Our 2019 Presenters & Panelists

JAMIEL SHEIKH
Keynote Speaker

​​​            Jamiel Sheikh is CEO of Chainhaus, an advisory, software development, application studio and education company focused on blockchain, artificial intelligence and machine learning. Jamiel has over 15 years of experience in technology, capital markets, real estate and management working for organizations like Lehman Brothers, JPMorgan, Bank of America, Sun Microsystems, SONY and Citigroup. Jamiel is an adjunct professor at Columbia Business School, NYU and CUNY teaching graduate-level blockchain, AI and data science subjects.
​​​            He is currently authoring a book on Corda with O'Reilly and runs one of the largest blockchain, AI and data science Meetups in NYC. Jamiel is a licensed real estate agent in New York and New Jersey with Douglas Elliman.
​​​            Jamiel holds an MBA from Columbia University and BBA from Baruch College and is completing his second Masters in Artificial Intelligence from Georgia Institute of Technology.
​​​            Jamiel enjoys coding in over 8 languages, travel and the elegant nuances of MMA.

MONIKA PROFFITT
​Introduction to Blockchain

​​​            Monika Proffitt is a social entrepreneur, speaker and author working at the nexus of fintech, real estate and social impact. She is the Founder of Rise Housing, a real estate company that leverages blockchain technology to create access to equity for everyday investors while bringing liquidity to real estate asset owners. A practicing artist for many years, she formerly served as the Founding Executive Director of Starry Night Programs, providing a creative retreat center for artists and writers, in Truth or Consequences, New Mexico. Through this company, she was able to bring over a million dollars in investment to the economically depressed region of Sierra County, New Mexico. Monika has spoken at numerous universities and conferences in the US, Europe and Asia on topics ranging from sustainable business and social impact, to blockchain for social good, to the value of cultural capital in the appreciation of real estate. She has exhibited the artwork of hundreds of emerging artists, as well as her own, at international art fairs including Art Basel Miami, the Venice Biennale, Worldwide Los Angeles, and Frieze New York.
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GEORGE BLANCK
Introduction to Smart Contracts / Moderator

​            George Blanck brings a wealth of experience creating innovative solutions in financial services through the commercialization of new technologies.  He has held technical, management and advisory roles with firms from startups to the world’s leading financial institutions and technology providers. Though still immersed in financial services, his deep belief that blockchain, smart contracts and decentralization paradigms will redefine business models led him to the film industry, which was driven by contracts but bound by opaque, legacy operating models.  George’s new passion is to fuel the ongoing disruption in film production - bringing transparency, accuracy and efficiency to the business of filmmaking based on smart contracts, with new and traditional financial services integrated into a rich ecosystem of filmmaking technology.
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FANNY LAKOUBAY
Art and the Blockchain: "scam or iteration" Panel Moderator

​​​            ​Fanny Lakoubay is a New-York-based digital art curator and blockchain consultant with 12+ years of experience in art and technology. She currently advises digital art and blockchain companies supporting living artists (CADAF digital art fair, New Art Academy, Editional NFT creation app, Snark.art). She is also curating digital art exhibitions (Digital Art Council, MOCDA, EthBerlin, Rare Art Festival) and heads public relations for RadicalxChange foundation. She regularly speaks at conferences and guest teaches at NYU, FIT and Christie’s Education. Prior to this, Fanny worked with larger organizations such as Christie’s, Artnet, and Societe Generale. She holds an MBA from HEC Paris business school and a BA in Art.
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JUDY MAM
Art and the Blockchain: "scam or iteration" Panel

​​​            ​Yehudit (Judy) Mam is the co-founder of dada.art, the only social network where people from all over the world speak to each other through digital drawings, creating collaborative visual conversations that are tokenized on the Ethereum blockchain and sold in a decentralized digital art marketplace. Judy handles marketing and communications for DADA. She is a writer and was a creative director in advertising.

