Two New Members Elected to Join NDFS

BY SCOTTIE KNOLLIN

Twice a year, in January and July, the North Dakota Film Society’s members vote to elect new members. To be considered, applicants must fall under at least one of four categories: filmmaker, journalist, educator, and/or exhibitor. Applicants must also reside in North Dakota or the Fargo-Moorhead or Grand Forks-East Grand Forks metro areas or contribute to the film community in North Dakota in a leadership capacity. In addition to being active members of the film community across North Dakota, society members vote in the annual North Dakota Film Society Awards, which are recognized across the industry each January.

For January 2022, two new members were elected:

Andrew Leines

Andrew Leines is a filmmaker based in Fargo, ND. Raised on musicals and horror movies, his passion for filmmaking began during his childhood in Wisconsin, where he made a variety of action and comedy shorts with his brother and friends. Following two successful film screenings at his high school, he chose to pursue filmmaking further by obtaining his degree in Film Production from Minnesota State University Moorhead, guided by professors he continues to admire. To complete his writing minor, Andrew wrote an in-depth critique and analysis of gender representation in Lars Von Trier's films.

As an employee of Fargo’s The Human Family, Andrew assisted in operating the North Dakota Human Rights Film Festival and the subsequent Arts Festival, and in 2021 was the lead editor for their documentary series “Home: The Homelessness Crisis in North Dakota.” He has a deep love of video editing, and has worked on award-winning independent shorts, documentaries, and films that have screened internationally. Andrew recently worked as the co-editor and DIT on the feature film “Hair-Trigger,” which debuts at the Fargo Film Festival In 2022. “Hair-Trigger” was produced by MSUM alumni and shot in Grand Forks. With several films currently on the festival circuit, he continues to work with local filmmakers such as Fargo’s Chamber Six Media in a variety of roles.

Jim Manney

Jim Manney is the managing director at Click Content Studios, a video production and content agency based in Fargo, ND. From a very early age, Jim wanted to be involved in the entertainment industry. A career in radio led to a job in Los Angeles, where he spent time on film sets learning the ropes as a production assistant and background actor. Since returning to Fargo, Jim has produced several regionally broadcasted TV shows, award-winning documentaries, and is an executive producer on the feature film, “Tankhouse.”

See a full list of current NDFS members here.