Details
Date: Sunday - October 19, 2025
Time: 1:00 PM​
Duration: 30 MINS
FREE TO THE PUBLIC
Venue: Plainfield High School
950 Park Ave, Plainfield, NJ 07060
Panel Description
Navigating media as a member of a marginalized, underrepresented community in a shifting political landscape requires resilience, creativity, and strategy. The landscape often demands balancing authenticity with the pressures of gatekeepers who may not fully value or understand diverse voices. In film, television, multimedia, art, literature, and business, creators of color must push through systemic barriers while seizing opportunities to tell stories that challenge stereotypes and affirm cultural truths. Each work becomes both an act of resistance and empowerment, shaping narratives that not only reflect lived experiences but also influence how future generations see themselves and their place in the world.
Fireside Discussion Moderated by QCFF Founder Lamar D. Mackson
Jamal Simmons is an American political advisor who formerly served as the communications director for Vice President Kamala Harris from January 2022 to January 2023. He has been featured as a political commentator for CBS News, NPR, MSNBC, CNN, and The Hill. In 2009, Washington Life magazine named Simmons as one of its most influential people under 40
Lamar Mackson is a Producer and Assistant Director from Plainfield NJ. His most recent work on Paramount Plus' "How Music Got Free" gained his induction into the Director's Guild of America. His filmography and credits include The Cooking Channel's PATTI'S PLACE with Patti Labelle, Multimedia Entertainment's News Talk Television, Damages starring Glen Close, KITCHEN NIGHTMARES featuring Gordon Ramsay, EXTREME HOME MAKEOVERS, Viacom's THE MONTEL WILLIAMS SHOW, THE PHIL DONAHUE SHOW, as well as Spike Lee's SUMMER OF SAM. Mackson also served as Assistant Director on the popular hidden camera show IMPRACTICAL JOKERS on TruTV.
Lamar currently runs his company Nonstop Show Group , is the founder of the Queen City Film Festival, now in its 8th year and currently serves as Chairman of the Union County, NJ Motion Picture & TV Advisory Board.