About JamesWorks Entertainment

We are proud of our mission, values, history, and leadership.

On the set of JamesWorks Entertainment's THE CAR WASH
On the set of JamesWorks Entertainment's THE CAR WASH

 

Our Mission

The mission of JamesWorks Entertainment is to create socially-conscious films that engage our audiences through new media to action in their personal lives, communities, and around the globe.

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Our Values

There are seven guiding principles that inform every decision that is made about producing any creative content at JamesWorks, the values upon which we have built our company:

  1. All creative endeavors first must enlighten, educate and entertain. We place equal importance on each of these facets.
  2. We seek to reach untapped audiences around the world in every story we tell.
  3. We must utilize a diverse spectrum of experience in filmmaking to keep ideas fresh.
  4. We will be at the forefront of cutting-edge social networking platforms to pursue discussion with our prospective audience in all stages of production.
  5. We will advance the ideals of independent filmmaking through supporting up-and-coming artists with our time, talents and resources.
  6. With every project, we remember our social responsibility to a global audience.
  7. As we are socially responsible, we also must be charitably responsible to those less fortunate, supporting projects and initiatives that advance the needs of the Third World.
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Our History

JamesWorks Entertainment, LLC was established in 2005 by Co-Chairman James Kicklighter at the age of 16 to be an independent film and television production company. Their first project was Western documentary That Guy: the Legacy of Dub Taylor, including John Mellencamp, Dixie Carter, and director David Zucker. With satisfied clients across the country, the reach of the company continues to expand each year.

JamesWorks Entertainment has gone on to shoot multiple award-winning films around the world, with a creative team spanning all parts of the country.

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Our Leadership

James Kicklighter

James Kicklighter, Chairman

James Kicklighter is a multi-award winning director/producer whose work has been recognized by leading film publications around the world, including Spain’s Fotogramas and Australia’s Film Ink. Ain’t it Cool News raved that his adaptation of Followed, based on the short story from Hugo Award winner Will McIntosh, “[is] directed with a delicate and gentle hand…the most unexpected horror surprise seen in quite a while.” In addition to scripted work, he has produced several documentary films internationally. Film Threat said that his study abroad profile Di Passaggio "captures all the imperfections of group travel in a foreign country, boiled down to the authentically naive reactions…[and] innocent perceptions of the world.”


Outside of entertainment production, Kicklighter produced the “I AM NSLC” campaign for the National Student Leadership Conference, interviewing distinguished alumni employed by companies such as ABC News, Harvard University, and Gallup, Inc. He also works with In True Fashion, the non-profit side of JAMAH, whose leather handbags have been spotlighted by Vogue and carried by Brad Pitt, Angelina Jolie, and Jessica Alba. Presented in conjunction with the Network for Teaching Entrepreneurship, the Los Angeles-based program builds self-esteem and work ethic in low-income students through hands-on participation, promoting the value of products “Made in the USA.”


Kicklighter serves as Chairman of JamesWorks Entertainment, the company he established in 2005. Profiled in the National Edition of Examiner.com’s "Top CEO’s Under 25" series, he was a screener for the 2009 International Documentary Association's Distinguished Feature Award. He holds a B.S. in Public Relations from Georgia Southern University. 

 

Kasey

Kasey Ray-Stokes, Director of Development

Kasey Ray-Stokes discovered her love for telling stories at a young age and fostered that love through her adolescence by writing angsty journal entries and filming her annual family Christmas pageants. Now that she is an adult, she focuses on telling stories to a broader audience through her position as Director of Development at JamesWorks Entertainment, writing creative nonfiction, as well as producing documentaries and films.

Kasey is the executive producer for two documentaries, Land of Higher Peace and That Guy: the Legacy of Dub Taylor, and served as a producer for Followed, Anthony's Vests, and Final Acts. She also directed her first film, Anthony's Vests in early 2011.

Kasey was recently interviewed in Australia's premiere film publication FilmInk.com.au about her role as producer on Followed. Kasey holds a B.A. in English Communications from Armstrong Atlantic State University and a MFA in Creative Writing from Converse College. Kasey's micro-nonfiction piece, "Hearth," was recently published as a part of a collection of flash writing in the 6S Love Book. She resides in Savannah, Georgia with her husband, Mark, and their son, Benjamin.

 

 

Mark Ezra Stokes

Mark Ezra Stokes, Director of Creative Media

Mark Ezra Stokes, Director of Creative Media for JamesWorks Entertainment, has two passions in life: education and social improvement, and his career path reflects these passions.

With an M.A. in Screenwriting and Film Studies and an M.F.A. in Screenwriting, both from Hollins University, he has extensive experience as a professor of screenwriting, film studies and stage drama at multiple colleges and universities. Additionally, he has taught elementary-aged special education students with severe-to-profound disabilities, learning advanced behavior management and educational techniques in the process.

Mark is also the founder and coordinator of Savannah Filmmakers, a democratic body of well-connected members of the Savannah, Georgia film community. Through steady online and in-person interactivity, the organization serves as an information hub for its members, and it provides enrichment and social activities for local film community growth.

After shooting a documentary in Ethiopia in 2010, Mark returned to the U.S. to establish Sustaining Hope, a 501c3 nonprofit organization dedicated to meeting the life-threatening needs in developing countries through providing a thriving network of socially-conscious entities. Their current project is the complete elimination of the Gojo Sefer slums of Ethiopia, and the relocation and eventual self-sustinence of its residents.

Whenever he writes, produces or directs documentary or narrative projects, Mark continues to seek out stories that both educate and raise social consciousness. This dedication is sprinkled throughout his other written pursuits, including his contributions as a film critic for Hollywood Jesus—a million-hit-per-day site devoted to catalyzing spiritual discussions about mainstream films. Mark is also an award-winning print journalist, and he has served as a writer, editor and script consultant in a variety of vocational sectors.

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