, 2012
Maine International Film Festival, 2012
Best Educational Film, Las Vegas Film Festival, 2012
Atlanta Film Festival, 2012
Premiere, DOC NYC Festival, 2011
Advance Screening, GI Film Festival, 2011

‘do
Honorable Mention, Bronx Independent Film Festival, 2005

Fear of Dogs
Student Film Silver Plaque, Chicago International Film Festival, 1995

Dinosaurs are Different
Official Selection, Seattle International Film Festival, 1993
Official Selection, Philadelphia Film Festival, 1993

GRANTS, FELLOWSHIPS AND AWARDS
Flat Daddy
Individual Artists Grant, New York State Council on the Arts, 2008
Filmmaker Project Assistance Program, Women Make Movies, 2008
IFP Independent Film Week Spotlight on Documentaries Program, 2008

‘do
Community Arts Regrant,New York State Council on the Arts/Brooklyn Arts Council, 2004

Priceless (pilot screenplay)
Selected Project, The Writers Lab, November 2023
Selected Project, Stowe Narrative Lab, June 2023
Finalist, 2023 writersXwriters Screenplay Competition
Semifinalist, 2023 Atlanta Film Festival Screenplay Competition
Quarterfinalist, 2023 Vancouver International Women’s Film Festival Screenplay Competition, ScreenCraft Screenwriting Fellowship
Quarterfinalist, 2022 Big Apple Film Festival, Female Voices Rock Film Festival

Not Having It (pilot screenplay)
Quarterfinalist, 2023 Vancouver International Women’s Film Festival Screenplay Competition

Guys You Meet On the Subway (feature screenplay)
Quarterfinalist, 2012 Cynosure Screenwriting Awards

PUBLICATION
Personal Essays
Fresh Yarn – “I Want My RNC”(2004)
Revolving Floor  – “What’s for Chicken,” “Shit Happens,” “Naked, With a Nagra,” (2009); “Second Hand Fame,” “The Identification of Uncle Irving” (2010)

EXPERIENCE: CREATIVE PRODUCER/DIRECTOR-FOR HIRE
Rustle Works LLC (2014-present) Director, Producer, Cinematographer, Editor.
Work for hire including short documentaries (The Dodo), promotional videos (Cobble Hill Health Center, Code Liberation Foundation), game trailers (A Numbers Game), and interactive projects (Think/Point/Shoot: Media Ethics, Technology, and Global Change educational game), as part of studio partnership with developer Damon Holzborn. Conduct interviews, live action filming and iPhone screen capture, edit in Adobe Premiere. Conducted lighting, filming, sound recording, and interviewing of subjects; edited finished piece and created graphics in Adobe Premiere; sound edit and color-correction.
Conducted interviews, filmed b-roll, and edited a fundraising piece for the annual gala and website of a local nursing home. 

Mobilize Podcast (2017-present) Episode Producer, Sound Recordist, Editor. Audio.
Conducted, recorded and edited audio interviews about progressive activists seeking to create positive change in the U.S. 

Alessandra Biaggi for State Senate (2018) Producer, Co-Director, Video Editor. 4K/HD, distributed on social media.
Three videos for a successful state senate campaign, made in conjunction with non-profit Creative Resistance. Conducted interviews, filmed b-roll, animated still images, titles and graphics, combining all with music to reach final cut.

Bring Them Home (2006) Producer, Director, work for hire. DV, 2 min.
Anti-war video commissioned for the website of the Working Families Party, a growing third party in New York State. Strategized with clients; created and refined budgets for approval; hired freelance crew; directed non-actors and two-camera crew; collaborated with editor to refine cuts to client specs and deliver completed project.

The WFP: Making Things Happen (2005) Co-Director, Producer, Co-Editor, Location Sound, work for hire. DV, 12 min. 
Fundraising and educational piece commissioned by the Working Families Party to explain its workings and history. Strategized and developed concept with clients; created and refined budgets for approval; conducted all interviews; refined cuts to client satisfaction in FCP 7 and delivered completed assets to client. 

Blue’s Clues Video Letters (1998-1999) Writer, Director, work for hire. Betacam, 30 sec.
Short narrative stand-alone segments starring young children, aired as part of educational television show for ages 2-5. Produced by Cataland Films for Nickelodeon/Viacom Networks. Developed ideas, created scripts and storyboards; cast child actors; directed performances and supervised crew; collaborated with editor on finished pieces. 

EXPERIENCE: FREELANCE VIDEO EDITOR (2005-present)
Work as editor for hire in Final Cut Pro, Adobe Premiere, and After Effects including

LOCATION SOUND TECHNICIAN, New York, NY (1994-present)
List of credits as sound mixer, boom operator and utility at imdb.com, includes

  • Feature Films: If Beale Street Could Talk, Oh Hello on Broadway, Sisters, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles 1 & 2, The Day-Trippers, Walking and Talking, Before Night Falls, Happiness, Family Name.
  • TV shows: Mr. Robot, Pose, The Marvelous Mrs. MaiselUnbreakable Kimmy Schmidt, Billions, Power, Sneaky Pete, The Blacklist, The Good Wife, Elementary, Gossip Girl, The Following, Law & Order, The Sopranos.
  • Commercials: TD Bank, Capital One, Apple, Google, Samsung, Bud Light, Stella Artois, Optimum, Verizon, ESPN, Match.com, Cadillac, Expedia, L’Oreal, Maybelline, Nike, Starbucks, E*Trade.

EXPERIENCE: TEACHING FILM AND VIDEO
ADJUNCT ASSISTANT PROFESSOR, Brooklyn College CUNY, Dept of Undergraduate Film, Brooklyn, NY
Documentary Film (Spring/Fall 2016, Fall 2015, Spring 2009).
Taught course instructing intermediate and advanced undergraduates in documentary film history, production, and editing. 
Location Sound (Spring/Fall 2016, Spring 2015, Spring/Fall 2008, Fall 2006, Spring 2005). Taught course instructing undergraduates in how to record sound and integrate it into post-production.

ADJUNCT PROFESSOR, New York University Tisch School of the Arts, Dept of Undergraduate Film & TV, New York, NY 
Production Sound (Fall 1997, Spring/Fall 1998). Taught course in recording sound and integrating it into post-production.

EDUCATION
NYU Tisch School of the Arts, Department of Graduate Film & TV,
New York, NY
M.F.A., Film Production

Stanford University, Stanford, CA
B.A., Political Science