WRITING PROGRAM INSTRUCTORS AND MENTORS

Act One’s instructors and mentors consist of some of Hollywood’s top writers, producers, directors and agents.  They don’t just teach; they know the business of writing for film and television firsthand.

SHERYL J. ANDERSON, FACULTY & MENTOR
Among other adventures in Hollywood, Sheryl has worked as a television studio executive, a halfhour writer (Parker Lewis Can't Lose, Dave's World), and an hour writer/producer (Charmed, For the People). Sheryl also writes the Molly Forrester novels (Killer Heels, Killer Cocktail, Killer Deal) with her husband, Mark Parrott. She and her family are members of Westchester Lutheran Church.

RON AUSTIN, INSTRUCTOR
Ron Austin is a veteran writer and producer with over a hundred credits in film and television. His television credits include Mission Impossible, Hawaii Five-O, Charlie's Angels, Matlock, and The Father Dowling Mysteries. He has more recently produced a documentary, The Hidden Gift: War and Faith in Sudan, and an experimental feature film, Blue in Green. A member of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, the Writers Guild, and the Directors Guild, he has been on the faculty of the USC cinema school and the American Film Institute. He has taught in the Act One program since its inception.

DEAN BATALI, INSTRUCTOR & MENTOR
Dean was a writer on That 70s Show for seven years, serving as an Executive Producer during the show's final season. In addition to writing for the first two seasons of Buffy the Vampire Slayer (WB), he was a staff writer on NBC's Hope and Gloria and wrote for Duckman, Bruno the Kid, Mickey's Campfire Tales, and Nickelodeon's The Adventures of Pete and Pete.

JANET SCOTT BATCHLER & LEE BATCHLER, INSTRUCTOR &  MENTORS
As a husband-wife writing team, Janet and Lee's feature credits include the international blockbuster Batman Forever for Warner Bros., Shores of Tripoli for Disney, and Modesty Blaise, a "female James Bond" based on the well-known English novels and comic strip, for Miramax. In addition, their adventure movie Smoke and Mirrors is currently in development with Michael Douglas and Catherine Zeta-Jones set to star. The Batchlers have taught seminars on writing and the film industry for UCLA Film School, USC Film School, UC San Diego, Biola University, the Scriptwriter's Network, Women in Film, and the Writer's Connection, among others.

JAMES SCOTT BELL, INSTRUCTOR
James Scott Bell is the best-selling author of Presumed Guilty, Sins of the Fathers, Breach of Promise, and several other thrillers. He is a winner of the Christy Award for Excellence in Christian fiction and is currently fiction columnist for Writer's Digest magazine. His book Write Great Fiction: Plot & Structure is from Writer's Digest Books. Jim teaches writing at numerous writers conferences and at Pepperdine University.

BRIAN BELKNAP, MENTOR
Over 150,000 people have enjoyed the worship experiences created by author and national speaker Bryan Belknap. He has written and produced dozens of videos for the Christian market and reviewed hundreds of films and albums as media editor for www.MinistryAndMedia.com. He recently won the Art Within Screenwriting Fellowship and had his feature screenplay Mr. Popularity optioned. A graduate of Baylor University, Act One and Act Two, Bryan resides in L.A. with his wife Jill and their son Cash.

BRIAN BIRD, INSTRUCTOR & MENTOR
Brian Bird is currently writing and producing four films: The Last Sin Eater, the first film in his Believe Pictures partnership with Michael Landon , Jr., for Twentieth Century Fox; Not Easily Broken, for T.D. Jakes Entertainment and Sony/Screen Gems; Jake’s Run, a Believe Pictures co-production with Genesis Pictures; and The Magnolia Passion, for CineCity Pictures. Most recently, he developed and wrote two television pilots, the comedy Peter, Paul and Lena , for NBC, and the drama Simple City for Showtime. Prior to that, he served as Co-Executive Producer and writer for five seasons on the series Touched By An Angel. His script, Call Me Claus, was the highest rated cable TV film of 2002. Brian’s other film credits include the Morgan Freeman-directed Bopha! for Paramount Pictures, and the Hallmark Hall of Fame drama Captive Heart. He has also written screen adaptations for Paramount, TNT, Fox Broadcasting Company, CBS and HBO. His TV series producer and writing credits include more than 250 episodes of Touched By an Angel, Evening Shade, Step by Step and The Family Man. Also in 2006, he will author his first book, Television Worldviews, for InterVarsity Press.

HAYNES BROOKE, MENTOR
Haynes Brooke is a Los Angeles screenwriter, actor, and playwright who has had several of his plays staged at Tim Robbins' Actors Gang theater company. In 2005, he became the recipient of the first McFarland Writing Fellowship, awarded by Act One. Open to screenwriters who have completed the Act One month-long screenwriting intensive, the $40,000 fellowship winner benefits from weekly meetings with an industry mentor and quarterly critiques with a panel of established Hollywood writers.

