Talks, panels + workshops · Year two
Big ideas.
Small rooms.
Emmy winners, Broadway originals, studio insiders and working filmmakers, close enough to ask the question you actually want answered. Talks, panels and hands-on workshops about creativity and the business of making work. Industry panels and workshops for filmmakers, musicians and creative people, all in downtown Frederick during the festival.
IDEAS at SilverVox
Practical, inspiring, surprising or urgent. Usually all four.
Year one · June 18–21, 2026.
Who took
the mic.
A look at the 2026 talks, panels and workshops. Tap through for the full session details.
Talk
Finding Lightning in a Bottle
Cherry Graziosi
Two-time Emmy-winning journalist and co-producer of Knock Down the House, the Sundance Audience Award winner, on chasing the story.
Talk
Losing My Head
Andrea Macasaet
The first North American Anne Boleyn in Broadway’s Six on originating a role and losing her head eight shows a week.
Talk
Hollywood’s Shopping List
Pamela Nemoto
The blank-check era is over. From HBO to Starz to Amazon MGM, how to make content that travels, scales and sells.
Panel
The Soundtrack Makers
Music supervisors
Two of the industry’s top music supervisors on how they find, pitch and place the music that moves audiences.
Talk
The Surfer’s Secret
Richard Jefferies
Inside the 1990s Marvel movie you never saw, straight from the screenwriter who wrote it.
Workshop
Navigating SAG-AFTRA Agreements
Zakiyy Morgan, SAG-AFTRA
Ultra-low-budget waivers, contracts and everything an indie filmmaker needs to know before calling action.
Workshop
You Are the Content
Robert Galinsky
Presence on camera can be learned. A Juilliard guest lecturer breaks down how.
Panel
Public School, Private Dreams
The Academy of Fine Arts + Barbara Ingram
How public arts high schools build the bridge from student to professional.
Hands-on
Film Workshop at Frederick Junk Co
Presented by Archai Media
With Kodak releasing a new motion picture stock, film is far from dead. A hands-on session with real film and the cameras that shoot it.
Year one, off screen
People came
to talk.
13
Talks, panels + workshops
3
Filmmaker panels
1,000+
At free programming
81
Filmmakers in town
From the room
Hosts who did
the homework.
Hosts selected for panels I attended or was in were excellent. You could tell they actually watched the films and asked insightful questions…
James Galdamez
Filmmaker + panelist · FilmFreeway review
Screenings of many important new works; excellent panel discussions (I was on a particularly interesting one)…
Gregory Hall
Filmmaker + panelist · FilmFreeway review
Got to attend a 16mm film workshop, loved there was a technical aspect of the fest included and would love to see more of these kind of workshops.
James Galdamez
Filmmaker · FilmFreeway review
Coming in 2027
The road to May.
Proposals
Nov 1, 2026
Pitch a talk, panel or workshop.
Programming
Winter 2027
We build sessions around the films, music and people coming to town.
Lineup
Spring 2027
Speakers and the full talks schedule go live here.
The festival
May 6–9
Talks, panels and workshops all weekend.
Want the talks lineup the minute it drops? Get on the list →
Calling all speakers
Got something
to say?
Proposals for 2027 talks, panels and workshops open November 1. Made for a live room.