A long-time motion picture production and marketing executive, Ricky Strauss joined Participant Media in March 2005 as President. In his post, he presides over all of Participant’s feature film production, acquisition and marketing efforts, as well as its television and publishing activities. Participant’s movies include such Academy Award®-nominated films as Good Night and Good Luck, North Country, The Kite Runner, Charlie Wilson’s War, The Visitor, and Syriana; the Academy Award®-winning documentaries An Inconvenient Truth and The Cove, and the Oscar®-nominated documentaries Murderball and Food, Inc. Other Participant titles include The Soloist, The Informant!, The Crazies, Fair Game, as well as the feature documentaries, Darfur Now, Standard Operating Procedure, Casino Jack and The United States of Money, Countdown to Zero and Waiting for “Superman.” Participant’s companion books for Food, Inc. and Waiting for “Superman”, published by PublicAffairs, are both New York Times best-sellers. Participant's upcoming slate for 2011 includes The Beaver, The Help, Contagion and The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel, as well as yet untitled documentaries about water scarcity and safety and hunger in America. Prior to joining Participant, Ricky ran his own film and television production company, Ricochet Entertainment, where he executive produced The Sweetest Thing, starring Cameron Diaz, among other projects. Before Ricochet, Ricky served as Senior Vice President of Production at Sony, where he developed and supervised film projects for the studio. From 1988 to 1997, he served as an advertising executive at Columbia Pictures, creating award winning ad campaigns for many feature films. A longtime supporter of social issues and community service, Ricky served on the Board of Directors for Project Angel Food, the Los Angeles-based non-profit organization that delivers hot meals to homebound persons with AIDS and other serious illnesses. He is currently the Interim Director of The Trevor Project Board of Directors, which operates the only 24 hour national suicide lifeline for troubled gay youth, and is a filmmaker mentor for Project: Involved, a fellowship program sponsored by Film Independent, a non-profit organization dedicated to helping independent filmmakers. Ricky attended the University of Vermont, graduating Phi Beta Kappa (cum laude) with a BA in English and theater.
organization providing crisis intervention and
suicide prevention services to lesbian, gay,
bisexual, transgender, and questioning youth.
About Trevor
Board of Directors
Warren Cohn is a Vice President and Senior Director with BNY Mellon`s Wealth Management practice and heads up the Entertainment Practice on the West Coast. Warren has over 16 years experience in the financial services markets and industry’s and is responsible for representing BNY Mellon’s wealth management services to the very affluent community, including high net worth individuals, families and non-profits and foundations. In addition to providing financial services to the high net-worth community, Mr. Cohn is associated with BNY Mellon’s Entertainment Practice. For many decades, BNY Mellon has served the unique investment and financial management needs of athletes, actors, musicians, entertainers, producers, writers, executives and all others who comprise this industry. Warren began his investment management career with UBS PaineWebber in 1993 in Washington DC and then Miami, Florida. Warren went on to hold senior management positions with companies specializing in the financial services arenas before joining the Bank of New York Mellon Corporation in 2006. His broad and deep capital markets and investment banking experience provides a valuable resource to his clients and their financial, legal and tax advisors. Warren received a Bachelor of Arts (B.A.) degree from The George Washington University in Washington, D.C. and a Masters of Business Administration (M.B.A.) degree from Nova Southeastern University in Florida. He is actively involved in numerous business, social and political organizations including an executive committee member for the Entertainment Division of The Jewish Federation, Human Rights Campaign, ambassador club member of American Israel Public Affairs Committee, as well as involved with Vision Youthz, The Trevor Project, and The Ronald McDonald Foundation. He enjoys collecting wine, cooking for guests, reading spy novels, traveling around the world and staying active with jogging, surfing, snowboarding and playing ice hockey.
Meredith Kadlec , a native of Detroit, Michigan, studied film history in college and then did post-graduate work at Prague’s prestigious film school, F.A.M.U. She moved to Los Angeles to work as a production assistant on the hit show MAD ABOUT YOU, and then worked as Paul Reiser’s assistant and writer’s assistant, before joining “Mad” co-creator Danny Jacobson’s Infront Productions, based at Twentieth Century Fox. Meredith was Infront’s longtime Director of Development, nurturing numerous pilots and features for NBC, ABC, Fox, Warner Bros, DreamWorks and Paramount, among others. Most recently, Meredith was Senior Vice President, Original Programming and Feature Development for Here Media, overseeing development and production of original series for the company's premium cable network, as well as feature films for its independent film arm. Meredith currently serves as Co-Vice Chair of the Board and Co-Chair on the Board Development committee for The Trevor Project.