BOBETTE BUSTER, INSTRUCTOR
Bobette Buster is a world-renowned lecturer on “What’s the Big Idea?  The Art and Craft of Feature Film Development” and “The International Principles of Cross-over Success.”  Bobette was a Creative Executive, working for Tony Scott, Larry Gelbart and Ray Stark, while also serving as an Adj. Professor at USC.  For the past 11 years, she has also been on the Visiting Faculty of both La Femis in Paris and the Media Business School in Rhonda, Spain, and the creator/instructor of the Origination Lab for Screen Training Ireland.  She has been a guest lecturer/advisor at the Sundance Lab for Latin American Writers in Mexico, Havana, Berlin, Prague, and the film programs in Italy, Denmark, Norway and Japan.  For the past three years, Pixar Studios has asked her to create a lecture series for their animation directors.  Bobette’s screen credits for production and story development include HBO’s first Best Film of the Year Emmy for Barbarians at the Gate, Weapons of Mass Distraction, and Revenge.  Bobette’s screenplays have won two national competitions and one is now under option  Bobette is also completing he book to her international course.

CHARLES ROBERT CARNER, INSTRUCTOR & MENTOR
Charles Robert Carner has written over 50 screenplays and teleplays, 18 of which have been produced. He co-wrote and directed A Killer Among Friends, the highest-rated CBS movie of the 1990s; he wrote and directed Who Killed Atlanta's Children?, Showtime’s highest-rated movie of 2000; he wrote Crossfire Trail, the highest-rated cable movie in the history of television. He also wrote, produced and directed The Fixer for Showtime; wrote and directed Christmas Rush and Red Water for TBS; and directed Judas for CBS. His feature credits include Let's Get Harry and Blind Fury. He has served on the executive committees of the United States Catholic Conference, and Catholics in Media. His biography appears in the Who’s Who editions of Entertainment, America and the World. Finally, and most importantly, he is married to actress/writer Debra Sharkey; they have two children, Michael and Grace Noelle.

JIM AND KAREN COVELL, INSTRUCTOR
Karen Covell is a TV producer and director of the Hollywood Prayer Network. Her producing credits include Headliners & Legends with Matt Lauer for MSNBC and America's Throwaway Children. Jim Covell is a composer and his musical scores range from feature films to network television series and specials. He has several commissioned orchestral works which have been performed around the country. Jim and Karen have authored two books, How to Talk About Jesus Without Freaking Out and The Day I Met God, both published by Multnomah Press. They speak across America challenging the church to see Hollywood as the world's most influential mission field.

SCOTT DERRICKSON, INSTRUCTOR
Scott Derrickson is the director and co-writer of the box office smash The Exorcism of Emily Rose. He was co-writer of Urban Legends: Final Cut and co-writer/director of Hellraiser: Inferno. He worked with Wim Wenders, co-writing the story for the German director's film The Land of Plenty. He has written films for Disney, Dimension Films, Jerry Bruckheimer, and Martin Scorsese, among others. He is currently developing John Milton’s Paradise Lost to direct for Legendary Pictures.

CRAIG DETWEILER, INSTRUCTOR &  MENTOR
Craig Detweiler is a screenwriter and the author of the book A Matrix of Meanings: Finding God in Pop Culture. He wrote the films The Duke for Buena Vista and Extreme Days for Providence Entertainment. His documentary Williams Syndrome: A Highly Musical Species won a Cine Golden Eagle and the Crystal Heart Award at the Heartland Film Festival. Craig serves as executive producer of the City of the Angels Film Festival and on the advisory boards for Reel Spirituality and the Heartland Film Festival. He has an MFA from the University of Southern California's School of Cinema/TV and an MDiv from Fuller Theological Seminary. He is a contributing editor for The Mars Hill Review.

JENNIFER DORNBUSH, MENTOR
Jennifer is a writer/filmmaker who attended Act One in 2002 and Act Two in 2003. She completed the documentary Armand in 2005, has written several feature length scripts, and produced several short films. Her mystery novel is currently under consideration for publication. Pre-Act One, Jennifer worked in public relations, journalism, and taught literature and rhetoric. This is her third year serving as an Act One mentor. When not writing, Jennifer forces herself to read the classics, knits IPOD covers, watches Brazilian telenovelas, avoids learning new technology, and trains her two dachshunds for the Weiner Dog Nationals. Quip for this year's class: “The price of excellence is discipline and prayer. “

LEILANI DOWNER, INSTRUCTOR & MENTOR
Leilani has written for several network television sitcoms including A Different World for NBC and Good News for UPN. She was executive story editor for ABC’s Growing Pains, and was a producer on Hangin’ With Mr. Cooper on ABC, Fresh Prince of Bel Air on NBC, Sister, Sister on the WB, Rewind for FOX. Her list of credits also includes pilots for FOX, ABC and NBC. In the feature film arena Leilani has written for Revolution Studios and Crescent Star Entertainment. Currently she is developing several of her own independent projects.

BENEDICT FITZGERALD, INSTRUCTOR
Benedict Fitzgerald co-wrote the screenplay for The Passion of the Christ with director Mel Gibson and adapted the Flannery O'Connor novel Wise Blood for director John Huston. He has also written numerous movies for television, including the adaptations In Cold Blood, Heart of Darkness, and Moby Dick.