ALEX ATALLAH
Art and the Blockchain: "scam or iteration" Panel

​​​            ​Alex Atallah is the co-founder of OpenSea, the first and largest marketplace for non-fungible tokens (NFTs), including crypto collectibles, art projects, third-party ad spaces, and more. OpenSea went through the YCombinator W18 batch, raised a seed round from Founders Fund, Blockchain Capital, Coinbase, 1confirmation and several others, and now powers the marketplaces or sites for over 200 games and decentralized services.
​​​            ​Prior to OpenSea, Alex was the CTO of hostess.fm (sold to Beatport in 2014) and built cybersecurity products at Palantir for 2 years.
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JAKE BRUKHMAN
Art and the Blockchain: "scam or iteration" Panel

​​​            ​​Jake Brukhman is Managing Director & CEO at CoinFund, a blockchain-focused cryptofund founded three years ago as one of the world’s very first diversified portfolios of cryptoassets, regarding cryptocurrencies and tokens as a radically new asset class.  CoinFund invests and works with companies of all stages in accelerating cryptoeconomic business models. In 2018, CoinFund announced a strategic partnership with Venrock to help evaluate, invest, and accelerate companies in the blockchain space. Jake has worked as an advisor to companies like Kik Interactive and YouNow, the first major VC-backed technology companies to take on blockchain-based business models, as well as decentralization-focused projects like Decentraland, Aragon, and Cent. Previously, Jake was Partner & CTO at Triton Research, a technical product manager and engineer at Amazon.com, and spent five years as a financial technologist at Highbridge Capital Management and as a quantitative researcher at Kohera. Jake has nine years of experience in pure and financial technology, a background in computer science and mathematics, and an avid interest in blockchain and financial technology.
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Nadia Chilmonik
​Art and the Blockchain: "scam or iteration" Panel

Nadia Chilmonik is an artist and data scientist with experience in the blockchain industry. She makes both digital and physical visual art focusing on the existential crisis of a modern technologist. Her works draw from technological inspiration ranging from nuclear bombs to social media and its effect on human behavior. Nadia is originally from Omak, Washington but now lives in Bushwick , Brooklyn with her dog Rothko.

ADAM LOCKLIN
Making Contracts First-Class Citizens of a Digital Enterprise

            ​Adam Locklin is the Monax's Director of Partnerships. a blockchain-based contract management system for businesses. Prior to Monax, Adam has a 15-year history of creating organizational firsts. From BAE System’s government intelligence contracts to incubating PwC’s first new venture. Adam’s career is unique as his attitude, sincerity being his only credential. As part of the Monax leadership team, he helps businesses manage their legal contracts and agreements. He has a wealth of knowledge in the blockchain from a legal contract management perspective, and helps companies with Enterprise Contract Lifecycle Management (CLM) features with a tech startup intellect, make contracts a first-class citizen within the digital enterprise, draw up cleaner contracts for cleaner business, gain oversight on your contractual obligations, track progress and keep everything important in one place. A former marine, Adam also has just under ten years' experience as a Senior Intelligence Analyst with the United States Marine Corps.
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LARRY BANKS
Alternative Ways to Finance Film
​Through the Blockchain

            Larry Banks received his BA from Rutgers University, in Communications and Education and his MA from CW Post in Business and Digital Art. He went on to develop a career in filmmaking. As Director of Photography, Larry has distinguished himself in feature films including Juice, Strapped, Fly By Night and Substitute 2. He also created the look of several dynamic commercials for brands including Nike, Levi-Strauss and AT&T; working  alongside esteemed directors such as Spike Lee, Forest Whitaker and Steve Horn. His career in filmmaking expanded into producing and directing.
​​​            ​In 2000, Larry became a full-time academic at Long Island University-Brooklyn where he chairs the Media Arts Department shaping young minds in digital production and media theory. His understanding of media and its effects on the human mind has made him a sought-after presenter on Neural Diversity. Larry is the co-founder of Foresight Entertainment - a production studio aimed at financing, producing, and distributing films utilizing smart contracts and cryptocurrency on the blockchain.​​​​
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JOHN MICHAEL REEFER
Alternative Ways to Finance Film
​Through the Blockchain

