Closing Night Awards Ceremony at 2018 Arpa IFF
Sunday, November 4, 2018 ~ CLOSING NIGHT AWARDS CEREMONY PROGRAM
Red Carpet & Reception 6:00 PM, Doors Open 7:30 PM, Program Start 8:00 PM
LLOYD E. RIGLER Theatre, Egyptian Theatre
RESERVE YOUR CLOSING NIGHT TICKETS
Closing Night Short Film Presentation: WITH MY OWN TWO HANDS, 4 min, France, directed by Michaël Barocas
AWARDS CEREMONY including 2018 Winners and Honorees:
~ Best Short Animation Award
~ Best Short Film Award
~ Best Documentary Film Award
~ Best Feature Screenplay Award
~ Best Feature Director Award
~ Best Feature Film Award
~ Icon Award: Honoring Ed Asner, a television legend, the winner of seven acting Emmy Awards.
~ Career Achievement Award: Honoring Sveva Alviti, known for Dalida (2016), The Bouncer (2018) and Dangerous Lies Vol. 1 (2017).
~ Rising Star Award: Honoring Natalie Qasabian, her latest feature “Searching” premiered & won the Audience award & Alfred P. Sloan award at Sundance, then was distributed as a wide release by Sony pictures.
Read more about the 21st annual Arpa International Film Festival 2018 Special Honorees.
Red Carpet with Reception & Entertainment before and after Closing Night Program
ICON AWARD Recipient – ED ASNER
Ed Asner is a television legend, the winner of seven acting Emmy Awards (which puts him tied with Mary Tyler Moore, both of whom rank second to their “Mary Tyler Moore (1970) Show” co-star, Cloris Leachman who has nine).
CAREER ACHIEVEMENT AWARD Recipient – SVEVA ALVITI
Sveva Alviti is known for Dalida (2016), The Bouncer (2018) and Dangerous Lies Vol. 1 (2017).[/vc_column_text]
RISING STAR AWARD Recipient – NATALIE QASABIAN
Natalie Qasabian’sclatest feature “Searching,” a thriller starring John Cho and Debra Messing premiered and won the Audience award and Alfred P. Sloan award at Sundance, then was distributed as a wide release by Sony pictures, and she’s currently producing “Run” for Lionsgate.
ROBERT BEITZEL – Master of Ceremonies
Robert Beitzel has worked largely in New York theater developing new works with Ethan Cohen, Adam Rapp, David Cromer, and many others. Starring alongside Michael Shannon, Michael McKean, Helen Hunt, Ann Dowd, Shirley Knight, and more. He’s also known for his work as Selah Strong on AMC’s TURN, Washington’s Spies, as well as featured roles on HBO’s True Detective, Inside Amy Schumer, and ER. A graduate of The Juilliard School, his work in independent film includes, Winter Passing, My First Kiss and the People Involved, and Art Machine. Off-Broadway: Women or Nothing, The Atlantic Theater. Our Town, Barrow Street Theater. In Masks Outrageous and Austere, The Culture Project. Hallway Trillogy, Rattlestick Playwrights’ Theater. Finer Noble Gases, Rattlestick. Faster, Rattlestick. Light Raise the Roof, NYTW. Bulrusher, Urban Stages. Regional: Appropriate, Center Theater Group – Mark Taper Forum, A Midsummer Night’s Dream, The Shakespeare Theater, D.C. Finer Noble Gases @ Actors’ Theater Louisville, The Bush Theater (London), and The Edinburgh Fringe. Film and T.V.: My First Kiss and the People Involved, Winter Passing, Art Machine, Blackbird, Side Effects (short). True Detective (HBO), Turn (AMC), Inside Amy Schumer, NCIS New Orleans, Law and Order, ER. Robert creates music with his bands Corporal and Less the Band. BFA: The Juilliard School.
2018 AWARDS PRESENTERS
ANDRE GORDON – Award Presenter
Andre Gordon is an actor working with UTA, CLEAR Talent Group and Flick Commercials. Gordon is President and C.E.O of 4Horsemen Films. In 2015 Andre Gordon and the cast of Jungle Bunch, including John Lithgow, won the International Emmy Award for best Kids Animation Show. The show was nominated once again the following year.