SEAN GAFFNEY, MENTOR
Sean, Act One class of 2000, works with Act One’s monthly alumni script critique nights. He is a playwright, screenwriter, director, teacher and producer. His producing credits include Managing Director of Taproot Theatre (Seattle), and General Manager of Lamb’s Theatre Company (New York). He has written twenty professionally produced plays and seven produced videos. Sean’s freelance writing with Big Idea (creators of VeggieTales) includes videos, chapter books, and dialogue for four music CDs. Teaching credits include director of the theatre program of the MasterWorks Festival, adjunct faculty at Biola University, and speaking/teaching on Christianity and the Arts at conferences throughout the United States. Sean is a reader for Act One Script Consulting, a judge for the Writer’s Digest Annual Writing Competition, and a freelance script consultant. He received his BFA from Drake University, his MFA from Columbia University.

SIBYL GARDNER, INSTRUCTOR & MENTOR
As a freelancer, Sibyl Gardner has written for Law & Order and Joan of Arcadia, among others. She was a staff writer for Diagnosis Murder, Profiler and Any Day Now, for which she won a SHINE award.

DANA GIOIA, GUEST SPEAKER
Chairman of the National Endowment for the Arts, Dana Gioia is an internationally acclaimed poet, critic, educator, and former business executive. He received a B.A. and a M.B.A. from Stanford University and a M.A. in Comparative Literature from Harvard University. For fifteen years he supported his writing by working as an executive for General Foods in New York, eventually becoming Vice President of Marketing. His poems, translations, essays, and reviews have appeared in many magazines including The New Yorker, The Atlantic, The Washington Post Book World, The New York Times Book Review, Slate and The Hudson Review. He is author of several books, including Can Poetry Matter?

JACK GILBERT, TV TRACK COORDINATOR, INSTRUCTOR & MENTOR
Former Workshop Director of the industry’s most prestigious and successful television writing program, the Warner Bros. Writers Workshop, Jack Gilbert has also been a freelance reader for the William Morris Agency, NBC, and MTM Productions, and consulted on projects ranging from The Addams Family to Batman Forever. Jack is currently coordinator of Act One’s TV Track and Alumni Programs as well as an Adjunct Professor at Azusa Pacific University and Columbia College of Chicago.

CINDY GODWIN, WP MENTOR
Cindy worked for Twentieth Century Fox Studios as an assistant in the Feature Story Department, Feature Development, and on television shows such as LA Law, NYPD Blue, Picket Fences, Chicago Hope and The Practice. She has been a member of the Writer’s Forum, a Christian writer’s critique group, for ten years.

BARBARA HALL, INSTRUCTOR
Barbara Hall's producing credits include Joan of Arcadia, Judging Amy, Chicago Hope, Northern Exposure, I'll Fly Away, Moonlighting, and Anything But Love. She also developed three produced pilots, and worked as Story Editor on A Year in the Life and Newhart. She wrote the feature films Sylvie and Hearts, in addition to authoring seven published novels. Barbara has garnered a Humanitas Award, Viewers for Quality Television, NAACP Image Award, TV Critic's Association Award, American Library Association Best Books & Notable Books, three Emmy nominations, as well as a nomination for both the Writers Guild Award and the Producers Guild Award.

KAREN HALL, INSTRUCTOR
Karen Hall has most recently been a Co-Executive Producer for E-Ring and a Consulting Producer for Third Watch. Her long list of writing and producing credits includes M*A*S*H, Hill Street Blues, Moonlighting, Roseanne, Northern Exposure, and Judging Amy. Karen has received seven Emmy nominations, six Writers Guild Award nominations, four Humanitas Prizes and has won the Writers Guild Award for Outstanding Drama Script for the "Grace Under Pressure" episode of Hill Street Blues.

JEFF HOLDER, INSTRUCTOR
Jeff is a freelance writer and producer of kids media. Jeff began as a writer on such animated series as Dennis the Menace, Scooby Doo, and Flintstone Kids. In 1986 he became Director of Children's Programs for ABC TV where he oversaw such series as Winnie the Pooh and A Pup Named Scooby Doo. He then went on to work as Head of Development at Hanna-Barbera studios, where he piloted for the launch of Cartoon Network's Dexter's Laboratory, Power Puff Girls, and Johnny Bravo, among others. Jeff was also Vice President of Creative Affairs at Sony Wonder, and Executive in Charge of Production on numerous Sesame Street productions, including Elmo Saves Christmas and Elmopalooza. Jeff left corporate in 2001 to write and produce The GodMan, a one hour CGI animation story of Jesus. He's also been story editor and producer of VeggieTales "The Cartoon Adventure of Larry-Boy" and co-story editor and writer on Bugtime Adventures. Currently Jeff is producing international versions of GodMan, customizing the movie for a regional audience in Africa, India, Latin America, Russia and Asia. Jeff lives in Chatsworth with four kids, two pets, and one wife.

DONOVAN JACOBS, MENTOR
As a development executive and script consultant for numerous motion picture production companies and television networks, including Warner Bros., ABC, Touchstone Pictures, and Walden Media, Donovan Jacobs helped create a wide range of theatrical films and movies for television. He specializes in the development of family movies for television, working on the Humanitas Award-winning Ruby Bridges for The Wonderful World of Disney on ABC. Donovan is a graduate of the prestigious Warner Bros. Writers Workshop for television. He has written on media and spiritual and social issues for Sojourners and contributed a chapter to Act One’s book Behind the Screen: Hollywood Insiders on Faith, Film and Culture (BakerBooks, 2005).