Christian Dowell serves as Legal Director of Global Brand Protection at Yahoo! Inc. As a member of Yahoo!’s in-house legal team, Christian manages the worldwide brand protection efforts for the Yahoo! family of brands, including Yahoo!, Flickr, Delicious, and Maktoob. He is responsible for managing a heavy docket of U.S. and foreign litigation, as well as focusing on Yahoo!’s anti-phishing and anti-spam efforts. Prior to joining Yahoo!, Christian was an associate at the firm of Keats McFarland & Wilson in Beverly Hills, California. While at KMW, Christian enjoyed the distinct opportunity to work with some of the world’s most recognizable brands and intellectual property content providers, including major motion picture studios, multi-platinum Grammy award-winning artists, and leading video game producers. Christian handled brand research and development matters, as well as a full docket of intellectual property litigation, licensing matters, and commercial class action cases.
Jason Oclaray is Vice President of Greendale Capital, LLC. His responsibilities include investment advisory and managerial duties as well as involvement in the Biller Family Foundation. Prior to joining Greendale Capital in 2007, Mr. Oclaray was a Financial Consultant at Wells Fargo`s Private Bank, where he advised affluent individuals and foundations on investment management and banking. He began his career at Wells Fargo in 1995, and joined the Private Bank in 1999. Mr. Oclaray has been a board member at The Trevor Project since 2007 and is proud to serve as its current Treasurer. Mr. Oclaray is a graduate of the University of Southern California (B.A with Honors, magna cum laude, English, 1999), and is a member of the Phi Beta Kappa honors society.
Chris Allieri leads corporate communications in the strategy practice at Accenture, a global management consulting, technology services and outsourcing company. Chris joined the Trevor Project board in January 2010 and also serves as a Lifeguard program volunteer in New York City schools and as a member of the New York Steering Committee. He has executed successful media relations, strategic messaging and branding, crisis communications, corporate social responsibility and public affairs initiatives over the past fourteen years for a diverse array of clients including Motorola, Toyota, The Coca-Cola Company, The World Bank, The American Legacy Foundation/truth campaign, Petrobras, Capital One and Harry and David. Chris has extensive experience in non-profit, public affairs and advocacy programs. He was Director of Communications of MOUSE, a leading national organization integrating technology into public schools. He served three consecutive terms as a board member of Manhattan Community Board IV, representing Manhattan`s West Side. Chris received his MA in international affairs from Columbia University and a BA with honors in environmental studies and Latin American studies from the University of Colorado at Boulder. Chris is co-chair of Trevor NY, the organization's annual gala East Coast fundraiser, for 2010 and 2011.
Richard Ayoub is an Emmy-award winning producer with tremendous television and digital credentials. Richard helped lead tow major newsrooms in Los Angeles including KABC-TV and KCBS. He is the founder of the CyberGuy, which is seen by 12 million people a week. And, was the senior producer at national shows such as World's Most Amazing Videos, Hard Copy and Extra. Richard is also a sought-after expert in new media, he served as Executive Vice President of Programming for ManiaTV!, the worlds only 24 live TV network, for two years. And, most recently was Sr. Editor with RadarOnline.com. Richard is the creator and Executive Producer of a docu-reality seriers "Under The Cardboard". Richard has been a board member of The Trevor Project since 2006. He is also the co-founder of Friends of Lockwood. Richard was asked to join the board of The Trevor Project after he organized several fundraiser that set the standard for house party fundraisers.
Dustin Lance Black , winner of the 2008 Academy Award® for Best Original Screenplay for “Milk,” the biopic of the late gay rights activist Harvey Milk, was recognized by The Trevor Project last year with The Trevor Hero Award, which annually honors an individual who, through his or her example, support, volunteerism and/or occupation, is an inspiration to LGBTQ youth. “All of the work we’re doing today to win LGBT equality is for these young people’s futures. So it is vital that we insure they survive today’s challenges so they might know tomorrow’s freedoms” said Dustin Lance Black. “I’m honored to have the opportunity to continue and expand my involvement with this lifesaving organization as a member of the Board of Directors.”
