Cecilia Gonzalez - Festival Chair
An award-winning writer, producer and director, Ms. Gonzalez is one of the country’s leading figures in Latino communications.  Her vast experience includes the planning and production of programs and series as a Senior Producer with the Univision Television Network, KMEX-TV Los Angeles and as Franciscan Communications Director of Broadcasting.  She has produced documentaries for Hispanic Telecommunications Network (HTN), done field reports and on-air commentary for Odyssey Television, and catechetical and broadcast efforts for Santa Fe Communications and Paulist Communications.  She has degrees in Communication Arts and Spanish Language and Culture, and a Masters in Theological Studies from Loyola Marymount University in Los Angeles.  She is currently the producer and director of the multiple award winning episodic dramatic radio series La Historia de Quein Soy for Family Theater’s new Latino Programming Division.

David Tlapek - Festival Producer and Co-Chair
David Tlapek was a practicing attorney in Dallas, Texas before moving to Los Angeles to pursue a career in film.  He received his Masters Degree in Film Production from USC in 1995.  As his thesis project, he directed and wrote "The Search for Martin Frye," which has garnered numerous festival honors, including an award from the City of the Angels Film Festival.  Mr. Tlapek recently completed a documentary on the Nuba people of Sudan entitled THE HIDDEN GIFT: War and Faith in Sudan.

Charles Robert Carner - Festival Co-chair, Documentaries & Shorts Program
Charles Carner wrote the feature films Let’s Get Harry and Blind Fury.  He wrote and directed television episodes of Midnight Caller, Reasonable Doubts and The Untouchables.  He has also directed the television films A Killer Among Friends and One Woman’s Courage.  His participation in the festival leadership has shaped the documentaries and shorts program inaugurated in 1998.  Mr. Carner is currently in production on two new films for Showtime.

Robert Banks, PhD – Festival Founding Co-Chair
Dr. Robert Banks is the City of Angels Film Festival’s Founding Chair.  He is the executive director of the De Pree Leadership Center in Pasadena, and the Homer L. Goddard Professor of the Ministry of the Laity at Fuller Theological Seminary.

Scott Young – Festival Founding Co-Chair
Rev. Scott Young is a founding Co-Chair of the City of the Angels Film Festival.  He is the director of Graduate Study/Faculty Ministry for InterVarsity Christian Fellowship in the Southern California region.  Rev. Young is a campus pastor at UCLA and an instructor at the Art College of Design in Pasadena.

Ron Austin – Co-Chair at Large
Ron Austin, Veteran Writer and Producer, and 1998 Chair of the City of Angels Film Festival, began his career in Hollywood as a young actor under the direction of Charles Chaplin.  He is a member of the Motion Picture Academy, a founding member of Catholics in Media Associates, and has served on the Boards of the Writers Guild and the Center for Media Literacy.  Mr. Austin has also taught graduate level screenwriting courses at the USC School of Cinema

Todd Coleman – Production Sub-Committee
Entertainment journalist Todd Coleman has written for The Hollywood Reporter, The Los Angeles Times, and Premiere magazine, and served as head researcher on three books on Hollywood.  He has written and directed numerous short films and videos, including a mannequin horror film at NYU that played on cable for 13 years and won eight international awards (during a particularly slow year for student films).  He currently serves as the west coast office for an Internet technology company, Broadbridge Media

Frank Desiderio, csp – Panels Sub-Committee
Ordained in 1982, Fr. Frank Desiderio, csp has served as a parish priest in Los Angeles, a campus minister at UCLA and as a radio producer.  He holds Masters degrees from Catholic University in theology and from the USC Annenberg School of Communications.  For the past seven years, he was rector of St. Paul’s College, the Paulist Fathers seminary in Washington DC.  He also taught preaching at CU and communications at Washington Theological Union.  In January of 1999 he returned to Los Angeles to serve as Vice President of Paulist Productions. 

Craig Detweiler – Chair, Panels Sub-Committee
Craig Detweiler completed his MFA from USC's School of Cinema and Television in 1996.  His short films have screened in festivals across the globe from Auckland to Amsterdam.  His feature documentary, Williams Syndrome: A Highly Musical Species has won numerous awards including the Silver Award at Worldfest Charleston, and the CINE Golden Eagle.  Craig's feature screenplay The Duke has just been completed by Keystone Entertainment and will be in theaters later this year.

Joseph Esparza, csc
Brother Joe Esparza, CSC, of the Congregation of the Holy Cross, has been national director of Family Theater Productions since April 12, 1999.  He coordinates a staff of 13 persons in developing and producing family-oriented TV and radio programs in English and in Spanish.  He previously served as consultant for adult faith formation, Archdiocese of San Antonio, for which he produced and hosted a local TV program.

Frank Frost, PhD – Documentaries & Short Films Program
Frank Frost is president of Frank Frost Productions in Virginia.  A graduate of USC’s School of Cinema, Frank Frost also holds a Ph.D. in Communications from USC and a Ph.L. in Philosophy from the Bellarmine School of Theology.  His multiple award winning productions include Bernardin, Scandinavia, States of Faith and Marketplace Prophets.