CARY SOLOMON & CHUCK KONZELMAN, INSTRUCTORS & MENTORS
As a writing team, Solomon & Konzelman have written the supernatural thriller Tokyo Ghost Story for Fox Studios/Davis Entertainment, Inferno for Joel Silver/Warner Bros., an action/adventure based on the successful Solomon/Konzelman comic book series of the same name, the series pilot Dead Again for CBS/New Line, and Stealing Tomorrow for Cheyenne Pictures/MGM, based on an idea by Stan Lee. They just completed shooting the independent feature The Insatiable, starring Sean Patrick Flannery, which they also wrote.

SPENCER LEWERENZ, INSTRUCTOR
Spencer Lewerenz is editor with Barbara Nicolosi of Behind the Screen: Hollywood Insiders on Faith, Film, and Culture (Baker). He was a production editor, letters editor, and editorial writer for The Washington Times, as well as editor of the webzine Brainwash (www.affbrainwash.com). Before that, he was Culture Editor of The World & I magazine. Spencer has written for Crisis Magazine, First Things, The Washington Times, the American Enterprise, Doublethink, and The World & I. He has a BA in English from The University of Dallas.

ROB LOOS, MENTOR
Rob is co-founder and partner of TLC Entertainment, which has been producing award winning family videos and TV programs for 15 years. Rob and his co-founder/partner in TLC, George Taweel, have jointly received 68 awards for writing and producing excellence. These include recognition for some 70 Gold- and Platinum-selling videos -- especially the groundbreaking McGee and Me! mini-movies, which have sold over 4.5 million units and won 12 Gold and 12 Platinum video awards. TLC's many other successful productions include three seasons of Fox Family Channel's The All New Captain Kangaroo (which won the coveted “Parents’ Choice Award”); The Legend of Three Trees (starring Hal Holbrook and winner of the World Gold Medal); The Christmas Lamb (with Robby Benson, Jodi Benson, and a theme song that reached #1 on Billboard’s music video chart); and Secret Adventures, named by TV Guide as "one of the top 10 television programs for girls." A longtime member of the Writers Guild of America, west, Rob has numerous other credits besides those at TLC, having worked on projects both for TV (Star Search and other variety shows) and feature films (Take Away the Hatred, starring Geeorge C. Scott).

JACK LUGAR, MENTOR
Jack was a staff writer for the FOX series Wanda At Large. He has written and produced for comedian Louie Anderson, written for Family Theater Productions, participated in the Warner Bros. Comedy Workshop, and produced the DVD Building a Successful Parent Ministry. Jack is also the proud writer of several sitcom specs that will never again see the light of day.

MONICA MACER, INSTRUCTOR
A graduate of Vassar College, Monica started her career in the theatre in NYC. As a director and assistant director, she worked at Crossroads Theatre, George Street Playhouse, and Second Stage Theatre, among others. Monica was also awarded a fellowship for “breaking theatre directors” by the Edward and Sally Van Lier Foundation and was twice chosen to participate in the Lincoln Center Directors’ Lab. After a relatively smooth transition to L.A., Monica served as co-producer on the independent feature Park Day, which won the Audience Award at the Urban World Film Festival and was picked up by Blockbuster and Starz Cable Network. Monica then focused on feature and television development both as an assistant at Nickelodeon Movies at Paramount Studios and as a creative executive with the Walt Disney Company. Shortly after leaving Disney, Monica was selected for the Fox Writers Program and landed the writers’ assistant position on the Fox show 24. After two seasons at 24, Monica got her big break as a staff writer on ABC’s Lost. This year, Monica is ecstatic to be returning to Fox’s hit show Prison Break as a story editor.

BILL MARSILII, INSTRUCTOR
Bill Marsilii comes to screenwriting after a thriving career as a comedy writer/performer in New York. He was in the original Off-Broadway cast of Tony ‘n Tina’s Wedding, and has been featured at Caroline's on Broadway, Catch a Rising Star and numerous other theatrical venues. His romantic time-travel thriller Deja Vu (co-written with Terry Rossio) sold to Jerry Bruckheimer and The Walt Disney Company in June 2004, and is currently in production with director Tony Scott, Denzel Washington, Val Kilmer and Jim Caviezel. His screenplay Jingle is now at Nickelodeon Movies, where he is co-producing it with Ted Elliott, Terry Rossio and Sandra Bullock. His television work includes writing and acting in two comedy pilots for the Hallmark Channel, as well as writing several episodes of The Wubbulous World of Dr. Seuss and Courage the Cowardly Dog. He has also written feature screenplays for The Samuel Goldwyn Company, TriStar, Warner Bros., and Paramount Pictures.