Andre has worked theatrically in both film and television, which includes guest appearances on: Modern Family, Raising Hope, Haunted Hathaways, MAD TV, Campus Ladies, Scrubs, Phineas and Ferb and Zoey 101 and more. Also with the features Old School, Like Mike, and SWAT. He has produced films starring Michael Clarke Duncan, Vinnie Jones and Brian Austin Green. He has created a TV series starring Jerry Rice, and has directed greats such as Morgan Freeman, James Caan, Ed Begley Jr. and Kathryn Joosten. Andre was born in Saint Andrew, Jamaica and grew up in Miami, Florida. He is a graduate of the BFA program at Florida State University.
CAMILLE HYDE – Award Presenter
Camille Hyde began her acting career at age 4 in a school musical. She continued to pursue her passion for acting and singing throughout her childhood until she moved to California and was cast in Nickelodeon’s Power Rangers Dino Charge as Shelby, the Pink Ranger. Camille starred in the Peabody Award winning Netflix series “American Vandal.” She was one of the leads in the go90 series “Mr Student Body President” as well as the lead in the Awesomeness TV series “Versus.”
Camille most recently booked strong guest star roles on the ABC series “The Good Doctor”, on USA’s “Suits” and the Netflix series “All About The Washingtons. She also shot a strong supporting role in the Lakeshore feature film “The Wedding Year.” Her interests include horseback riding, world travel, cooking and music. She also plays piano and dances contemporary, pop, jazz and hip hop.
JAMES ADOMIAN – Award Presenter
James Adomian is a comedian and actor well known for his standup, characters and impressions. As Bernie Sanders, James is one-half of TRUMP VS. BERNIE, a comedy debate act that includes a memorable guest appearance on Comedy Central and two TV specials for Fusion, along with a live international tour in 2016. James has performed standup on JOHN OLIVER’S NEW YORK STAND UP SHOW on Comedy Central, and on NBC’s LAST COMIC STANDING where he was a Top 10 finalist. James has also performed to much acclaim over the years at the JUST FOR LAUGHS Festival in Montreal and many other top comedy festivals. He can be seen in David Cross’ feature directorial debut HITS, and in feature films LOVE AFTER LOVE (IFC Films), the animated feature ADVENTURES OF DRUNKY, and the new film from CHRIS MORRIS (HBO’s VEEP) starring Anna Kendrick. He has guest starred on Comedy Central’s @MIDNIGHT, THE MELTDOWN and DRUNK HISTORY, on Adult Swim’s CHILDREN’S HOSPITAL and on IFC’s COMEDY BANG! BANG! as a variety of guest characters. James has done recurring voiceover on numerous animated shows, including OUR CARTOON PRESIDENT on Showtime, BOB’S BURGERS, BOJACK HORSEMAN, AMERICAN DAD, FUTURE WORM, TALKING TOM, and PIG GOAT BANANA CRICKET. He is also a beloved regular podcast guest, particularly on the Earwolf podcast network.
LAURIE FORTIER – Award Presenter
Laurie has been working professionally for over 20 years and has worked with legends including James Caan, Dennis Hopper, Martin Landau, Michele Pfiffer, James Gandolfini, Danny Aiello and Hugh Laurie to name only a few. She has also shared memorable scenes with Gary Sinise, Claire Danes, Famke Jensen, Peter Gallagher, Dylan McDermott, Michael Chiklas, Louis Gosset Jr., Joe Mantagna, Dougray Scott, Sharon Lawrence, Maggie Q and Sarah Silverman. Fortier has been extremely busy thus far in 2018… she stars alongside Josh Duhamel in the USA Network series “Unsolved”; a true crime story about the murder of Biggie Smalls and Tupac Shakur. Laurie plays real life cop Donna Kading and was thrilled to work with Josh and the Emmy award winning director, Anthony Hemmingway. She is also starring in the upcoming “Zombie at 17” for Lifetime. She is currently a regular on the new BlackPills digital series, “Exposed” (now available on your mobile device by downloading the app BLACKPILLS) which takes a daring look into the porn industry. Laurie is also a regular in the Comic Con HQ series “King’s of Con”, in which she finds herself in full beard in a more comedic role. She plays a cos-playing super fan of the Comic-Con convention circuit. Whether it is comedy or drama, Laurie makes it all believable. With a wide breadth of success in TV & Film, Laurie has been in: every version of CSI (multiple times), Hawaii Five-O, Castle, Rush, Stalker, and 2 seasons of the Netflix original series Hemlock Grove opposite Dougray Scott and Famke Jansen. She starred in the Warner Brothers film The InCrowd and got her start acting in “To Gillian on Her 37 th Birthday”, opposite Michelle Pffiefer and Claire Danes, where she was cast by legendary casting director Lynn Stalmaster (Tootsie, The Graduate).
