Team

Beadie Finzi (UK)

Co-Executive Director

Beadie Finzi is one of the founding directors of Doc Society, a non profit foundation with team based in Europe, East Africa, the Americas and Australia, dedicated to supporting independent filmmaking globally. Since 2005 we have supported 450+ projects and directly regranting $22M to filmmakers in over 40 countries. Leveraging our support to unlock tens of millions more in resources for the whole field.

In addition to grant making for artists and journalists and supporting their creative process, we help them develop impact strategies and connect with communities and allies beyond the media industry and across civil society.

Our preoccupation goes beyond the right of artists to self-expression to the right of citizens to access public interest media - and to the global media ecosystem that we need to make all of that possible. Beadie works day to day with many global partners who are also focused on this challenge.

Within Doc Society Beadie also has her shoulder to the wheel behind the Climate Story Unit and now the Democracy Story Unit. Two major global narrative strategy experiments - focused on unleashing transformative storytelling to advance a just future. 

Maxyne Franklin (USA)

Director

Maxyne is one of the founding Directors of Doc Society and shares responsibility for overseeing the film funding programmes. She also sits on the selection committee for the Good Pitch events and oversees the annual DOC Impact Awards; celebrating the films that have made the greatest impact on society.

For Doc Society, Maxyne has been lucky enough to executive produce a number of award-winning films including Virunga, All These Sleepless Nights, Hooligan Sparrow, The Possibilities are Endless, The Square, Pussy Riot, Hell & Back Again, Ping Pong and Afghan Star.

As of 2015 Maxyne relocated to New York to head up the US office, Doc Society Inc. Since there she has been deepening relationships with partners and working with our talented collective of US based filmmakers.

Nikki Heyman (USA)

Film Officer

Nikki is a three-time Emmy Award-winning producer and programmer experienced in the non-profit and brand-driven spaces. She strives to be a champion of diverse cinema and constantly pushing for equity in the field. At Doc Society she works across US funds as Film Officer. Nikki's most recent experience at Tribeca Studios afforded her the opportunity to produce narrative and documentary alike, elevating voices and stories through corporate programs such as P&G's 8:46 and the Queen Collective. Prior to Tribeca, Nikki was the co-producer for the acclaimed documentary show POV on PBS. Nikki curated for the series across seven seasons, oversaw series production, and provided editorial support to independent documentary filmmakers. Nikki has served on panels and juries across the U.S. and abroad. She holds a Bachelors degree in Cinema Studies from Oberlin College and is a member of the Producers Guild of America. Nikki is an avid beach bum, an easy crier, and a popcorn aficionado.

Sandra Whipham (UK)

Co-Executive Director & Lead, Democracy Story Unit

Sandra Whipham is one of the five co-directors of Doc Society. She heads up the Democracy Story Unit, which will bring storytellers into an ecosystem with academics, activists, journalists and social scientists to think together about what narratives about democracy are most needed and most effective. Previously, Sandra managed the BFI Doc Society Fund, distributing National Lottery funding to UK filmmakers. She has also been a producer and commissioning editor at Channel 4.

Shanida Scotland (UK)

Co-Executive Director & Head of Film

Shanida Scotland is an award-winning commissioning editor and executive producer, working within documentary film and audio. Shanida is the new Head of Film at Doc Society. Before Doc Society, Shanida was Commissioning Editor at The Guardian and worked long term at STORYVILLE, the BBC’s multi award-winning flagship international documentary strand. Shanida developed the ongoing series AFTERWORDS, an award-winning audio documentary series that puts the ideas of great writers into dialogue with contemporary writers, academics and activists, for Falling Tree Productions and BBC Radio 3 and 4.

Shanida is interested in the alternative, the intimate and the liminal: visual and sonic resonant qualities, that which remain meaningful and impactful through time.

Outside of Doc Society, Shanida regularly hosts documentary Q&As for the Barbican’s ScreenTalk strand and manages a delightful dance between sci-fi reading group, sonic explorations and terrible drumming.

Zeena Starbuck (UK)

Democracy Story Unit Officer / Coordinator, The DISCO Network

As Research & Insights Officer for Doc Society’s Democracy Story Unit (DSU), Zeena co-leads the development and delivery of cultural strategy initiatives for the DSU, including the Big Tech Narrative Initiative, Queer Now, and Democracy Story Labs. As Coordinator for The DISCO Network - an alliance of cultural organisations across five continents - she facilitates and manages the network’s governance, strategic direction, research initiatives, and event production. Zeena led the research and production of DISCO's Independence Project, collaborating with global filmmakers and documentary organisations to design qualitative research programs, conduct interviews, and curate publications and flagship events including the Declaration of Independence at CPH:DOX, Getting Real, and Sheffield DocFest. Zeena has served as a jury member, panellist, and event facilitator across several regional and international film festivals, including Double Exposure, Docs By The Sea, and Movies That Matter.

Currently based in London, she previously lived and worked in Seoul, Hangzhou, and New York City across podcast media, digital media, non-profit, and research roles. Zeena holds an MSc in History of International Relations from the LSE and a BA in History of International Relations with Study Abroad from the University of Exeter. Zeena’s research has looked at intersections between international affairs and social justice via decolonial epistemologies, with recent emphasis on how transnational identities are articulated, developed, and shared through stage and screen representations.