DAVID MCFADZEAN, INSTRUCTOR
David created and executive produced the ABC hit television show Home Improvement. Prior to that he served as executive story editor on the premier season of Roseanne. He has executive produced and co-created television shows with Carol Burnett, Ed Asner, Haley Joel Osment, Dave Chappelle, and Dan Aykroyd. In film, David produced Where the Heart Is, starring Natalie Portman and Ashley Judd, and What Women Want, starring Mel Gibson and Helen Hunt. Recently, he executive produced Walker Payne, starring Jason Patric and Sam Shepherd, which premiered at the Tribeca Film Festival. David has a BA in theater from the University of Evansville and an MA in Theater from Illinois State University. He and his wife Elizabeth have two children: Meredith, age 24, and Court, age 20.

CHERYL MCKAY, MENTOR
Cheryl McKay moved to Los Angeles after completing the first year of Act One back in 1999. She has been professionally writing since 1997. Tommy Nelson served as her first publisher, teaming her with Frank Peretti on the Wild & Wacky, Totally True Bible Stories series. Cheryl recently wrote the screen adaptation of The Ultimate Gift, a feature film starring James Garner, Brian Dennehy, and Abigail Breslin, based on Jim Stovall’s best-selling novel. The film will be released in 2007. Tommy Nelson Publishers recently released her DVD Gigi: God’s Little Princess, another adaptation based on the book by Sheila Walsh. She wrote a half-hour drama for teenagers about high school violence, Taylor’sWall, which was produced in Los Angeles by Family Theater Productions and won a Telly Award.

NANCY MILLER, INSTRUCTOR &  MENTOR
Nancy was Co-executive Producer for the series The Profiler, Executive Producer for Leaving L.A., Any Day Now, and CSI: Miami, and a Consulting Producer for Threat Matrix. She has written for a number of other shows, including Law & Order and The Cosby Mysteries.

TOOCHIS MORIN, INSTRUCTOR

ANDREA NASFELL, INSTRUCTOR &  MENTOR
Andrea Nasfell is a partner at the indie production company Sodium Entertainment, which has produced two feature films: the thriller Breaking Dawn and the music documentary Last Dispatch. Sodium has also produced two NBC Fall Preview Specials, among other film, television and short projects. Andrea’s produced screenwriting credits include Flying Changes and the import cartoon series Sang Wira/Space Tiger, in addition to several other works-for-hire and spec features. Andrea also wrote Ground Truth, a dramatization for Homeland Security training that was directed by Anson Williams. Andrea graduated from Asbury College with an emphasis in film studies from the Los Angeles Film Studies Center. She is also a graduate of the Act One Writing Program, as well as their advanced writing track, Act Two.

PHIL NEMY, INSTRUCTOR
Phil Nemy is a twenty-year veteran of stage, film and television, and author of Get A Reel Job, a reference guide for aspiring filmmakers. A former Vice President of Production at Walt Disney Motion Pictures Group, he worked on dozens of Disney productions and such box office smashes as Armageddon, Con Air, Enemy of the State, and The Princess Diaries. In 2001, he departed Disney forming Angel's Touch Productions to produce and develop projects including Pancakes and Underwear with director Garry Marshall. He is currently developing the film Delivery From Moscow, XtremeTeens, and the mini-series Revolution. Nemy is a partner in Career Moves, a consulting firm that leads the successful seminar series "What They Don't Teach You in Film School," in cities all over the country. He regularly lectures at Carnegie Mellon University, and has conducted seminars to guide film students at UNC-Chapel Hill, North Carolina State, Duke University, and many others. He also teaches the course "How Does Hollywood Work: The Business of Hollywood" for the University of Texas at Austin.

BARBARA NICOLOSI, ACT ONE FOUNDER, INSTRUCTOR & MENTOR
Barbara is founder of Act One. She has an MA in Film from Northwestern University in Evanston, IL. She has been a director of development, a panelist for the National Endowment for the Arts, and a consultant on many film and television projects. She wrote The Work, a full-length feature set during the Spanish Civil War, for IMMI Pictures of Beverly Hills. She just co-wrote a feature-length romantic comedy for an L.A. production company that will be shot in summer 2006.Barbara recently co-edited the book Behind the Screen: Hollywood Insiders on Faith, Film, and Culture from Baker Books.

THOM PARHAM, INSTRUCTOR &  MENTOR
Dr. Thomas Parham is an associate professor of Theater, Film, and Television at Azusa Pacific University. He is a graduate of the U.S. Naval Academy and spent seven years on active duty, during which he qualified as a Surface Warfare Officer. Thom left the Navy to complete a doctorate in communication studies at Regent University. He has written for the CBS drama JAG and the Family Channel sitcom Big Brother Jake, and also served as the on-location writers’ assistant for the third season of Touched by an Angel. In its review of Behind the Screen: Hollywood Insiders on Faith, Film, and Culture, Publishers Weekly cited Thom’s essay “Why Do Heathens Make the Best Christian Films?” as a “standout,” and he also wrote a chapter on postmodernism for The Gospel According to Super-Heroes. Dr. Parham is listed in the 2007 edition of Who’s Who in America and in the 2002, 2004, and 2005 editions of Who’s Who Among America’s Teachers.