Lisa Brende was born and raised in Woodland Hills, California, and currently resides in Los Feliz. She has been a realtor with Coldwell Banker since 2002, and specializes in the sale of residential real estate in the Hollywood Hills, Los Feliz, Silver Lake and West Hollywood. She graduated with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Film Studies from UC Santa Barbara. Lisa has been actively involved in other charitable organizations over the past several years, and participated as a cyclist in the California Aids Ride in 2003. Lisa has been volunteering with the Trevor Project as a Helpline Counselor since February 2008, and joined the Board of Directors in March 2009.
Ken Campbell has been a professional in the emerging technology and media industry for the past 15 years. Starting his career with Accenture and quickly rising through the ranks serving clients such as Time Warner, Paramount Pictures, DirecTV, and CNN. Ken is one of the founders of Accenture`s Media & Entertainment Practice. After Accenture, Ken became a thought leader in e-Commerce for a company called WHN.com who served the television industry operating over 20 online stores. Currently, Ken is VP, of Business Development at Schematic, a full service interactive agency based in Los Angeles with offices in New York and Atlanta. Ken has been very involved with GLAAD, GLSEN, and APLA. Ken lives in Los Angeles with his two Golden Retrievers.
Brian Dorsey is a business owner, executive coach, creative producer and is involved in a wide range of philanthropic and volunteer activities. Brian is a principal owner of Sellers Feinberg LLC, a national healthcare company that designs and implements programs that reduce the number of uninsured and addresses the cost and quality of healthcare. The firm was the consultant to Massachusetts in their groundbreaking program to provide universal healthcare coverage and is now working with many states throughout the country. Brian oversees corporate communications and is responsible for the firm`s leadership development program. As a certified life coach, he has spoken internationally on the topic of integrating humor into the Coaching method. His production company, The Red Rose Project LLC, supports theatrical, film and television projects that foster a spirit of collaboration and attention to LGBTQ-relevant themes. It`s inaugural project, The Red Rose Girls, is a musical in development based on Alice Carter`s best selling book of the same name. The focus of his philanthropic and volunteer activities include The Trevor Project, The Gay and Lesbian Leadership Council of the Democratic National Committee, Victory PA, The Gill Foundation, the Allens Lane Art Center of Philadelphia and Big Brothers Big Sisters.
Al Duncan is Head of Communications at OpenX, the world`s leading independent ad server for web publishers. Prior to OpenX, Al was at GoTo.com/Overture/Yahoo! for six years. At Overture, he headed up media relations for the pioneer of paid search during the period of triple-digit growth and the company’s rapid march to profitability, global market leadership and its ultimate acquisition by Yahoo! Prior to Overture, Al worked in the entertainment business for more than a decade. He worked in feature film production at Warner Bros. and Fox and as a literary agent at Creative Artists Agency, where he was a member of the Motion Picture Literary Department. Al holds a B.A. in European History from Vanderbilt University and a J.D. from Vanderbilt University School of Law, where he served as Associate Managing Editor of the Vanderbilt Law Review. Al hails from New Orleans and has lived around the world, spending a number of years in Australia and Spain. While living in Madrid, Al served in the United States Embassy where he was a Department of State Intern in the embassy’s Political Section. When not chatting with members of the media, Al will most likely be found traveling to someplace pretty far off the beaten track and, ideally, scuba diving along a colorful reef somewhere in the Indian or Pacific ocean.
Jeffrey Fishberger, MD is the Supervising Psychiatrist for Samuel’s Center for Comprehensive Care at St. Luke’s-Roosevelt Hospital Center where he provides mental health services for the patients enrolled in the HIV center. Prior to his current position, Dr. Fishberger held positions at Beth Israel’s Comprehensive Care Center, Spellman Center for HIV-Related Diseases at St. Clare’s Hospital and Health Center & SUNY/Health Sciences Center at Brooklyn. He is Board Certified by the American Board of Psychiatry and Neurology and a member of the American Psychiatric Association. Since May 2005, Dr. Fishberger has been a member of The Trevor Project’s New York Steering Committee and is currently the Co-Chair of the Program Committee.