 ​​​            John Michael Reefer began his career in the film and television industry in the wardrobe department. After leaving Parson School of Design and working on Seventh Ave a fortuitous phone call brought him to the Light Opera Company of Manhattan. There he helped with a production of The Pirates of Penzance. That experience lead to a job on Woody Allen’s Purple Rose of Cairo in the wardrobe department. One of John Michael’s first opportunities to design costumes came from working with David O. Russell on his short film Bingo Madness. As a Costume Designer, John Michael worked with some amazing directors and designed some iconic films. Senior Week, directed by Stu Goldman. Def by Temptation, directed by James Bond III. She’s Gotta Have It, directed by Spike Lee. John Michael has since been involved with the production of more than 25 short subjects that have screened as an official selection of film festivals around the world.
​​​            John Michael’s most recent projects include the television series The Rich & The Ruthless currently in it’s 3rd season on the UMC (Urban Movie Channel). Holy Air released by Samuel Goldwyn in the US and now available on Amazon. ​John is the co-founder of Foresight Entertainment - a production studio aimed at financing, producing, and distributing films utilizing smart contracts and cryptocurrency on the blockchain.​​​
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LEWIS COHEN
​​Blockchain, Smart Contracts and the Law Panel

​​​            ​Lewis Rinaudo Cohen focuses his practice on the use of blockchain and tokenization across all aspects of the capital markets. Over a 20+ year career, Lewis’ experience has spanned everything from large-scale initial public offerings to the funding of start-ups, with a particular focus on securitizations and other complex structured financings. Lewis has represented issuers, underwriters, banks and others on a wide range of transactions around the globe. With the emergence of blockchain technology, Lewis early on identified the important role this technology would play across the financial markets and virtually all aspects of the commercial landscape and committed his time to advising clients in this area. Lewis is a frequent public speaker on the topic of blockchain and the financial markets and was recently named in “Band 1” as one of three top-ranked lawyers in the blockchain space in the United States by leading independent firm, Chambers & Partners. Prior to DLx Law, Lewis was a partner in the New York office of two of the Global 25 law firms. Lewis graduated from Clark University, cum laude, with a B.A. in Philosophy and went on to Yeshiva University Cardozo School of Law where he received his J.D.
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ROSS CAMPBELL
​Blockchain, Smart Contracts and the Law Panel

​​​            ​Ross Campbell is a corporate attorney with significant experience representing leading financial institutions, global companies and early-stage ventures in complex M&A, restructuring, securities and corporate governance matters. He focuses on blockchain and cryptocurrency industry representing startups creating and managing digital assets; building automated agreements through blockchain programming. Ross is growing open source projects launching Dapps, Token Sale Standards, and Smart Legal Agreements.

JOSEPH SANDERS
Music, Media and the Blockchain Panel
Moderator

              Joseph Sanders is the Director of Data Systems for the Beginning with Children Foundation. Joseph has over fifteen years working as an IT profession. Prior to BwC, Joseph worked in the real-time market data division for both Thomson/ILX Systems and Digital Equipment Corporation developing UNIX based automating tools that were deployed in operations and software quality assurance.  
             His interest in blockchaining took hold after attending a couple of events at Coinspace back in 2016. At that time, like so many other people, cryptocurrency was his focus.  After learning that the distributed database blockchain is the technology underpinning cryptocurrency Joseph’s interest expanded to include blockchain.
            In between working and conducting research in Educational Datamining for his doctorate, at Pace University, he has completed several Ethereum developer workshops and numerous talks sponsored by Blockmatics highlighting various blockchain use cases.
           Joseph is a certified New York State mathematics teacher and graduated from Pratt Institute with a Bachelors’ Degree in Electrical Engineering and holds a M.A. in Mathematics Education from Adelphi University. He is also a member of the WNET| Thirteen Educational Advisory Services Committee. Joseph has also been certified to produce TV content for the BRIC network.

ANJLEE KHURANA
Music, Media and the Blockchain Panel

​​​​​​            Anjlee Khurana is originally from Baltimore, MD. She studied Economics and Philosophy at Columbia University and then went to Vanderbilt Law School. After practicing Entertainment Law in Nashville, TN for ten years, she moved back to New York to take a job as a Legal Engineer at Monax, where she focuses on product-market fit, particularly within the business sectors built on content creation. The Monax Platform is a decentralized contract lifecycle management platform that uses smart contract technology to create, prove, and operate legal agreements, cutting coordination costs between industries and technologies.

