DX Academy participants are invited to a two-hour pitching workshop led by Judith Helfand, award-winning filmmaker and visiting professor at Columbia Journalism School. Helfand will lead a series of exercises meant to engage the storyteller in you. This session will prep you for round table meetings and fast intros at the festival, in part by showcasing examples of pitches that incorporate best practices while honoring the unique voice of the filmmaker and proposed film. Helfand believes in the wonder of wordsmithing and the power of context, in using words with edges and delighting in detail. She will push you to identify the core inquiry and fundamental question at the heart of your story. She will guide you to develop an authentic answer to “Why you?” This workshop will gird you with the basic tools to deepen your storytelling and fuse it with your journalism. Come prepared to talk, share and actively listen.