Her most challenging role to date was when she played a con artist who’s scam was to dress as an 80 yr old man in the CSI NY episode entitled Identity Crisis. Fortier underwent 6 hours of prosthetic make up each day. Laurie is a mother, yogi and athlete. She is thrilled that in her career she has been offered numerous prime time roles as mothers, male (yes male) con artists, maniacs, the girl next door, high powered attorneys, cops, victims, perps, athletes and devilish villains. From “kind hearted heroines” to the “evil monster”, Laurie Fortier has been blessed with the gift of true versatility.
ROMAN MITICHYAN – Award Presenter
Roman Mitichyan was born in Armenia and started training in martial arts at the age of seven. He moved to the US in 2000 and competed in various MMA, Sambo and UFC championships, winning several medals. Mitichyan transitioned from MMA to acting and has starred and produced in several films and TV shows, including The Promise, Argo, War Dogs, Extraction, Furious 7, Seal Team, Message From the King, and Escape Plan 2.
SHAWN-CAULIN YOUNG – Award Presenter
Shawn-Caulin Young discovered his love for acting in high school, pursuing a BFA in Acting from the prestigious performing arts conservatory, The Hartt School (UHA). After classically training in England and graduating with top honors from Hartt, he moved to NYC where he began his career in film and television. A self-professed “student of life” he has continued to explore his love of the human condition by studying acting with greats such as Anthony Meindl, Margie Haber, and the legendary Larry Moss. Young was “discovered” by Burrows/Boland Casting and director Robert Zemeckis during the casting process of what would have been a live-action version of the beloved Beatles’ cartoon, The Yellow Submarine. Zemeckis selected him (second only to Cary Elwes) from an international talent pool to play famed Beatles’s guitarist George Harrison. Since then, Shawn has gone on to work on numerous film, television, and theater productions around the world.
An experienced horseman, stuntman, true collaborator and lover of life, he enjoys spending his spare time coaching/mentoring children and young adults around the world in the art of storytelling.
TINA TREADWELL – Award Presenter
As president of Treadwell Entertainment Group, Tina Treadwell develops and manages the careers of groundbreaking talent. Recognized for her work as a talent executive, who helped launch the careers of young stars on Disney Channel, she travels domestically scouting talent and speaks internationally about careers in film and tv. She also develops and produces film, tv and theatrical projects for her clients through collaborations with leading directors, producers and distributors.
Notable clients whose careers she has helped launch and developed includes many such as, Rachel DiPillo, Janet Hubert, Mayra Leal, Bailey Anne Borders, Evan Crooks, Isidora Goreshter, Erinn Westbrook, Camille Hyde, Eden Estrella, Sophie Guest, Sadie Calvano, Navi , Roni Akurati, Shawn-Caulin Young, Owen Teague, Austin Fryberger, Annie Thurman , Josh Levi and Albert Tsai. Treadwell produced and cast the world premiere of Les Wieder’s Sojourner: The story of US abolitionist and early Women’s Rights Advocate Sojourner Truth. It received 7 NAACP Theatre award nominations and won best ensemble. She was nominated for best producer and music director. She also served as executive producer and casting director for “ELLE: A Modern Cinderella Tale.” As a consultant, she worked as casting liaison to director Andrew Davis on the Disney / Touchstone feature film The Guardian (starring Kevin Costner and Ashton Kutcher).
During her tenure as a Disney executive, Tina Treadwell served as VP of Talent and Alternative Programming. She oversaw talent development, talent relations, casting as well as the development and production of music specials, reality series and documentaries. Treadwell produced with Douglas Sills Oliver Goldstick’s critically acclaimed musical, Dinah Was (starring Yvette Freeman of ER fame). She shared a nomination for both an Ovation Award and an NAACP Award for Best Musical. She earned her degree in English Literature from Princeton University. She is an equestrian and a sprint tri-athlete.