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ROBERT CELESTIN
Music, Media and the Blockchain Panel

​​​​​​           Robert A. Celestin is a graduate of Yale Law School and Columbia School of Law, and has practiced entertainment law in New York City for more than 25 years. In 1986, Robert began his career in the music industry as a staff attorney at Arista Records, the home of multi-platinum recording artists like Whitney Houston, Whodini and Kenny G. Years later, Robert went on to work with attorney Louise West, Esq. of West Entertainment Services, LLC assisting her in the representation of clients such as Timbaland, and  Missy Elliott. The experience of being an artist manager and having an independent label, has been invaluable to him being able to provide practical and real-life advice and counsel to his clients. In addition to being an attorney, he's also co-managed the platinum selling R&B/Pop trio City High ("What Would You Do”). Robert now focuses his practice on counseling an array of domestic and international clients especially those utilizing a D.I.Y. (Do It Yourself) approach to establishing, and in some cases, extending their careers.
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Tony Dofat
Music, Media and the Blockchain Panel

Music Producer

​​​            Introduced to the music business through Diddy himself, this multifaceted Mt. Vernon, NY native went on to compose, arrange, mix, engineer and produce for over two decades. Working on countless songs and remixes alongside the Bad Boy founder, Tony Dofat was an original member of the production unit, The Hit Men. Dofat composed and produced hit tracks and remixes for some of the top recording artist’s in the industry [to name a few] Heavy D, Mary J. Blige, Queen Latifah, Will Smith, Black Rob, Method Man, Jodeci, Tina Turner, Notorious BIG and MTV’s Da Band. Having produced, remixed, and composed over 120 compositions in his song catalog, 15 of his releases charted on Billboard as Top Ten albums/singles. His work has been recognized by The Recording Academy with Grammy nominations and 42 of his projects have been certified gold and platinum by RIAA, he is without a doubt a powerhouse in his own right. In 2015, Dofat was appointed Assistant ​​Professor in Media Arts and Audio Technology at Long Island University Brooklyn Campus. On October 13th, 2016, Tony Dofat was honored by the Mount Vernon Public Library association and Westchester County legislators with a proclamation citing that October 19th will been deemed the Official Tony Dofat Day for Mount Vernon and Westchester County, New York.

Scott Rubin
Music, Media and the Blockchain Panel

​​​            Scott Rubin has over 25 years experience in the music business with an emphasis in music publishing. Joining Reach Music Publishing in 1999, he has been responsible for songwriter signings and business development at the pub co. He has worked closely with artists, songwriters and producers such as Ice T, Nate Dogg, Kid Capri and Pete Rock among others. He is also a published author, with articles appearing in trade magazines such as Billboard, Musician and DJ Times.

GORDON MEYER
VR/AR Gaming: Ready Player One?
​The Immersive Future will be Built on Blockchain

​​​            Gordon Meyer is a 20+ year industry veteran in the advertising and marketing field with a wealth of experience working at disruptive companies.
​​​            Gordon is CEO of EngineBloc a hybrid digital agency and consultancy that works at the intersection of progressive strategy, creative vision and transformational technology.  
Within blockchain, Gordon is professor of Blockchain Technology with Columbia College Chicago Online. Additionally, he serves as a Senior Advisor for Sazmining, a US based blockchain infrastructure and cloud computing crypto mining firm. 
​​​            Within Immersive Computing, Gordon serves as President of the New York chapter of the VR/AR Association. Additionally, he serves as a Senior Advisor to several startups building immersive experiences using real world capture as well as digitally created fictional worlds and games. In 2018 Gordon was named one of the “30 people to watch in Augmented Reality” by Next Reality News who said “Gordon Meyer gradually became one of the loudest and most high profile voices pushing AR forward, far away from Silicon Valley on the East Coast.”
​​​            Gordon currently sits on the Board of Advisors for BWG Strategy an invite-only network for senior executives across technology, media and telecom. Additionally, Gordon sits on the Board of Directors for a local Brooklyn Soup Kitchen and homeless shelter. In 2015 Gordon was named “Top 40 under 40 Brand Marketers” by Brand Innovators a premier Marketing industry think tank.  
​​​            ​Gordon has been featured on NPR’s All Tech Considered, as well as publications such as INC Magazine, Chicago Tribune, Skift and Brandchannel among others. He lives in New York with his wife and two daughters.
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​Our Board Members

