ASCNYC is proud to honor our Positive Changemakers whose generosity, vision, and selflessness have inspired so many.
This year ASCNYC honors John Goldman, Managing Director of the Commercial Division at Hasltead Property, and the creators of Academy Award-nominated documentary How to Survive a Plague, executive producer Joy Tomchin and director David France.
David France
David France is an award-winning filmmaker, journalist and author who directed the Oscar-nominated documentary film "How to Survive a Plague." Based on his many years covering the epidemic, the film, about the role of AIDS activists in the development of effective anti-HIV medications, won top honors at numerous film festivals and earned France a Gotham Award for outstanding achievement in a documentary and a GLAAD Media Award, as well as nominations and awards from the Independent Spirits, the Director’s Guild, and the International Documentary Association. The New York Film Critics Circle honored him with their Best First Film award, the first time in the group's 70-year history a documentary filmmaker was selected.
As a reporter, he has worked at Newsweek, the New York Times, and New York magazine, where he is contributing editor. Among his books are "Our Fathers," an acclaimed investigation of the Catholic Church sexual abuse crisis, and “The Confession,” a New York Times best seller with James E. McGreevey. Several dramatic films have been inspired by his work beginning with "Thanks of a Grateful Nation," a controversial Showtime miniseries about the first Gulf War, and the Peabody Award-winner "Soldier's Girl," about a private's murder. "Our Fathers," a Showtime adaptation of his book starring Christopher Plummer, Ted Danson and Ellen Burstyn, won nominations for Emmys and a Writers Guild of America award.
With Joy Tomchin and Alan Getz, he is founder of Public Square Films, a documentary production company. He is currently at work adapting "How to Survive a Plague" as a mini-series for ABC, and is completing a book on the history of AIDS, due in 2015 from Alfred A. Knopf. France, a graduate of Kalamazoo College, lives in New York City and New Kingston, New York. He is married to the producer Jonathan Starch.
John Goldman
In October of 2008, right after the Lehman Brothers collapse, Halstead Property had the foresight and courage to establish a Commercial Division, its first entry into the field of Commercial Brokerage, in order to round out, expand and enhance its premier position Halstead enlisted the guidance of John D. Goldman to lead the division since its inception. A seasoned professional with over 40 years in the real estate business, Mr. Goldman began his career as an attorney, and then went on to build a substantial portfolio of properties as an owner, a manager, and eventually as a developer of properties for his own account. In recent years he has taken on the role of broker and officer of several prominent brokerage houses in Manhattan.
As Halstead’s Managing Director of the Commercial Division, Mr. Goldman has assembled a well-rounded team of experienced and ambitious brokers, from those with decades of experience like himself, to those with youthful enthusiasm and a fresh perspective. The team works together with the common vision of putting the customer’s needs first, and always with a dedication to the Halstead tradition of service with integrity.

Mr. Goldman received a Bachelor of Arts from Harvard University and earned law degrees at Columbia and Stanford Universities.
As a member of the ASCNYC Board of Directors, he shows his dedication to the fight against AIDS and his love of philanthropy. Mr. Goldman is a large supporter of the arts and former trustee of several social services, arts and educational foundations. He resides in Manhattan with his wife, with whom he has two sons.
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