TONYA CROWE – Award Presenter
Tonya got her big brea at age five playing Jaclyn Smith as a young girl in Charlie’s Angels. Soon after, she starred in two movies, with the legendary Natalie Wood, where she portrayed Natalie’s younger self in the film The Memory of Eva Ryker and as her daughter in The Cracker Factory. She also had the pleasure of acting in some of the greatest hit shows of the 1980s, such as Who’s the Boss, Chips, and Trapper John MD. But she is best known for her decade long portrayal of Abby’s wild child daughter Olivia Cunningham, on the hit series Knots Landing. Not long after taking a break from acting, she discovered her second great passion – yoga.Years later, she began teaching and her passion fueled her to build a private yoga practice where she is still helping to change people’s lives everyday.
VALERIE McCAFFREY – Award Presenter
As an independent casting director coming from the studio level, Valerie uses her knowledge and her eye for talent to the producing/directing/ writing capacity as well. Inspired by relevant stories, she recently directed a short film called “Dirty Bomb” starring J. Michael Trautmann and Ido Samuel that won best short at The Madrid International Film Festival.She cast and produced LOST AND FOUND IN ARMENIA, starring Angela Sarafyan and Jamie Kennedy. She also completed a documentary CANCER, IT’S IN THE SYSTEM which she co-directed and co-produced with Cindy Pruitt. She produced the award-winning film NEO NED, starring Gabrielle Union and Jeremy Renner.
She recently completed casting a feature film for Patriot Pictures which starred Nicholas Cage, Larry Fishburne, Barry Pepper, Adam Goldberg, Cole Hauser, Leslie Bibb and Clifton Collin, Jr. called RUNNING WITH THE DEVIL. Valerie also loves to support new talent and cast Ellen Page in her first American film in the critically acclaimed film HARD CANDY. To date, she has cast over 100 films. From April 1994-2000, Valerie held the position of Vice President of Feature Film Casting for New Line/Fine Line Films. During her tenure at New Line/Fine Line, McCaffrey cast scores of films, developing strong relationships with all major talent agencies and management firms. Among the many highlights, she cast Edward Norton and Eddie Furlong in New Line Cinema’s AMERICAN HISTORY X. From 1985-94 as a casting executive at Universal Studios she cast James Cromwell in BABE, earning him an Oscar Nomination. She cast such films as HARD TARGET (John Woo’s first American Film) DARK MAN (Sam Raimi’s first studio film) among scores of others. She also cast PROBLEM CHILD and was responsible for finding the lead actor, Michael Oliver. While at Universal Studios, she taught drama to inner city kids for three and a half years for the LAPD Gang Prevention Program. She served on the Board of Directors for the Casting Society of America and is a member of The Academy of Television Arts and Sciences. She is also on the Board of Directors for the World Children’s Transplant Fund, which provides life-saving organs to children. She was the Executive Director to Armenia, where significant strides have been made in the field of pediatrics in organ transplantations.
RECEPTION AND ENTERTAINMENT WITH AMAZING DJ DECHARD UNDER THE STARS IN THE COURTYARD OF EGYPTIAN THEATRE
Ricky Di Benedetto, also known as Dechard, started his journey when he was 16, performing as a DJ at many local clubs in his hometown, Bologna (Italy). He built his own studio, and after studying music production he produced songs which were nominated at international awards. One of his recent productions has been considered for a 2016 Grammy for the category Best Pop Duo. He has also worked as a producer for a Fox TV series. Ricky moved to Los Angeles in 2016 to pursue his massive passion for music and entertainment. In just a few months, he was behind the decks on stages such as Universal City Walk, Egyptian Theatre, Avalon Hollywood, LA Fashion Week, Kelly Osbourne’s party at Roosevelt Penthouse and more. Later, he managed to develop his signature sound with house grooves and chill atmospheres all blended in with tropical vibes. His performances are creative and he’s always looking to renew his style proposing very eclectic live sets. His previous singles “Far Away”, “Tell Me” and “No Sweat” ranked high on the iTunes Top 100 chart in Italy, enjoyed heavy rotation on multiple platforms and has been supported by many international DJs such as Paul Oakenfold, John Askew, Andy Durrant and more.