LARRY BANKS
Director of Media Summit/Media Arts Department Chair

            Larry Banks received his BA from Rutgers University, in Communications and Education and his MA from CW Post in Business and Digital Art. He went on to develop a career in filmmaking. As Director of Photography, Larry has distinguished himself in feature films including Juice, Strapped, Fly By Night and Substitute 2. He also created the look of several dynamic commercials for brands including Nike, Levi-Strauss and AT&T; working  alongside esteemed directors such as Spike Lee, Forest Whitaker and Steve Horn. His career in filmmaking expanded into producing and directing.
​​​            ​In 2000, Larry became a full-time academic at Long Island University-Brooklyn where he chairs the Media Arts Department shaping young minds in digital production and media theory. His understanding of media and its effects on the human mind has made him a sought-after presenter on Neural Diversity. Larry is the co-founder of Foresight Entertainment - a production studio aimed at financing, producing, and distributing films utilizing smart contracts and cryptocurrency on the blockchain.​​​​
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KAMOLCHANOK KOONVISAL
​​​Associate Director of Media Summit

​​​​            ​Kamolchanok 'Nokkie' Koonvisal is a graduate student pursuing her M.F.A. in Film and Video Production at Long Island University's Brooklyn Campus. She completed her undergraduate studies as B.F.A. in Film at Long Island University Post Campus. Nokkie interned at Thailand Color Television Channel 3 MCOT, one of the top TV Broadcasting Stations in Thailand, as an Editing Assistant and Social Media Photographer. She has experience on film sets, such as assisting in other student films, as a Production Assistant for Bollywood Film “Welcome to New York” (2018) and Assistant Director of “Where Evil Lurks” (2019), a short film produced by the Ragone Enterprises and Production.
​​​            ​In Thailand, she volunteers at Issarachon Foundation, a Thai organization that helps the homeless, and her responsibilities include creating video content for the organization, acting as their official English translator as well as designing t-shirts. Once completing her degree, her goal is to work in the entertainment industry in TV/Film production. Nokkie currently works as a Graduate Assistant for the LIU Media Arts Department. In 2018, she was the photographer, videographer and video editor for the Blockchain Media Summit Event. This year, as one of the Associate Directors for the Blockchain Media Summit, she hopes to further develop her event coordinating skills along with exploring the world of blockchain.
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TUMELO TLADI
​​Associate Director of Media Summit

​​​            ​Tumelo Tladi is a graduate student seeking an MFA in Writing and Producing for Television at Long Island University's Brooklyn Campus. She completed her undergraduate studies in Journalism and Media Studies, receiving a Bachelor of Journalism from Rhodes University, in Grahamstown, South Africa. After graduating from Rhodes, Tumelo landed a position with digital marketing agency iProspect as Social Media Strategist and Community Manager within the company’s Marketing team, honing her skills in social media marketing. She soon moved to MultiChoice South Africa, and thereafter the University of Johannesburg where she gained valuable experience in publication production, content management, communication and public relations. Recently, Tumelo was the Media Director for the Diversity in Sport Conference, hosted by LIU-Brooklyn’s PEAK Center - a conference that promotes diversity and inclusion in all areas of sport. Currently, Tumelo is interning at The Daily Show with Trevor Noah, and also serves as the Graduate Resident Assistant for LIU Promise. As one of the Associate Directors of this year’s Blockchain Media Summit, Tumelo is hoping to both broaden and perfect her event coordinating skills, while also learning about the exciting world of opportunities within the realm of blockchain and how she can tap into it all as a writer, producer and filmmaker.
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GEORGE BLANCK
​Summit Consultant

​​​​​            ​George Blanck brings a wealth of experience creating innovative solutions in financial services through the commercialization of new technologies.  He has held technical, management and advisory roles with firms from startups to the world’s leading financial institutions and technology providers. Though still immersed in financial services, his deep belief that blockchain, smart contracts and decentralization paradigms will redefine business models led him to the film industry, which was driven by contracts but bound by opaque, legacy operating models.  George’s new passion is to fuel the ongoing disruption in film production - bringing transparency, accuracy and efficiency to the business of filmmaking based on smart contracts, with new and traditional financial services integrated into a rich ecosystem of filmmaking technology.

