Bio
DARA PADWO-AUDICK
MFA, M.A., ACC, PRODUCERS GUILD OF AMERICA
Dara is a seasoned media professional with over twenty-five years of experience across various genres in the media landscape. As President of Creative Strategies Media LLC, a media consulting company, and Enlightened Media LLC, a film production company, Dara’s genuine passion for telling impactful stories has taken her around the globe. Her journey to understand and share the serenity of Himalayan culture brought her to Bhutan in 2008. It led her to initiate the production of the documentary Bhutan: A Kingdom of Happiness.
As a veteran filmmaker, Dara has written, produced, and directed many programs and series for such networks as Animal Planet, CBS, Discovery Channel, Discovery HD-Theater, Discovery Kids, ESPN, Fox, Home and Garden Television, Lifetime Television, Military Channel, National Geographic Channel, Outdoor Life Channel, PBS, and Science Channel.
In her work as a media strategist, Dara has developed and executed numerous award-winning multi-media projects for academic institutions, associations, corporations, and government agencies, including AARP, the Armed Forces Radio and Television Service, the Center for Children of Separation and Divorce, Discovery Retreats and Gateway Canyons Resort, the JCC of Greater Washington, The National Institutes of Health, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, The U.S. Department of Labor, and the VIA Institute on Character.
As an educator, mentor, and dedicated life-long learner, Dara has embraced her work as an adjunct professor in the School of Communication at American University since 2004. She is an ICF ACC-credentialed media, leadership, presentation, and career coach.
Dara earned her B.A. in Individual Studies from the University of Maryland, her MFA from Antioch University, and her M.A. in Film and Video from American University. She is a member of the Producers Guild of America.
