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VOZA RIVERS

Voza Rivers is an accomplished African-American theatre, music, film and events producer. He serves as Executive Producer of New Heritage Theatre Group, celebrating its 50th anniversary, and Chairman of the Harlem Arts Alliance, a cultural arts service organization of over 850 members.
Rivers is a prolific filmmaker who began his journey into film in 1987 when he joined attorney Clarence B. Jones, playwright Jamal Joseph and actor/singer Lainie Cooke to form Greenlight Films. As one of the producers of the South African Broadway musical “Sarafina!” in 1989 he served as a consultant for the “Sarafina!” documentary and the “Sarafina!” feature film starring Whoopi Goldberg. He has produced numerous film shorts, documentaries, and the Harlemwood Film Festival. A partial listing of Rivers’ films include the award winning “Hughes Dream Harlem,” “Sonia Sanchez: Shake Loose Memories,” “Percy Sutton: A Man for All Seasons,” ”Da Zone,” Drive By: A Love Story,” “The Black New Yorkers,” “Burning Sands,” The 95th Anniversary of the National Urban League, the 110th Anniversary of The Greater Harlem Chamber of Commerce, “Harlem Is Music,” “Harlem is Theater,” and “Harlem is Gospel” documentaries.

In 1997, he and Jamal Joseph co-founded New Heritage Films and the Harlemwood Film Festival. In 2002, he served as Co-Executive producer of Columbia University film student Randy Dottin’s short film “A Alike,” winner of the student Academy Award Gold Medal. He is a founding organizer of the Black Panther Film Festival with Columbia University Professor Jamal Joseph and Yale University Professor Kathleen Cleaver. He is a co-Executive producer of “The Savoy King,” a feature length documentary about famed band leader of the 40’s Chick Webb, featuring the voices of Bill Cosby, Andy Garcia, Danny Glover, Billy Crystal, Janet Jackson, John Legend, and Tyne Daly that recently screened at the 50th Anniversary of the Lincoln Center New York Film Festival. He is an advisory member of Tribeca All Access.

Rivers is currently working with West Coast documentary filmmaker Jeff Kaufman on two films: “Father Joseph,” about the life of the Haitian priest and his work with the poor and “State of Marriage” about marriage equality in Vermont.

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