LEO PARTIBLE, INSTRUCTOR
Filmmaker, singer-songwriter, and comic book creator Leo Partible is the cofounder of DPG Visions, a film production and entertainment company that focuses on developing comic books and graphic novels for film and television. His upcoming projects include Killer Stunts, Inc., The Trouble with Grrls, a sci-fi/fantasy/superhero epic inspired by the works of C.S. Lewis and J.R.R. Tolkien called Powers & Principalities, as well as an untitled documentary on Christianity and comic books. Leo wrote the foreword to Who Needs a Superhero? and contributed to The Gospel According to Superheroes: Religion & Pop Culture.

TOM PROVOST, INSTRUCTOR & MENTOR
Tom graduated from the Plan II Honors Program at the University of Texas in Austin. He adapted the French film Garde a Vue into the screenplay Under Suspicion, which starred Morgan Freeman and Gene Hackman; his writing was nominated for an Edgar Award. A director of both commercials and industrial films, Tom has additionally worked as an AVID editor for the past nine years, cutting independent films, television shows, and hundreds of promos for both the WB television network and for Bravo; at Bravo, he wrote, produced and edited the promos. For his work at both networks he won Promax Awards. Tom also has worked as an actor in a variety of television commercials, theatre productions and television shows.

KEITH RAY PUTMAN, MENTOR
A native Californian, award-winning writer and director, Keith Ray Putman was bitten by the filmmaking bug at the tender age of 9. His early works were created using his father's wind-up 8mm camera, which critics said gave a "visceral urgency" to his short subjects about monsters, dogs, and stop-motion action figures. Since graduating the USC School of Cinema-TV, his more recent feature screenplays broadened his subject matter to include human beings, vampires (The Darkening) and ghosts (Silo 13, Gold Prize winner, PAGE International Screenwriting Awards). His recent directorial effort, A Temp For All Seasons, a short film springing from his former "day jobs," won Keith the Best Director prize at the 168 Hour Film Festival. He currently is co-writing The Hunt, a feature film for European distributor Sonetfilm. He resides in Pasadena with his wife, Kathy, a psychologist.

CHRIS & KATHY RILEY, WRITING PROGRAM DIRECTOR, INSTRUCTORS & MENTORS
Chris and Kathy Riley are screenwriters whose first film, After the Truth, a multiple-award-winning German-language courtroom thriller, sparked international controversy in 1999 when it was released in Germany. The husband-wife team wrote 25 to Life, a dramatic thriller for director Jon Turteltaub’s Junction Entertainment and Touchstone Pictures, and The Other White House, a political thriller for Sean Connery’s Fountainbridge Films and Intermedia. They adapted the nonfiction book Actual Innocence by Barry Scheck, Peter Neufeld and Jim Dwyer for Mandalay Television Pictures and the Fox television network. The Rileys recently completed Aces, an actionadventure romance for producer Robert Cort and Paramount Pictures. Chris is the author of The Hollywood Standard: The Complete and Authoritative Guide to Script Format and Style. In addition to writing, Kathy serves as outreach coordinator for We Can, a pediatric brain tumor support network. The Rileys live with their children in Los Angeles.

BERNADETTE RIVERO, INSTRUCTOR
Bernadette Rivero is a script reader and analyst who has scrutinized hundreds of screenplays since moving to Los Angeles in 2002. A graduate of Saint Mary’s College in Notre Dame, IN, she spent several years as a journalist working for outlets like CNN, NPR, PBS, ABC and The Weather Channel before winning a spot as a Nickelodeon Writing Fellow and making a full-time switch to Hollywood. A ghostwriter for more than a dozen commercial and film directors around the world, she has most recently worked as a script reader for Ridley and Tony Scott’s company, Scott Free Productions, and Samuel Goldwyn Films. Bernadette is a former Rotary International Ambassadorial Scholar to Mexico.

BRANT ROSE, INSTRUCTOR
Brant Rose started the Brant Rose Agency in 2001, having begun his career in agenting at UTA in 1994. His agency represents writers, directors and producers for film and television. He has shaped the careers of a number of Academy Award, Golden Globe, WGA and Independent Spirit Award winners and nominees. Throughout his career he has represented careers such as Ken Nolan (Black Hawk Down), Shonda Rhimes (Grey’s Anatomy), Bill Condon (Oscar winning writer/director Gods & Monsters, Chicago), and Bragi Schut (creator of CBS series Threshold). He has served on the Sundance Producers Conference, American Cinematheque Board, Squaw Valley Conference of Writers, and I Have A Dream Foundation-L.A. Prior to the entertainment business, he worked at Procter & Gamble in brand management after graduating from Dartmouth College with a degree in Government. He spends his weekends mentoring three to six year old children.

NANCY SCHRAEDER, MENTOR
Nancy Sawyer Schraeder has worked as a writer in various venues for over ten years. Her most recent undertaking is a feature script for The Jesus Film Project, to be released in 2007. Her original screenplay, Wilberforce, was optioned for three years by Patricia Heaton’s Fourboys Films and Walden Media and was a semi-finalist in the Chesterfield Film Company Writer’s Film Project. Nancy wrote three books with Dr. Bill Bright, and is currently completing her first novel. After graduating Magna cum Laude from Wheaton College, Nancy completed a master’s degree in professional writing at the University of Southern California. She has conducted workshops on writing, critical thinking, and film and literature, and for eight years was an adjunct professor in the English department of Biola University. She is also a board member for the 168 Film Project. Nancy lives in Southern California with her husband, Bob, and their three children.

