Awards (2021)
$600 in prize
$500 in prize
$350 in prize
$350 in prize
$350 in prize
Jury (2021)
Delving into creative exchanges, the jurors create an opening where the passionate intensity of these gifted filmmakers flourish. Each year we are fortunate to have jury members who have an increasing awareness and understanding of contemporary international cinema.
Born in Uruguay and raised in New Jersey, Gabe Saporta is a musician and entrepreneur. For nearly ten years, he enjoyed multi-platinum success as the singer and creative force behind the band Cobra Starship. In 2016, Saporta and wife Erin Fetherston welcomed their first child. Wanting to spend more time with his family and less time in the spotlight, Saporta transitioned behind the scenes the following year and founded The Artist Group (TAG), a music management company. In 2018 he launched TAG MUSIC to provide full label and recording services for his clients. In 2019 TAG achieved more than 100 million streams with its first independent release, Tessa Violet’s LP “Bad Ideas.” In 2020 Saporta signed a global distribution deal with The Orchard to expand TAG Music’s radio presence and international reach. Saporta continues to grow TAG into a full service music company providing a wide range of management and label services for its clients, and, more importantly, guidance and stewardship in-line with the company ethos: “We believe creative expression is the cornerstone of self-realization and we feel privileged to be on that journey with our artists.”
Adrian Askarieh is a producer, known for Hitman (2007), Hitman: Agent 47 (2015), Hitman (2007) and Leonardo da Vinci and the Soldiers of Forever.
Adrian established Prime Universe Films, with a vision to develop films based on established video game and comic book intellectual properties. He was instrumental in setting up Eidos Interactive’s video game movies, Hitman, and its sequel, Hitman: Agent 47, at 20th Century Fox.
Michael Hoggan is Professor and Film Production Option at California State University, Northridge.
Michael is a veteran of the Motion Picture Industry for over 30 years. He has edited over 20 diverse television series, such as Early Edition, Sliders, Miami Vice, and Fantasy Island. He has received two Emmy nominations and two ACE Eddie nominations. He is finalizing his book on the Art and Craft of Motion Picture Editing.
Nate Thomas is a tenured professor at California State University, Northridge and is Head of the Film Production Option in the Department of Cinema and Television Arts. He directed and produced award-winning PBS documentaries, television commercials, public service ads, and feature films, winning an Emmy award in 2014. Nate is a member of the Screen Actors Guild/American Federation of Television and Radio Artists, the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences and the Television Academy.
Henryk Cymerman is a cinematographer and director, known for Star Trek: First Contact (1996), Bloomers (2011) and G.A.Z.S. (2013). He is a Director of Photography, and Adjunct Professor and Lecturer at the Department of Cinema and Television Arts, California State University, Northridge.
A native of Jamaica, West Indies, Basil Wallace grew up in New York. He attended Hempstead High School. He decided that he wanted a life in theater. His lifetime break came about when he auditioned for a Broadway play, “Front Page” starring Henry Ford, Estelle Parsons and Robert Ryan, and got the part. Wallace applied to Yale and NYU, and he was accepted by both Universities but he chose NYU because of its location and Lloyd Richards, famed ” A Raisin in the Sun” director, who was teaching there at the time. The same summer, he was selected by Ellen Stewart of La Mama ETC. (Experimental Theater Co.) to become a member of her theater. He is now a lifetime member. For the next 20 years, Basil worked as an actor, director and writer in the theater. He also taught theater aesthetics for Lincoln Center for ten years, was the Director of Drama for School District 13 in the Bronx, NY, and Director of Mini-Mobile Theater for two years. Mr. Wallace is a founding member and Artistic Director of the Caribbean American Repertory Theater. He also was director of the Yard Bird Players for three years.
Laurie Fortier 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).
“For the past 24 years as the jury liaison of Arpa International Film Festival I have had the distinct pleasure in gathering esteemed industry professionals that includes directors, producers, screenwriters, actors, professors, novelists,and musicians who bring their expertise and talent in recognizing excellence in the craft of filmmaking and music. Our diverse group of jurors in our second virtual awards ceremony are committed to see all the films in competition and make their final decision in the categories of feature films, shorts, documentaries, animations, and music. For many of our filmmakers, a virtual reality experience will reach worldwide film loving audiences ready to experience fresh new voices in the cinematic arena. The Annual Arpa International Film Festival continues to keep its doors open for our independent storytellers and values the generosity of our jury members whose creative input will make sure that these films are seen, studied, and acknowledged.” – Sonia Keshishian, Jury Liaison