MCKINNEY, Texas - s4story -- The Champion Film Salon International Film Festival will take place Saturday, September 25^th at the Hyatt Regency Frisco-Dallas Hotel. In addition to a full slate of films, festival goers will enjoy an introspective panel discussion on Moving Towards Equality in the Film Industry.

Panelists include Model and actor ZALIKA "ZSTAR" THOMAS of Zstarrock Productions, H3Diversity CEO KIMBERLY MANNS, actor and writer JORDAN WALKER ROSS and DR. REBEKAH LOUISA SMITH, the celebrated film doctor. Longtime Dallas radio personality BLAKE LINDSAY will serve as moderator. "When speaking about working towards equality in the film industry, we couldn't have asked for a better panel!" says co-founder Cary Sandoval.

The CFSIFF was created by the co-founders to raise awareness for disabilities. With ongoing discussions and movements dedicated to inclusivity and diversity, it was important to the duo to create an artistic space to ensure the voices, talent, and work of filmmakers with disabilities and films about disabilities would be heard. Tickets for the festival are currently on sale https://filmfreeway.com/CFSIFF/tickets with festival passes starting at $15.

FESTIVAL SCHEDULE

8:00 AM Short Film Screenings

1:15 PM Panel Discussion

2:00 PM Feature Film Screenings

8:30 PM Awards Ceremony in the Copper and Steel Bar

For a full list of films visit www.cfsiff.com

All events take place in the Trinity Ballroom unless otherwise noted

CFSIFF is sponsored by Hyatt Regency Frisco-Dallas, Encore and Pappas Delta Blues Smokehouse. CFSIFF is proud to work in partnership with To Be Like Me, National Multiple Sclerosis Society and Beautiful Lives Project.

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ABOUT THE PANELISTS:

ZALIKA "ZSTAR" THOMAS
With a love of film and music, Model/Actor Zalika "Zstar" Thomas' passion for the arts became a business. At the age of fourteen, Thomas picked up a camera, and now, the entrepreneur operates her own studio in the heart of Downtown Dallas.  Thomas has produced reality shows, music videos, music festivals and an array of grand openings.

KIMBERLY MANNS
Kim is a passionate leader with a talent for supporting diverse stakeholders coming together to solve challenges of diversity, equity, and inclusion. Her career in diversity, equity, and inclusion began over 15 years ago, in brand management at Procter and Gamble, where she led multicultural marketing for major company brands. Following her time at Procter and Gamble, she served the Mayor of Baltimore as Deputy Director of Policy and Communications and joined the staff of the Commit Partnership in Dallas, a local non-profit focused on addressing educational inequities. In each of these roles, she focused on a systems approach to decrease educational and economic disparities.

JORDAN WALKER ROSS
Jordan is an actor, screenwriter, host and public speaker based out of Dallas, TX. He was born in 1990 in Arlington, TX, 2 months premature. This led to several medical issues - specifically minor cerebral palsy, severe scoliosis & even more severe asthma. Because of these conditions, Jordan spent much of his early life in and out of hospitals, undergoing countless medical procedures. Unlike other children, Jordan was never able to play sports or overexert himself. So, he was forced to find other hobbies. He was 6 when he discovered his love for acting after being cast in a local production of A Christmas Carol (playing Tiny Tim). By the time he was 16, Jordan had appeared in over 40 professional productions throughout Texas and California. He ventured into the film/TV when he was 12 - following in his grandpa's footsteps - actor Barry Corbin.

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Jordan is currently a series regular on The Chosen – the largest crowd-funded project of all-time! He is also a key antagonist in the upcoming historical drama, Washington's Armor and has several other projects in various stages of development – including a co-starring role in a new network historical drama series and a comedic supporting role in a major theatrical feature film that will be released next summer.

DR. REBEKAH LOUISA SMITH
Dr Rebekah Louisa Smith (aka Rebekah Film Dr) is an award-winning Film Festival Strategist and media personality with over 10 years of consulting experience.

Rebekah & the hard-working team behind her company; The Film Festival Doctor, are creators of success and are committed to nurturing filmmakers in order to help them secure an abundance of film festival screenings at high profile festivals including Locarno, Tribeca, Sundance, Aesthetica Short Film Festival and Busan, win awards and a positive recognition within the film industry. Currently her company have won over 1,000 awards for their clients, secured 1 Oscar nomination and several BAFTA longlisted short films. Rebekah and her team have supported over 848 creatives across the world enlightening and inspiring their journey towards achieving their goals and following their filmmaking dreams.

BLAKE LINDSAY, MODERATOR
Blake Lindsay is the Communications Director at the Dallas Lighthouse for the Blind. Visually impaired since infancy, Lindsay offers a unique perspective on all aspects of the Lighthouse communications programs.

Blake Lindsay is a well-known talent on such Dallas radio stations as 106.1 KISS FM. He manages his own production company, Blazin' Blake Productions, in his free time. Blake also authored the book Out of Sight Living: A Sightless Person with Perfect Vision.