William is an Actor/ Producer/ Director and Founder of the Miami short Film Festival. William has over 15 years working as a TV producer and a professional actor in over 250 local, national and international TV commercials and films. He is a creative and dynamic leader in the entertainment field with continued success in TV productions content, event planning and media productions. Mr. Vela is been focused on expanding the MsFF to a local, national and international audience while integrating influential and diverse partners and sponsors.

An award winning filmmaker-producer who created IndieClub.com South Florida in 1999, a networking organization for local filmmakers, renowned for its weekly newsletters, that has become a staple in the South Florida film community. Program director for 2011′s MSFF seminars, “Tommorrow’s Filmmakers Today” and the “I’m Not Gonna Move To LA” event and will soon be working as the program director for Multiversal – Art Basel Film Festival.

Melany’s love and admiration for foreign films has made her actively and heartily participate in the PR and Marketing of MSFF since 2003. She considers each film the perfect presentation of talent and genius, which can only be brought together by the remarkable individuals involved in the making of each film. She is honored to be part of this momentous celebration, a decade of incredible films!

With over 25 years of advanced administrative support in both the public and private sectors, Ms. Celpa Gomez has worked closely with the Executive Director and Founder of the Miami Short Film Festival in all aspects of Operations since the Festival’s inception. She earned an Associate’s in Psychology, a Bachelor’s in Public Administration, and is currently pursuing a Master’s in Public Administration.

Born and raised in Newport, Rhode Island, Maggie moved to Miami in 2005 to study at the University of Miami where she received her Bachelor’s in both Economics and Motion Pictures. Upon graduation, she received a full scholarship to continue her education in the M.F.A Producing Program. While completing her Masters, Maggie began working for the Miami short Film Festival and in 2010 served as MsFF’s Programming Director. Maggie has returned in 2011 to oversee filmmaker outreach, after finishing the production of her first independent feature, El Empantanado.

Mike Mejia has produced short films including award-winning “St. Paul” (Imagen Award Winner, Best Short New York Int’l Latino FF, Miami Short FF Commitee Award), “Cookie” (Holly Shorts Finalist, NBC Universal Shortcuts Finalist, Tribeca FF selection) and “Evergreen” (Las Vegas FF Finalist, Big Apple FF selection). He is a Business graduate from Queens College and studied Filmmaking in both New York Film Academy and New York University. Mike is currently in pre-production in NYC with Director Francisco Ordonez on a feature film titled “Asher” and in development on other feature scripts including “Purple Hearts” with Onpoint Pictures and “Bare Knuckle” with Writer/Director David Tianga. Mike also manages music and marketing projects through his company, RetroSoul Entertainment.

Armando joined the festival on the year 2010 and quickly became an asset to spreading the word of this great festival through social networks. Being twitter and facebook savvy and a Miami Socialite, he quickly targeted a younger crowd that became attracted to the outstanding quality of the festival. He is the Social Media Director for the festival and be sure to follow and like his outrageous comments! @AdoNino Facebook.com/ad0.nin0

Ariel Rubalcava is an Emmy Award winning editor with over 20 years of production experience. He has worked for NBC, Telemundo, Univision and the Disney Network. He has been the technical director for the Miami Short Film Festival since its inception.

Georgina joined the MsFF team in 2011 as Assistant to Festival Director, William Vela. Georgina has dedicated over 15 years to community service and has held several positions as Administrative Assistant to Executive Level Management in the Legal, Oil Industry, Engineering and Medical fields. By joining the MsFF team, she brings her expertise and organizational knowledge to the arts scene. As every good director needs a producer, every festival needs and organizer. Georgina assists with all aspects of the festival to streamline operations in 2011 and enhance the project for year’s to come.

Melanie D’Andrea is a filmmaker currently pursuing a MFA in Film and Television Production at the University of Southern California. She believes in the power of film and multimedia to inspire thought and change. She is MsFF’s Director of Festival Initiatives, and hopes to open up the possibilities and reach of the MsFF.