Silvia Gambardella  - Documentaries & Short Films Program
Silvia is an award-winning broadcast journalist who has worked for CNN, PBS, NBC, CBS, A&E, Disney and the Learning Channel. She has also appeared as a reporter on evening newscasts for several television stations around the country including KCAL and KCET's Life and Times.  Currently, she directs and writes documentaries for A&E's Investigative Reports with Bill Kurtis.

Laura Kaiser – Film Acquisitions
Laura has worked in the archival field for the last decade with both moving image and audio collections.  Her involvement with film festivals began with the Chicago Film Festival after finishing her M.A. in Film Studies at the University of Iowa.  Ms. Kaiser is one of the founders of the City of the Angels Film Festival.

Paul Mercier – Master of Ceremonies / Production Sub-Committee
This is Paul's second year working on the Festival, coming to us from the Board of Open Call.  After achieving a B.F.A. from Adelphi University in New York, he received an A.G.S.M. from The Guildhall School of Music and Drama in London where his performances included two British premiers: Bernstein¹s Mass conducted by John Mauceri, The Exchange, translated and co-directed  by Michael Frayn and culminated with a European tour of Romeo & Juliet playing Mercutio.  TV includes: Donny & Marie, Sunset Beach, Sister Sister, Who¹s the Boss, Inside Word for E!; Independent films include: The Brothers, Missing in LA, and Wrestling with God, directed by Jerry Jackson.  Paul formed a "loop" or ADR group, Lalapalooperz.com, performing on many TV shows and movies including this year¹s new WB hit Safe Harbor. You have also heard him performing several radio plays with LA Theatreworks as well as hundreds of commercial voice overs.  He has produced two children¹s videos and enjoys life with his two wonderful children and beautiful wife in Los Angeles.

Anthony Scannell, OFM Cap.
A Capuchin Franciscan Priest with over 40 years experience in communications, Anthony Scannell is a Pastoral Telecommunications Specialist with the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Los Angeles.  He has been president of Franciscan Communications (Los Angeles based production facility of media for radio, TV and religious education), Unda-USA and Unda-World (the Roman Catholic Church's national and international organizations for radio TV and other media), provincial minister of the Capuchin Province of St. Joseph (Detroit), and co-founder of Catholics in Media an organization of professionals in TV and film in Los Angeles.

Rebecca VerStraten-McSparran – Panels Sub-Committee
Rev. Rebecca Ver Straten-McSparran graduated from Fuller Theological Seminary with an M.Div. and has been Associate Minister of membership, Outreach and Christian Education at  First Congregational Church of Los Angeles.  She designs and leads courses on film and art, is on the board of Reel Spirituality, and is part of the Lloyd C. Douglas Film Awards and Seminar.

Doug Whittle, PhD – Fundraising Chair
Doug Whittle is Senior Director of Development at Fuller Theological Seminary.  He is an American Baptis ordained minister and an avid movie lover.

Rev. Bob Wiseman – Panels Sub-Committee
Father Bob Wiseman, CSC, of the Congregation of Holy Cross, has served as Family Theater Productions’ vice president for institutional advancement since March 1999.  He coordinates outreach to mass media to expand promotion and distribution of the their TV and radio programs and billboard campaign and is the liaison to the film/TV industry and the Catholic community.  He formerly served in a parish in Winter Park, Fla., and  as director of Catholic campus ministry at nearby Rollins College.
 

Additional Festival Production Credits (partial listing)

We express our deepest gratitude for the generous and imaginative work of our many festival teams.

Film Festival Production 
Producer: David Tlapek
Executive Producer: Cecilia Gonzalez-Andrieu
Master of Ceremonies: Paul Mercier
Luminosa Award:  Mary Cass
Opening Night Music: Joseph Edwards, Reverence
House Manager:  Lawrence Mayberry 
DGA Liaison: Jessica Barnes
Box Office Managers:  Melba Novoa, Kristi Zabriskie, Monica Castagnasso 
Film Acquisitions: Laura Kaiser, Maria Gavin
Documentaries and Shorts: Silvia Gambardella and the Board of Directors of CIMA
Volunteer Coordinators: Luz Fernandez and Daniel Novoa

Celebrations
Invitations: Janice Ryder
Receptions: Bonnie Pagett, Mary Cass, Marliese Becker
Art Exhibit: Julie Pettit, Doug Whittle

Promotion
Publicity:  Frank Tobin, Joe Handy, Kate Wright
Web Master:  Jerry L. Jackson

Print 
Program Notes Editor:  Barbara R. Nicolosi
Photo Acquisitions:  Gavin Glennon and Paul Mercier 
Graphics and Layout:  Tisha Lozano Design
Publishers: Cecilia González-Andrieu and David Tlapek

Administrative Support 
Luz Fernandez, Assistant to the Chair, Family Theater Productions
Florence Epp, Fuller Theological Seminary
Melissa McNeil, The Odyssey Network
Merlise Becker, The Focolare Movement

Special Thanks to:
William Blume, the Odyssey Network
Dottie Davison, Fuller Theological Seminary
Rob Johsnton, Reel Spirituality
David Moore, Archdiocese of Los Angeles
Randy Runkle, Showtime
Derek Warfel, Premise
Bud Wiser, CIMA