Shine Global is a non-profit media company. We produce inspiring films and compelling content about children and their families. Through tailored distribution and outreach, we connect with our audiences in communities, classrooms, museums, and on capitol hill as part of a powerful engagement campaign to encourage social change.
ABOUT US
What issues do we explore?
Since our founding in 2005, Shine Global has taken action on child labor, child abuse, and child soldiering, shared moving stories about the effects of war, parental incarceration, undocumented immigration, and homelessness on children, highlighted the power of music, dance, and sports to overcome intolerance. In all its films, Shine Global celebrates children’s resilience.
Our films have won more than 100 major awards, including an Academy Award® for Best Documentary Short Subject for Inocente and an Academy Award®-nomination and two Emmys® for War/Dance.
Reached more than 5 million viewers via multi-channel distribution on platforms such as MTV, Netflix, iTunes, DVD, and Facebook as well as in theaters, schools, and community organizations.
War/Dance was shown to members of Congress shortly before the passage of the Child Soldiers Prevention Act of 2008
1 Way Up convinced a London community council to invest in a BMX track for youth
Co-Founder & Executive Director
SUSAN MACLAURY executive produced the Emmy Award®-winning, Academy Award®-nominated documentary War/Dance, as well as The Harvest (La Cosecha), the Academy Award® Winner Inocente, 1 Way Up in 3D, The Eagle Huntress, and Liyana. She is also the producer of The Wrong Light and Virtually Free and Co-Producer of Tre Maison Dasan. Susan is in charge of the educational outreach and social advocacy efforts for all of Shine’s films. She is dually degreed in social work administration and health education and was associate professor of health education at Kean University from 1994 through 2013.
Albie Hecht
ALBIE HECHT is a Co-Founder of Shine Global. He is the Chief Content Officer of pocket.watch a kids and family brand. He was recently the head of the HLN Network and prior to that, he was the CEO of Worldwide Biggies, a digital studio creating transmedia content for film and TV. Before creating Biggies, Albie was President of Film and Television Entertainment at Nickelodeon, where he developed Spongebob Squarepants, Dora the Explorer and co-created and executive produced “The Kids Choice Awards.” As creator and President of Spike TV, Albie brought the UFC franchise to the channel. He won awards for his documentary “True Dads: the Story of American Fatherhood” with Bruce Willis. In the movies, he produced the Oscar®-nominated animated feature Jimmy Neutron: Boy Genius, Shine Global’s first film, the Oscar®-nominated feature documentary, War/Dance, the Oscar® winner Inocente, and 1 Way Up.
Alexandra Blaney
CFO/Director of Production
ALEXANDRA BLANEY joined Shine Global in 2009 and now serves as CFO/Director of Production. Her passion is to use media and the arts, especially film, to promote social justice. Alex produced Shine Global’s most recent film Through Our Eyes: Homefront with Sesame Workshop for HBOMax as well as the documentary Virtually Free about youth incarceration, and episodes of the Webby-nominated digital series “The Election Effect,” which looked at the effect of the 2016 election on teens. She also co-produced The Wrong Light and 1 Way Up in 3D, and served as Associate Producer on the Academy Award® winning short documentary film Inocente. She also develops and manages the outreach and engagement programs for Shine Global’s films. Alex graduated from Pomona College where she studied International Relations and History.
Autumn Gonzalez
Executive Assistant
Autumn Gonzalez joined Shine Global in March 2022, just nine months after graduating from The City College of New York where she studied film and video production along with journalism. She has well-grounded experience in, as well as a love for, the field of video editing, having worked on several documentary and vlog projects. Her hope is to be a part of the creation of films that change the world for the better. This coincides with her dedication to helping others, whether that be on a volunteer project or just by spreading a little joy.
Expedia Group
CMO, Paramount Brand Studio
Board of Governors
Michael Cushing
President & CEO, Alere Property Group
Beth Deutschman Rabishaw
Jeanine Kay
Andrew MacArthur
President, The Brooksville Company
Jon Moonves
Senior Partner, Del Shaw Moonves Tanaka Finkelstein Lezcano Bobb & Dang; Chief Strategy Officer, pocket.watch
Mike O’Malley
Writer, Actor, Producer
Susan Ringo & Barry Sonnenfeld
Nominees for 2023 Annual Children’s Resilience in Film Awards
Shine Global Announces Nominees for 2023 Children’s Resilience in Film Award one of whom will be selected as the winner on October 3.
Meet our Summer 2023 Interns
Meet Shine Global’s Summer 2023 Interns: Piper Ackerman and Yuri Kim
Heartland Film’s Indy Shorts Announces Winner of a Spotlight on Children’s Resilience
Heartland Film’s Indy Shorts announced Ayenda as the winner of Shine Global’s Children’s Resilience in Film Short Film prize
- Shine Global Partners With U.S. Congresswoman Veronica Escobar For Historic Immigration Reform Event In Washington, D.C.
- Shine Global Announces 2023 Children’s Resilience in Film Award Honorees
- Home Is Somewhere Else Wins Ariel Award for Best Animated Feature
- Nominees for 2023 Annual Children’s Resilience in Film Awards
- Meet Shine Global's Summer 2023 Interns: Piper Ackerman and Yuri Kim
- Heartland Film’s Indy Shorts Announces Winner of a Spotlight on Children’s Resilience with Shine Global