Joel Flatow is General Manager, West Coast Operations and Senior Vice President, Artist and Industry Relations for the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA), the trade association which represents the major U.S. recording companies. Flatow is the lead contact for all RIAA functions and operations on the west coast, including leading RIAA’s state relations, politics and policy for California and serving as its voice in the State Legislature in Sacramento, in addition to being the chief liaison to entertainment and political figures in Los Angeles. Flatow created (and currently heads) the RIAA’s artist relations program, building relationships directly with individual recording artists and producing major music events on Capitol Hill, as well as for Presidential Conventions and Inaugurals. He also created and heads the industry relations department, for which he was termed in a recent L.A. Times profile (July 14, 2008) as “The RIAA’s Musical Diplomat.” He previously served as Legislative Director of the Congressional Arts Caucus, advocating for Federal support for the arts within Congress, and also served as Special Assistant to the late Senator Daniel Patrick Moynihan. He is a graduate of Yale University, as well as Juilliard and Manhattan School of Music Pre-Colleges and serves on the Board of AIDs Project Los Angeles (APLA). He’s proud to have served as Co-Chair of Trevor’s 2008 and 2009 NYC Gala.
Michael A. Graham is a Partner at the law firm of Pond North LLP working out of the firms Los Angeles and San Francisco offices. He has handled civil trials and appeals for toxic tort, products liability, and employment cases on behalf of numerous Fortune 500 corporations in both federal and California courts. In addition, he has counseled private and public employers in matters involving employment-discrimination litigation and provided general labor and employment law advice. Mr. Graham received a Bachelor of Science in Foreign Service from Georgetown University and his law degree from the Georgetown University Law Center . In addition, he also attended the University of Vienna, Austria.
Bonnie Graves is building a multi-platform brand around wine, travel and lifestyle. Similar to media personalities like Martha Stewart, Wolfgang Puck and Rachael Ray, Graves aims to share her unique wine expertise via both traditional outlets and digital channels in a way that is informative, inclusive and fun. She has extensive “insider” industry experience as a sommelier at legendary restaurants such as Jean-Georges, Union Square Café and Spago Beverly Hills, and is a Harvard graduate fluent in several languages. Recent television appearances include a FINE LIVING show in Santa Barbara’s wine country and a feature episode on Champagne for WEALTH TV. She has also been featured in USA Today, MSNBC, the Los Angeles Times, Daily Variety, Patterson’s Beverage Journal and California Wine and Food. Graves founded her own wine consulting company, New Medici LLC, in 2005; a sought-after wine educator in the Los Angeles market, she frequently teaches classes and arranges tastings for corporate and private clients. Graves also writes the popular “Girl Meets Grape” blog for Yahoo’s digital food channel and is the Food and Wine Editor for Luxury Life & Style magazine. When not drinking fermented grape juice, she enjoys hiking in National Parks with her husband and baby daughter.
Bill Harrison is the President and Chief Operating Officer of Fifteen Minutes – a boutique media relations and strategic communications agency based on Los Angeles. Bill brings strong marketing and business development experience that includes work with some of the world's most recognized media, communications, technology companies and personalities. In his role at Fifteen Minutes, Bill guides strategic initiatives and business development on behalf of the agency, while running its Corporate & Filmed Entertainment division. Prior to Fifteen Minutes, he served as head of corporate communications for Paradigm Talent Agency, managing media outreach and internal communications. Previous to Paradigm, Bill played a senior level role at PMK/HBH, now PMK*BNC, Public Relations, working on behalf of the agency's corporate entertainment clients. In 2010, Bill served as the event co-chair for Trevor Live in Los Angeles and currently serves on The Trevor Project’s development committee. Bill serves on the board of directors for The Art of Elysium and is an ambassador council member of AIDS Project Los Angeles.
A native of Southern California, Dianne Molina is a seasoned marketing, public relations and Web communications strategist. She currently serves as the Editorial Manager at Twitter, focusing on engaging brands and advertisers. She formerly worked in marketing at Yahoo!, dispensed relationship advice as Online Editor at eHarmony.com and oversaw media relations at SpaceX, a rocket (yes, rocket!) company started by PayPal and Tesla Motors founder, Elon Musk. A two-time alum of the USC, Dianne bleeds cardinal and gold. She is a member of Skull and Dagger and the USC Wall of Scholars. In her free time, Ms. Molina enjoys consuming food and fashion and writes about both on her popular blog. She is honored to be associated with the dedicated staff, volunteers and board members of the Trevor Project.