CLARE SERA, INSTRUCTOR & MENTOR
Clare is a graduate of Act One's class of '99. The script she wrote that year led to an eight month contract with Dreamworks Feature Animation. Then she was unemployed for quite a while. Then she got some work as a script consultant for a successful screenwriter/friend. (She advises: always have a successful screenwriter friend.) She was on the writing team for Curious George (Universal) for a while and then she was unemployed for a long time again. She is currently writing a feature animation script based on a pitch she sold to Klasky-Csupo/Paramount and she's writing a live action feature for Art Within, and directing a short film she wrote for the Glenville Foundation. Then she expects she'll be unemployed again. Before attempting screenwriting, Clare trained for her career by being an often unemployed playwright and actor.

JOHN SHEPHERD, MENTOR
Producer John Shepherd has worked in independent film for 15 years. John recently wrapped production on The Ultimate Gift (Brian Dennehy, Drew Fuller and James Garner), to be released this fall. Shepherd produced the Heartland Festival award winner Bobby Jones – Stroke of Genius (James Caviezel). He produced, wrote and/or appeared in 15 motion pictures for World Wide Pictures, the film ministry of the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association-- including The Climb which premiered in June of 2002 and Road to Redemption the ministry’s first intentional comedy. John’s been a showrunner at Digital Entertainment Network and served as senior vice president of original content and production for POP.com, the internet startup spawned by Dreamworks and Imagine Entertainment. His next film is Monkey Trial, directed by Steve McEveety (The Passion).

CHARLES B. SLOCUM, INSTRUCTOR
Charles B. Slocum is assistant executive director of the Writers Guild of America and chair of Act One’s board of directors. He has worked in the entertainment industry for almost 20 years in a variety of financial and strategy positions. He has worked for Paramount Pictures in television finance, for NBC as a game show judge, and for ABC in audience research. He has an MBA from the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania and a BA in Television/Radio from the Newhouse School at Syracuse University. He is pursuing a Master’s in Theology and the Arts from Fuller Theological Seminary.

MICHELE SUH, INSTRUCTOR
Michele received her undergraduate and graduate degrees from the University of Southern California in Violin Performance. She has performed with artists including Leann Rimes, Rod Stewart, David Benoit, Guns N Roses, Burt Bacharach, composers Lalo Schifrin, James Horner & Michael Kamen, and world renowned classical conductor Zubin Mehta. She has also performed with Christian artists John David Webster, the Kry, and Morgan Grace. With an equal passion for unifying faith-based artists in the arts and entertainment ministry, she has served on staff with Campus Crusade for Christ's music ministry for 12 years, started and led an Industry Women’s Support Group for four years, served as the Assistant Coordinator for Media Fellowship International Los Angeles, coordinated the Hollywood Prayer Network Studio Lot Prayer Walks for five years, and in 2003 through Hollywood Presbyterian Church, started the organization Hollywood Connect, an arts and entertainment ministry helping to equip industry Christians to realize their God-given calling.

AMY SNOW, INSTRUCTOR & MENTOR
After graduating from Pepperdine University, Act One alumnus Amy Snow attended New York Film Academy. Her first feature, the teen dramedy Buck Naked Arson, won first place at Houston Worldfest, best drama at the San Francisco Film Festival, and was distributed by Thinkfilm. In 2004, Amy won the Disney Screenwriting Fellowship with her spec script First Husband, developed in Act One's advanced screenwriting workshop. She is represented by Endeavor and Nine Yards Entertainment.

GEORGE TAWEEL, MENTOR
George Taweel is co-founder of TLC Entertainment whose family programming has included numerous long-running television series, collected 70 Gold/Platinum Video Certifications, garnered over 112 creative awards including an Emmy, has had programs broadcast in over 80 countries worldwide, has spawned over 100 licensed products, and has entertained millions in live venues. Many of Taweel's recent productions have been in the world of animation (direct to video/TV), both CGI and cel, and he also has experience in the combination of live-action and animation. Taweel is a member of the WGA, DGA, PGA, ATAS.

JOHN TINKER, INSTRUCTOR
John Tinker started in television as a staff writer on St. Elsewhere in 1982. He was Executive Producer for L.A. Law, Chicago Hope, The Practice, and The Book of Daniel, among others. He received an Emmy award for Best Writing on a Drama Series.

MICHAEL VAN DYCK, INSTRUCTOR
Michael Van Dyck has been a TV / Feature Literary Agent since 1990, currently with Paradigm Agency. He’s developed, packaged and sold series and long form projects in all TV arenas, and has staffed over 100 writers / producers / directors on series which currently include, among others: Law & Order: SVU, That 70s Show, NCIS, Rodney, Las Vegas, Sleeper Cell, and Kidnapped.