SANVIKI CHAPMAN
Marketing & Sponsorship Consultant

​​​            ​Sanviki Chapman is a Transformational Coach, Marketing Consultant and Strategist. She’s known for her keen ability to intuit direct and creative solutions to problems. She has worked in the United States and abroad with a diverse clientele, such as Kirk Kirkland, CEO - WearWorks and recently featured on Ted Talks, the late Producers, Gene Davis - Essence TV and Joseph Papp -The Public Theater, Film Producers, Paula Dupre’ Pesmen and Quincy Jones, Film Directors, Alan Hicks - Keep on Keepin’ On,  Jullien Gordon, Founder - New Higher, Rha Goddess, Hip Hop Artist, Author and CEO - Move the Crowd, Brooklyn Borough President, Eric Adams, Riverside Church Theater - Family Arts Festival, Brooklyn Academy of Music, BJAA - Netherlands, OATS - Older Adults Technology Services, Eugene Seagriff - Your Biz Pro, Educators for Social Responsibility, Board Member and Marketing and Production Consultant for the 2018 and 2019 LIU Blockchain Media Summits, etc.  Sanviki is presently working as a Marketing & Business Development Consultant for the Research Technology Park, (UVIRTPark) in the Virgin Islands, focused on developing a wide range of tech sectors including AI, Wearable Technology, 3D Printing, Blockchain, Energy/Sustainability, Financial Services, Digital Media, etc.   In October 2019 the RTPark will hold its first RTPark Business Attraction Summit in St. Croix featuring, Rashida Hodge, Vice President - IBM North America Insurance Industry and Dion Baez, Global Marketing Manager - Facebook.
​​​            ​Sanviki has both a Bachelor of Arts Degree, (cum laude) - and Master's Degree from Long Island University. Her sweet spot is synthesizing her skills in business, the creative arts, spirituality and psychology for solving problems, while enhancing the values and profit outcomes for businesses, organizations and individuals, especially with businesses and individuals that strive to minimize their negative impact on the environment.
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JOHN MICHAEL REEFER
​Film Producer

​​​ ​​​            John Michael Reefer began his career in the film and television industry in the wardrobe department. After leaving Parson School of Design and working on Seventh Ave a fortuitous phone call brought him to the Light Opera Company of Manhattan. There he helped with a production of The Pirates of Penzance. That experience lead to a job on Woody Allen’s Purple Rose of Cairo in the wardrobe department. One of John Michael’s first opportunities to design costumes came from working with David O. Russell on his short film Bingo Madness. As a Costume Designer, John Michael worked with some amazing directors and designed some iconic films. Senior Week, directed by Stu Goldman. Def by Temptation, directed by James Bond III. She’s Gotta Have It, directed by Spike Lee. John Michael has since been involved with the production of more than 25 short subjects that have screened as an official selection of film festivals around the world.
​​​            John Michael’s most recent projects include the television series The Rich & The Ruthless currently in it’s 3rd season on the UMC (Urban Movie Channel). Holy Air released by Samuel Goldwyn in the US and now available on Amazon. ​John is the co-founder of Foresight Entertainment - a production studio aimed at financing, producing, and distributing films utilizing smart contracts and cryptocurrency on the blockchain.​​​
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TONY DOFAT
Music Producer

​​​            Introduced to the music business through Diddy himself, this multifaceted Mt. Vernon, NY native went on to compose, arrange, mix, engineer and produce for over two decades. Working on countless songs and remixes alongside the Bad Boy founder, Tony Dofat was an original member of the production unit, The Hit Men. Dofat composed and produced hit tracks and remixes for some of the top recording artist’s in the industry [to name a few] Heavy D, Mary J. Blige, Queen Latifah, Will Smith, Black Rob, Method Man, Jodeci, Tina Turner, Notorious BIG and MTV’s Da Band. Having produced, remixed, and composed over 120 compositions in his song catalog, 15 of his releases charted on Billboard as Top Ten albums/singles. His work has been recognized by The Recording Academy with Grammy nominations and 42 of his projects have been certified gold and platinum by RIAA, he is without a doubt a powerhouse in his own right. In 2015, Dofat was appointed Assistant ​​Professor in Media Arts and Audio Technology at Long Island University Brooklyn Campus. On October 13th, 2016, Tony Dofat was honored by the Mount Vernon Public Library association and Westchester County legislators with a proclamation citing that October 19th will been deemed the Official Tony Dofat Day for Mount Vernon and Westchester County, New York.
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