Staff
Katie Leigh Creeggan-Ríos
Executive Director:
Katie Leigh Creeggan-Ríos
Pronouns: She/ Her
Katie Leigh Creeggan-Ríos is the Executive Director of the Houston Cinema Arts Society. She is a native Houstonian and worked professionally as a Stage Manager for ten years before transitioning into the world of arts and community engagement, through film. As the Executive Director of Houston Cinema Arts Society, Katie is the Producer of the Houston Cinema Arts Festival, the largest independent and international film festival in the City of Houston. She is also the co-founder and project manager of the Houston Media Conference, the largest regional professional development expo geared towards media professionals in Texas. She received her B.F.A. in Stage Management from the University of Houston School of Theatre & Dance and her M.A. in Arts Leadership from the University of Houston Kathrine G. McGovern College of the Arts. She is also a proud member of the Actors’ Equity Association.
Contact:
katie@cinemahtx.org
713.489.8859
Rachael Valentine Acosta
Community Partnerships and Programs Manager:
Rachael Valentine Acosta
Pronouns: They/ Them
Rachael Valentine Acosta is the Community Partnerships and Programs Manager for the Houston Cinema Arts Society. They are committed to reshaping social norms and amplifying the voices and stories of the underrepresented by servicing and creating safe spaces in which art and artists thrive. After 5 years of freelancing in film production, Rachael transitioned into film festival and nonprofit work. They have since worked for SXSW, ATX Television Festival, Austin Film Festival, Southwest Alternate Media Project (SWAMP), SFFILM, and the Sundance Institute.
Contact:
rachael@cinemahtx.org
713.489.6146
Michael D. Robinson
Lead Festival Programmer:
Michael D. Robinson
Pronouns: He/Him
Michael Robinson is an independent film programmer based in Houston who specializes in experimental and documentary films. He is currently the Lead Programmer for Houston Cinema Arts Festival, where he was previously the Associate Creative Director (2018–2022) and Programmer for the competition shorts block Borders | No Borders (2020–2025). He is the co-founder and current programmer for the monthly mobile queer film series, The Big Queer Picture Show, where he presents short and feature-length repertory and contemporary cinema. He also covers film locally for Outsmart Magazine. Michael was previously the Co-Artistic Director and Shorts Programmer for QFest, Houston’s International LGBTQ+ Film Festival (2017–2021). He is currently the Assistant Director of Marketing and Communications at Contemporary Arts Museum Houston. Michael received his BA in Anthropology and Film at Rice University.
Contact:
michael@cinemahtx.org
Autumn Johnson (she/her), Programmer, Borders | No Borders | autumn@cinemahtx.org
Hannia Yeverino (she/her), Submissions Coordinator, CineSpace | hannia@cinemahtx.org
Mekdese Haile (she/her), Festival Operations Coordinator | mekdese@cinemahtx.org
Julissa Guajardo (they/them), Conference Operations Coordinator | julissa@cinemahtx.org
Andrea Hoang (she/her), Volunteer & Community Engagement Coordinator | andrea@cinemahtx.org
Asia Anderson (she/her), Guest Artist & Community Engagement Coordinator | asia@cinemahtx.org
Grant Carr (he/him), Technical Coordinator | grant@cinemahtx.org
Bren Manard (he/they), Special Projects Coordinator | bren@cinemahtx.org
Consultants
Sosa Media Arts Services
Elizabeth Sosa Bailey, Public Relations and Sponsorships | elizabeth@cinemahtx.org
Karen Martinez, Digital Communications and Social Media | karen@cinemahtx.org
J.P. Satz Consulting
Jenny Podoloff, Accounting and Financial Management
SharpEgg, LLC
Jenny Conte, Cinema Arts Festival Graphic Design
Studio Vessel
Amina Maya, Houston Media Conference Graphic Design
For inquiries regarding:
Box Office: boxoffice@cinemahtx.org, 713.429.0420
Volunteering: volunteer@cinemahtx.org
Press: elizabeth@cinemahtx.org