Opening Ceremonies Begin

Our MC is Producer/Director Pamela Peak whose award-winning documentary Colorblind screens in the festival— www.ColorblindDocumentary.com.

Ms. Peak has produced and directed films and live theatre in New York, Florida and Los Angeles. An accomplished businesswoman, her producing and directing experience began at the tender age of 21 years old. Colorblind is her first behind-the-camera documentary feature endeavor.

Ms. Peak is also a graduate of the critically acclaimed Sanford Meisner’s Neighborhood Playhouse in New York, City as well as South Coast Repertory’s Professional Conservatory in Costa Mesa, CA. She is a veteran actress of both stage and television and has appeared in three daytime television dramas including CBS’s Love of Life.

Hailing originally from Detroit, Pamela was a spokeswoman for the Ford Motor Company and has appeared in a number of films, commercials and infomercials. Pamela’s energy and passion for life has been described as both inspirational and contagious.

MS. PAGE OSTROW
A veteran producer's representative, Ms. Ostrow is a major industry player who has put over 80 films into distribution. She will be providing tips and telling us "how it is done".

While under contract with numerous distributors including Trident, G.E.L. , J.L Media, Initial Entertainment, and Gun for Hire, Page B. Ostrow gained experience for over fifteen years negotiating the license rights and raising global financing for over seventy feature films. As a consultant, educator, and producer's representative, Ostrow guides filmmakers successfully through the development, packaging, financing, and distribution process.

Originally Canadian, Ostrow began her career as an assistant director on many films for Orion, Alliance, Viacom, Simcom and H.B.O. In 1990, she joined forces with the right hand to Canada's largest distribution/production company Alliance Entertainment. After forming a local company in the Orion Pictures building, called Cinema World, Ostrow eventually became an independent consultant or hired gun for over 25 international film distributors. At film markets and festivals, she earned a reputation as an excellent negotiator with film buyers and distributors via a combination of language skills, (French, German, Spanish, Yiddish), with loyal contacts internationally, and overall business savvy.

MR. STEVEN GILBORN
Master of Craft Award

Mr. Gilborn will explain about the increasing importance of independent films to the film industry, and to actors in terms of the scale of opportunities to truly explore their craft.

Mr. Gilborn will also provide insights about the award winning comedy film FORMOSA, screening later at 8:15 PM.

Mr. Gilborn is a stand-out actor among actors in both film and television. He was a series regular on Ellen, and won two EMMYs for his role as Kevin Arnold's math teacher on Wonder Years. He has had recurring roles on Dream On, Common Law, Living Single and Picket Fences. He was Guest Star on a wide range of television shows including The Golden Girls, The Torkelsons, Malcolm in the Middle, Touched By An Angel, The Practice and Melrose Place. He had Supporting roles in the well-received films The Brady Bunch Movie, A Very Brady Sequel, Alien Resurrection, Dr. Doolittle, Howard Stern's Private Parts, Safe and He Said-She Said.

MR. GEOFFREY LEWIS
Lifetime Imagination and Creativity Award
   
Mr. Lewis will be addressing the crowd in his usual creative and comical style and also introducing us to his film short "OLD MAN MUSIC" (being featured in the festival) as well as his tremendous work in FORMOSA, screening later at 8:15 PM.

With over 114 movies to his credit, the talented Geoffrey Lewis is best known for his long association with Clint Eastwood, starting off with High Plains Drifter (1973), then as kind-hearted thief Eddie Goody in Thunderbolt and Lightfoot (1974), as Clint's buddy Orville Boggs in Every Which Way But Loose (1978) and Any Which Way You Can (1980), then as a henpecked husband in Bronco Billy (1980), as Ricky Z in Pink Cadillac (1989) and in Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil (1997). He also appears in the short FAIF Film Selection Old Man Music.

Equally busy on the small screen, he has guest-starred in dozens of episodes of high profile TV series. Additionally, he received a Golden Globe nomination for his performance in the series "Flo" (1980).

MR. NOAH KADNER
Award-Winning Director of the brilliant comedy film FORMOSA

Noah Kadner will tell us about the exciting path of his award-winning comedy/drama, FORMOSA. Mr. Kadner's resume includes visual effects work on big budget films like X-Men and The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen.

Over the past few months Formosa has been racking up awards on the domestic film festival scene including 'Best Feature' at the just finished "Big Bear Lake Film Festival"; "Best Director" at the Tahoe Reno Film Festival which also took place earlier this month; "Comedy Feature" at the Garden State Film Festival; and "Feature" mention at the Reelheart Film Festival in Toronto.

Filmmaker Noah Kadner is principal of High Road Productions, a Los Angeles-based film and television production company. High Road has produced several short films, commercials and music videos for clients including the U.S. Army, United Nations, NBC, PBS, Sony and FOX. Formosa, directed by Kadner, marks the first feature film from High Road Productions. Kadner’s work also includes his award-winning short Today's Life, which screened at San Diego ComiCon, UCLA Shorttakes, USC First Look, Hollywood Shorts Film Festival, IFILM, AtomFilms and aired on the Sci-Fi Channel. Kadner also works as a DVD authoring specialist and moderates several prominent online web forums including Creativecow.net and 2-Pop.com

THE HOLLYWOOD PREMIERE SCREENING OF FORMOSA!

Formosa is set in Albuquerque, NM in 1951 and tells the story of Sid Silver (played by veteran character actor Steven Gilborn), the owner of a struggling behavioral guidance film studio who opens his door to a mysterious stranger named Clay Crawford (Jamieson Stern) who he believes is a Method actor from the famed Actor’s Studio in New York and can help inspire his spiritless cast and crew to greatness. Clay is eventually revealed to be much more than a simple actor, but not before he touches the lives of everyone in town, including Sid’s beautiful daughter Anne-Marie (Jessica Kiper), becoming Formosa Studios’ lead actor in the process.