Joseph Sousa, Writer
Joseph grew up in California's San Joaquin Valley. He moved to New York where he received a BFA in Theater from Brooklyn College. Joseph acted in many New York plays including Shakespeare in the Park's Mother Courage alongside Meryl Streep. Joseph's play Teeth Of The Sons had its world premier in Portland, Oregon in September 2009. The play won Portland's Drammy Award for Best New Play and Joseph also won Best Lead Actor. Teeth Of The Sons went on to have an Off-Broadway run at the Cherry Lane Theatre in April 2011.
Joseph is currently a second year MFA in the Screen and Television Writing program at USC. He lives in Los Angeles with his wife Jessica and their twins Robert and Zelda.
Ryan Griswold, Cinematographer
Ryan is a Los Angeles based cinematographer whose roots stem from the Midwest. Ryan began working with cameras in Kansas City, eventually purchasing his own equipment and shooting films with his friends. At the University of Missouri-Kansas City Ryan’s emphasis was Film & Media Studies. He graduated summa cum laude and with departmental honors.
Ryan went on to the University of Southern California’s School of Cinematic Arts. On course to graduate in May 2014, Ryan has been the cinematographer for 6 thesis projects, has a documentary he DP’ed premiering at SXSW Edu in March, and frequently shadows his mentor Peter Levy on House of Lies.
Tim Smith, Producer
Tim was born and raised in Dallas, Texas and received a bachelor’s degree in film studies from USC. He recently concluded his studies in the USC School of Cinematic Arts Graduate Program with an MFA in Film Production where he produced the advanced project, Ordained, and the thesis film, Without You. He’s now actively involved in a number of projects as a Los Angeles based freelance producer.
Orlee-Rose Strauss, Director
Orlee-Rose is a filmmaker from Toronto, Canada. She received her BFA from The School of Image Arts: Film Program at Ryerson University in Toronto.
Orlee-Rose moved to Los Angeles in 2011 to pursue her Masters at The University of Southern California, School of Cinematic Arts. She has won awards for her work as an editor on A Different Tree, and was selected to direct Ordained in Spring of 2013. While in school she interned for some of the industry's most exciting companies including Plan B Entertainment and Apatow Productions. Orlee-Rose graduated USC in December 2013 and now works in TV development at Sony Pictures Television.
Charles Mazery, Cinematographer
Leandro Tadashi, Production Designer
Leandro was born in Manaus, Brazil, and studied Film and TV Production at the University of São Paulo. After college, he worked as a writer/director and production designer, designing short films, commercials, and two TV series. Leandro receieved a $30,000 grant to direct “Naiá e a Lua” based on an ancient myth from the Amazon Rainforest. It was released in 2010, and has been screened in over 60 festivals worldwide.
Leandro lives in Los Angeles, where he’s an MFA candidate in the Film and TV Production Program at the School of Cinematic Arts at the University of Southern California.
Kerry Yang, Production Designer
A strong visual style rife with poetic symbolism is the foundation of Kerry Yang's work. Born in Taiwan before obtaining a BFA at The School of the Art Institute of Chicago, Kerry is a writer/director whose absurd and darkly comic films have been showcased in festivals & galleries across Chicago, Los Angeles, and Taipei.
Her diverse body of work uses unconventional storytelling to both explore and subvert traditional views of Chinese & Taiwanese history.
Arun Narayanan, Editor
Arun Narayanan is an independent film producer, director, screenwriter, and editor. Arun began creating short form video content during his undergraduate studies at Brandeis University in Waltham, MA where he graduated Magna Cum Laude with a BA in Economics and Film Studies
Since moving to LA to attend the University of Southern California, Arun has had films show at the Short Film Corner at the Cannes Film Festival. the Playhouse West Film Festival and PBS’s Shorts Showcase.
Arun will graduate from the USC School of Cinematic Arts with an MFA in Film & TV Production in 2014.
Shaun Duffy, 1st Assistant Director
Shaun Duffy started working in the film industry after graduating with an English/Creative Writing degree from The City College of New York. After working in many different departments landed in Casting. After only 5 years and working on a dozen feature films, Shaun led multiple projects including Taking Woodstock, SALT, The Other Guys and Won’t Back Down.
Shaun continued to write and independently produce and direct short films over the years until applying to the most prestigious film school in the world, USC’s School of Cinematic Arts, where he is currently a graduate Film and Television Production student.
Hannah Phenicie, Editor
Hannah is a comedy director and editor. She received her BA in Art History from Columbia University in 2009 and will be graduating from USC's prestigious School of Cinematic Arts this May. Before starting graduate school, she worked as an assistant in the television department at WME. She enjoys directing, in particular: mysteries, comedies, and stories that have fantastical or ridiculous elements to them.
YeMing Chen, Sound Recordist/Designer
Yeming Chen currently studies film production at University of Southern California in the School of Cinematic Art. Before he came to the states, he studied film directing in the Communication University of China which is one of the best film schools in the country.
Chen was a commercial director for local TV channels. His focus was on sound in order to extend his filmmaking skill-set, but more importantly to become a better story teller.
Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/yming.chen
Email: yemingc@gamil.com
Jonathan Maurer, Sound Recordist/Designer
A lifelong writer, Jonathan Maurer enrolled in USC’s School of Cinematic Arts in 2012, where he is pursuing an MFA in Film & Television Production with a focus on writing & directing. Jonathan was selected as a cowriter to adapt the novel Don Quixote for the screen, in what will be the first feature film ever produced at USC, for a class taught by James Franco in Spring 2014.
After completing an internship at NBCUniversal, where he served as a production intern on the upcoming feature film Isa, Jonathan currently interns at Treehouse Pictures. In addition to writing and directing, Jonathan is also a published poet and film critic, as well as a studio member at Jocelyn Jones Acting Studio in West Hollywood, and a producer, including for Nellie Veitenheimer’s debut music video “Lights,” which has garnered over 150,000 views on YouTube.
Jonathanmaurer.com (in development)
Garth Herberg, Composer
Garth is a Los Angeles based composer and an artist in residence at The Forge artspace in
Cypress Park. After taking a break from touring throughout the U.S. and Canada in 2012
he began co-directing Babylight, an artist collective with a focus on music, visual art and dance.
Garth is currently a music director at The Miracle Project, an in-house composer for The Visceral Company's 2014 season, a member of LA Dance Family and a music teacher throughout the L.A. area.
https://soundcloud.com/garth-herberg
Ashley Chrisman, Producer
Ashley was born in Oakland, CA. and raised in Chicago, IL. She received her bachelor’s degree from Vanderbilt University in Nashville, TN. where she double majored in Psychology and Film Studies. While in Nashville, Ashley served as Chairperson of the Rhythm & Roots Performance Company, an ensemble known for its completely original stage craftsmanship. She was also a fellow pioneer of the Black Arts Series.
Ashley returned to Chicago to work for the Chatham Business Association where she trained in small business development as well as youth employment and entrepreneurship. Ashley is currently in her fifth semester as a MFA candidate at the University of Southern California, studying Film & Television production.