1998 graduate Adam Mazo is an Emmy Award winning documentary filmmaker. Adam credits Riverview choir director Betty Mullet for igniting his passion for storytelling. She assigned Adam to write and perform skits for the choir's Renaissance Festival.

     Adam's storytelling journey began after earning a journalism degree from the University of Florida. Mazo became a television newscast producer, working in markets from Gainesville, Sarasota, West Palm Beach, to Boston. His work in Boston resulted in a prestigious Edward R Murrow Award.

     Following his TV news career, Adam concentrated on his real passion,

documentary filmmaking. Adam's filmography includes Coexist, First Light, Dear Georgina, and Dawnland. These films led to the creation of the Upstander

Project, which was conceived, developed, and launched by Mazo. Upstander is

the opposite of bystander. The project's goal is to inspire people to become

upstanders; someone who stands up, speaks out, and/or takes action in defense of those who are targeted or harmed.

     As Director/President of the Upstander Project, Adam helps create social issue documentaries and related learning resources that not only serve viewers but educators and students. Adam's films have been broadcast on domestic and international television, film festivals, international conferences, and screened at

universities, middle schools, and high schools, where they are often used to educate young people about this often untold and unknown history. Mao's Dawnland documentary won the National News and Documentary Emmy Award for Outstanding Research, along with several best documentary awards from regional film festivals.

     Adam now lives in the Boston area with his wife and two children and continues to create documentaries through the Upstander Project.