About Us
River City Rising Behind the Cameras
River City Rising will be produced by Kērris Media, a Jacksonville-owned production company specializing in documentary, educational and inspirational programming. Key personnel include:
Devan Stuart, Executive Producer, Producer
Stuart's versatile media experience crosses print, Internet, radio, television, and film mediums. A five-time Florida Press Association Award winner, Stuart serves as a freelance correspondent for high-profile print and online publications including People, The Chicago Sun Times and About.com. She began her television career in Jacksonville where she produced live daily newscasts. Stuart also has written, produced and co-produced documentary projects; feature packages for the NFL's Jacksonville Jaguars; and corporate and promotional videos for major national clients. She is a graduate of the University of North Florida's College of Arts & Sciences. Stuart also chairs the Norman Studios Silent Film Museum, Inc., a nonprofit organization working to save the nation's only remaining full silent film studio complex still standing in Jacksonville's Arlington area.
Emily Rose, Co-Producer, Production Manager
Rose has held top management positions in the fields of communications, logistics and manufacturing. As Managing Director of Aceea Entertainment LLC, Rose was responsible for creating, writing and implementing the total business plan, marketing materials, and presentations that landed major funding agreements for numerous media projects. She earned a bachelor of arts in English Literature from University of North Florida and has studied business and entertainment law.
Bernardo Santana, Director of Photography
A native of Puerto Rico, Santana began his media career in 1994 with Panama’s Southern Command Network, where he produced a live radio show and commercials. Moving to the US in 1997, he served several television news stations, working his way up from Studio Camera Operator to Senior Photojournalist. Throughout his news career, he traveled the globe, co-producing special projects ranging from a documentary series on a rising country music star to an 18-day embedment with coalition forces in Kuwait, Iraq and Bahrain. Santana also has served as a Director of Photography on four full-length independent feature films, three of which landed national DVD distribution.
Jane Bennett, Research Manager
Bennett is best known throughout Northeast Florida for her 20 year career as a business and real estate journalist for The Jacksonville Business Journal. She began her career at New York’s Newsday and continues to work as a freelance journalist in Jacksonville.