Scott A. McPhail was born and raised in Wichita, KS., where upon graduating from the University of Kansas in 1994, he moved to Los Angeles to begin working in the entertainment industry. In 1996, Scott began at DreamWorks Studios working in the art department within the animation division. In 1998, Scott became a founding board member of the Kansas Connection, inc., a non-profit organization dedicated to bridging the communication and education between the heartland and the entertainment industry in Hollywood. In 1999 Scott produced the award-winning short film, The Good Things. In 2000, Mr. McPhail left DreamWorks Studios to produce his second film, Nice Guys Finish Last. After touring the film festival circuit, Scott was named head of Business Development for Without a Box, the online film festival submission service. In 2002, Scott returned to DreamWorks Animation where he helped develop and build the Animation Marketing and Production Services department, where he currently serves as Sr. Manager within the Department. Within the Trevor Project organization, Scott has served as co-chair of Cracked Xmas 8, 9 and 10. In addition, Scott currently serves as the Co-Chair of the Board Development Committee for the organization.
Michael currently serves as Creative Director of Brand Development at Arnell, an Omnicom Marketing and Branding Agency. This unique position was created specifically for him when he worked at DDB New York prior to joining Arnell. Working with both the creative and strategy departments, Michael establishes and executes a brand vision and creative platform that drives every facet of communications, product innovation and corporate culture. In addition, he continuously monitors the trends and that impact and reflect key consumer targets, including the ever-changing young adult market. For seven years, he was Global Creative Director on Jose Cuervo International, working with local agencies around the world to implement global campaigns for their complete portfolio of tequilas. He has tackled a diverse range of creative and strategic challenges for Samsung, Martha Stewart, Chanel, Playboy, Tommy Hilfiger, Almay/Revlon, LVMH, Lipton Tea, Hersheys, Knorr, Philips, Pepsi, Naked Juices, GNC, several watch companies, a variety of luxury hotel properties and The Guggenheim Museum. Prior to working in marketing, Michael started as a playwright in New York and lived in Los Angeles working as a writer in film and television. In addition, Michael created pilots for ABC/Disney, developed a screenplay at Warner Bros. and worked in sitcoms.
Ruben Ramirez is a Reporter and Producer at Reuters Television covering business and financial news. He is based in New York. Ramirez has reported for Reuters across the United States and around the world. Ramirez is part of the highly successful Reuters Summits program where he interviews CEOs and newsmakers on key business issues of the day. In addition to his television reporting duties, Ramirez contributes print articles and blog posts to the Reuters News Service. Ramirez played a key role in the coverage of Hurricane Katrina. Prior to joining Reuters, Ramirez was a producer at CNN and CNN Financial News. While at CNN, Ramirez was part of the network`s Emmy-Award winning coverage of 9/11. At CNN, Ramirez produced stories out of the network’s Washington Bureau and also produced stories out of Cuba and Colombia. Before that, he was a writer and segment producer at CNBC. Ramirez began his career at ABC News in New York as a desk assistant/field producer for Good Morning America and World News Tonight Weekend. Ruben Ramirez studied Finance and Broadcast Journalism at Boston University. Ramirez holds memberships in the National Academy of Television Arts & Sciences, the National Association of Hispanic Journalists, the National Lesbian and Gay Journalists Association and the Financial Securities Industry Exchange. Ramirez is a native of Austin, Texas. In his spare time he enjoys skiing, running, listening to live music and cheering for the San Diego Padres and the Tennessee Titans. Ramirez lives in Hoboken, NJ.
Jeffrey Paul Wolff was born and raised in Los Angeles, California (Woodland Hills) and now resides in Atlanta, GA. Jeffrey received a Bachelor’s degree in Criminal Justice from the University of Phoenix. He is Vice President/District Manager for Wells Fargo Bank in the Southern Atlanta area. With over fifteen years of experience in the banking and financial services industry, Jeffrey has held various roles. His leadership experience includes roles in Enterprise Customer Care, Retail Banking and has spanned many of the markets within Southern California. He is involved with many nonprofit organizations. Jeffrey has been volunteering with the Trevor Project for over six years serving on the Program and Trevor Ambassador Committee. He was on the event committee for Cracked X-Mas 10 and served as Co-Chair for Cracked X-Mas 11 & 12.
