Constance Bruce

Chair/co-Founder

Bruce is currently a member of the Advisory Board of the New York WILD Film Festival, and was the festival’s Executive Director from 2019-2020. Bruce was Director of External and Academic Events at NYU Shanghai from 2015-2019. Prior to that she lived in Ithaca, NY, where she was Director of Communications for the Ivory-Billed Woodpecker Research Project and then Director of Institutional Outreach for the Cornell Laboratory of Ornithology. In her early career, Bruce lived in Washington, D.C. and was part of the executive team that launched the National Geographic Channel worldwide. She has also worked in various capacities for independent film production companies in the US and Europe.

Amina Ahmad

Treasurer

Amina Ahmad is a Senior Accountant at Sciarabba Walker & Co, LLP. She is a graduate of Samuel Curtis Johnson Graduate School of Management at Cornell University, and has taught at Ithaca College as a lecturer in the department of Accounting and Business Law. Amina is an avid photographer, and an enthusiast of offbeat movies and quirky cinema.

Peter Littman

An attorney in Ithaca for over forty years, Littman now specializes in helping injured workers deal with insurance companies. As a youngster, he watched hundreds of black & white movies from the 30s and 40s, and particularly loved the noir genre. Film became a lifelong passion. Littman has served on the Board of the Elizabeth Ann Clune Montessori School for over twenty-five years, the Country Club of Ithaca Board for nine of its last twelve years as a private club, and on the Board of the NYS Trial Lawyers Assn. for three decades. Littman’s vision for the historic Wharton Studio is to help it become a regional go-to attraction in Stewart Park, and to see it grow in the Finger Lakes film world.

Johnathen Rockwell

Johnathen Rockwell serves as the Communications Director for the YMCA of Ithaca and Tompkins County and is currently studying Public History at Empire State College. He has a profound passion for film and film history, and he aims to highlight the contributions of the Wharton brothers and the city of Ithaca in the field of cinema. John is eager to promote the museum's message and enhance its impact throughout the Finger Lakes Region.

Anjuli M. Singh

Anjuli M. Singh is a film historian, professor, and museum professional specializing in American silent cinema. She teaches film studies courses at colleges in the Washington, D.C., area and has worked with museums and cultural institutions across the country to create exhibitions exploring the history and art of cinema.
Anjuli holds an MA in Cinema Studies from New York University, as well as an MA in Museum Studies and a BA in Film and Media Studies, both from The Johns Hopkins University. She is currently a postgraduate researcher in Film Studies at the University of Southampton.

Luisa Casella

Luisa Casella is an independent photograph conservator based in Ithaca, NY. She trained in Art Conservation at the Instituto Politécnico de Tomar, in Portugal. Luisa was a Fellow of the Advanced Residency Program in Photograph Conservation at George Eastman House/ Image Permanence Institute, and the inaugural Research Scholar in Photograph Conservation at The Metropolitan Museum of Art. She has held photograph conservator positions at Luis Pavão, Lda., Harry Ransom Center and West Lake Conservators. Luisa is a Fellow of AIC where she has served as Chair of the Photographic Materials Group, Communications Committee, PMG Wiki Committee and Collaborative Workshops in Photograph Conservation Advisory Committee.

Elizabeth Stuelke

Elizabeth Stuelke is an early-to-mid-career, over-40 female film director living in Ithaca, New York. She strives to make evocative work spotlighting female-driven stories of family connection, loss, and generational trauma to promote positive change in the lives of those most affected. Her first film, shot in April 2024, is a short proof-of-concept that has won awards for its beautiful cinematography and depth of psychological drama. Elizabeth enjoys Ithaca with her artist/doctor husband and daughter before she ventures to college, and misses her oldest, a senior at SUNY Stony Brook. Both her children were born in Manhattan, and although she loves the pace of Upstate, Elizabeth still loves to visit “The City” when she can. She loves art in all its forms and is inspired by community gems like the Wharton Studio Museum where she can lend her support.

TRUSTEES EMERITI

Peter Bardaglio

Bardaglio is president of Black Oak Wind Farm, LLC and Seneca Strategic Consulting, LLC. He was provost and vice president of academic affairs at Ithaca College, interim vice president and academic dean at Goucher College, and member of the history department. Bardaglio serves on numerous local boards and is a former board member of The History Center in Tompkins County.

Cody Danks Burke

Danks Burke is a senior investment officer at the Cornell University Investment Office where he manages the University’s endowment investments in real estate and natural resources. Prior to joining Cornell, Mr. Danks Burke was an associate at the New York City Investment Fund and special assistant to the president of the John D. & Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation. He also served as press secretary and later deputy chief of staff for Colorado Congressman David Skaggs and his successor Senator Mark Udall.