REBECCA VER STRATEN-MCSPARRAN, CHAPLAIN
Rev. Rebecca Ver Straten-McSparran graduated from Fuller Theological Seminary with an MDiv. She is the Director of the Los Angeles Film Studies Center, which provides an intensive semester of study and internships in Hollywood for many Christian college students every year. Rebecca is the Director of the City of Angels Film Festival and has participated as panelist, emcee, co-producer and head of panels over the last five years. She is also on the planning committee of Reel Spirituality, a think-tank for filmmakers and theologians sponsored by Fuller Theological Seminary. Rebecca speaks on film, culture and theological issues at conferences, seminars and college campuses. She is on the revision team for the book Reel Spirituality as well as writing a chapter for a book on film & theology. She is the pastor of an emerging church, Tribe of Los Angeles.

STEVE VINSON, CHAPLAIN
Steve has been leading churches for 13 years, and writing stories since he could hold a pencil. He has a BA in Bible from Florida Christian College and an MA in Theology from Cincinnati Christian University. He has been senior minister at Scottsdale Christian Church, in the Phoenix Valley, for eight years. He has been working on screenplays since October, 2000, and attended one of the initial Before Act One Classes (Malibu, 2001). Steve and his wife Lisa live in Scottsdale, AZ, with their two daughters Charlee and Darynn.

KEN WALES, INSTRUCTOR
Veteran filmmaker and actor Ken Wales was executive producer of the award-winning CBS television series Christy. He has produced numerous feature films including The Tamarind Seed, Islands in the Stream, Wild Rovers and The Prodigal. Ken was associate producer of Cagney and Lacey and also co-produced the 8-hour Emmy nominated and Golden Globe winning ABC miniseries John Steinbeck’s East of Eden. Ken has an Honorary Doctorate in Fine Arts from Greenville College, and is the author of the historical novel Sea of Glory, which is in development to be filmed as a feature. He is currently producing the historical feature Amazing Grace, the story of William Wilberforce, which will be released early in 2007. He is also preparing the shooting scripts for the sequel to Chariots of Fire and C.S. Lewis’ The Great Divorce.

MICHAEL WARREN, INSTRUCTOR & MENTOR
Michael Warren began writing for television as an executive story consultant on Happy Days. He went to Warner Bros. as executive producer of Perfect Strangers. He co-created and executive produced two of the longest running shows on ABC: Step by Step and Family Matters. TV Guide listed Steve Urkel as one of the 50 most popular television characters of all time. He also executive produced Hangin' With Mr. Cooper, Getting By, The Family Man, Kirk, Meego and Two of a Kind. He presently has over 800 episodes of television in syndication. Michael has consulted with international Christian organizations, including Children's Hunger Fund, Africa Renewal Ministries and Christian Associates, in the use of media.

DALLAS WILLARD, GUEST SPEAKER
Dallas Willard is a renowned theologian, teacher and writer of the highly acclaimed books:Renovation of the Heart, In Search of Guidance, The Spirit of the Disciplines, and The Divine Conspiracy. Dr Willard is a professor at the University of Southern California's School of Philosophy and has held visiting appointments at UCLA and the University of Colorado.

FR. DON WOZNICKI, CHAPLAIN
Rev. Woznicki, 45, is Associate Pastor at St. Norbert Catholic Church in Northbrook, IL. Before becoming a priest, Rev. Woznicki earned his Bachelor’s in Chemical Engineering from Purdue University in Lafayette, IN, and worked in the environmental field. In 2002, he earned his Master in Divinity and Baccalaureate in Sacred Theology from University of St. Mary of the Lake (Mundelein Seminary) and was ordained to the priesthood for the Archdiocese of Chicago. In 1998, a year before entering the seminary, Rev. Woznicki traveled to L.A. to work in the production side of the film and television business for a better understanding of the entertainment industry. Eventually Rev. Woznicki was asked to be a chaplain for Act One. Rev. Woznicki currently balances his time between his associate pastor duties in Northbrook and entertainment outreach ministries in Los Angeles. In particular, he is spearheading an initiative within the Church to mobilize "faith based" markets and ideally all markets toward entertainment products that excel in virtue and beauty.

KRIS YOUNG, INSTRUCTOR & MENTOR
Kris has written six films for the Disney Channel, including Teen Angel, Teen Angel Returns and Secret Bodyguard and TV pilots for Nickelodeon and CBS. His micro-mini interstitial movie, "Mosquito Cupid," was produced recently for ABC/Disney. Kris teaches screenwriting at L.A. Film Studies Center and is an assistant visiting professor of screenwriting at UCLA and also teaches in their Professional Screenwriting Program. Kris currently co-chairs the WGA Asian-American Writers' Committee. His book, Four Paws from Heaven (co-authored), a devotional for dog lovers, was published earlier this year.

SCOTT YOUNG, INSTRUCTOR & CHAPLAIN
Rev. Scott Young is Co-Founder and Director Emeritus of the City of the Angels Film Festival. He is the director of Faculty Relations for InterVarsity Christian Fellowship in the Southern California region. He serves as chaplain for Act One. Scott has been an adjunct instructor at Fuller Theological Seminary; Art Center: College of Design; Los Angeles Film Study Center; and Biola University. He has served on the ecumenical jury at the Berlin International Film Festival.