Management team
Karol Martesko-Fenster, Film Industry Advisor
Media entrepreneur Karol Martesko-Fenster is a founding member of CINELAN’s Board of Directors. Martesko-Fenster came to CINELAN in 2007, via his association with London-based venture capital firm Arts Alliance, to lead the implementation of the company’s film industry strategy. In 2008, he was invited to join the company’s Board to help shape its ongoing film strategies after being appointed General Manager & Publisher of Babel Network Ltd's Film Division.
Karol's career in the motion picture, publishing, music television and Internet business spans over two decades and includes leadership in the American independent film industry. In addition to CINELAN, he has provided consulting services to numerous film and media ventures, including Arts Alliance, FILMHAUS Vienna, Tribeca Enterprises, LAVAPLA.NET, Sabotage Films, The Workbook Project and T5M.com. Previously, Karol was the General Manager of the Film Division at Palm Pictures Entertainment Properties and President of Palm’s RES Media Group. During his five-year tenure he supervised the strategic re-organization of the film division and oversaw the company’s most successful theatrical releases Scratch and Sex and Lucia. While at Palm, he led all operations and brand positioning for the RES business unit, expanding its digital film festival, RESFEST, into a global touring event spanning six continents, 19 countries and over 40 cities worldwide. Prior to Palm, Karol served for three years as President of Rising Tide Studios, an integrated media and convergence company, and supervised the growth and development of the Silicon Alley Reporter and Digital Coast Reporter magazines and numerous high profile conferences on the Media, Finance and Technology Industries. Karol co-founded and launched FILMMAKER Magazine, indieWIRE.com, RES Magazine, The Virtual Film Festival, and CINELAN. He produced the feature films "Frank Dead Souls", "Scenes From The New World" and "Vienna 1900", collaborated on "Wetlands Preserved" and "Before Sunrise." From 1986 to 1990, he was the coordinating producer for Great Performances Music on PBS and produced over twenty music television programs and five live satellite broadcasts. Karol was the Market Director for the breakout 1989 Independent Feature Film Market and in 1990, as Acting Executive Director of the Independent Feature Project; he restructured the nation's leading film service organization and initiated the inaugural Gotham Awards. He received a B.A. from SUNY Purchase and an M.F.A. from Columbia University with a concentration in entertainment law, theater management and film production.