Final and First Round Judges for our Competition have included:

Sterling Anderson is a writer and producer with a long line of credits and awards. His writing includes:  LOUIS ARMSTRONG STORY – Warner Bros., GUS – TriStar Pictures, THEODORE – TriStar Pictures,  PHOENIX – Columbia Pictures, JACKS OR BETTER – Disney, SOUTHERN CHOICES – TriStar Pictures, DANCE THEATER OF HARLEM – TriStar Pictures, THE BLACK PRINCESS – Berlosconi Films, CHILDREN OF THE DUST – Long Bow Productions THE LAST SHOT- HBO, PRETTY BOY FLOYD – Warner Bros., THE EAGLES – Disney, BABY INSANE AND THE BUDDHA – Robert Greenwald Prods, THREE FRIENDS – Mini-series/NBC, DANGEROUS EVIDENCE – Lifetime THE SIMPLE LIFE OF NOAH DEARBORN/CBS, WALKING ON THE GRASS/ABC, HIDING THE YOUNG/CBS BACK OF THE NET – Crusader Entertainment, THE WILL SMITH STORY/NBC, MAHALIA AND ME/CBS, KISS ME JUDAS – Mystic Films, , SIX FEET UNDER – HBO/Episode, BLACK ON BLACK – Adair Films, DARK ALLIANCE – FX, FIVE SECONDS TO GO – Novel, THE VALLEY – Klasky Csupo/Animation, LINKED – Klasky Csupo/Animation, HARRY HALLIWELL – Klasky Csupo/Animation, MARCUS THE MANIPULATOR – Klasky Csupo/Animation, TOO YOUNG TO MARRY – Lifetime. Sterling's producing credits include DANGEROUS EVIDENCE – Lifetime/Co-Producer, THE SIMPLE LIFE OF NOAH DEARBORN – CBS/Co-Producer, IVY LEAGUE – Spelling Pictures/Producer, THE BOARD – Greenblatt/Genalari/Producer, THE VALLEY – Klasky Csupo/Co-Creator, HARRY HALLIWELL – Klasky Csupo/Co-Creator, MARCUS THE MANIPULATOR – Klasky Csupo/Co-Creator. Sterling has won many awards as well including 1999, IMAGE AWARD, Best Screenplay/Dangerous Evidence.
 

Jeff Arch is best known for co-writing the box-office hit Sleepless in Seattle (Tom Hanks, Meg Ryan), which received an Oscar nomination, a Writers Guild nomination and a British Academy (BAFTA) nomination for best original screenplay in 1994. His production rewrite of Iron Will was a classic adventure film in the old-time Disney tradition. His original romantic comedy Sealed With a Kiss was an unqualified success for CBS in 1999. This year Jeff moves into directing, with his screenplay adaptation of Dave Barry's Complete Guide to Guys. He is also developing a romantic comedy series, At the End of the Day, for NBC, for the 2002 season. In addition, Jeff has recently delivered The Bell Tower, a novel about three boarding school friends at two different periods in their lives, for publication in early/mid 2002.
 

Susan Busa has had a great deal of experience judging scripts as a First and Second round judge for CineStory 2000 - 2003, CROSSING TO THE PROMISED LAND - semi-finalist, Nicholls Fellows 1996, CROSSING TO THE PROMISED LAND - optioned by Hallmark Hall of Fame, THE JON-BENET RAMSEY STORY - NBC, CHOSEN TO LIVE - NBC, REUNION - Cosgrove-Meurer Productions, HOLLOW MACK - Mount Curve Productions, HARMONY IN THE HILLS - comedy short - director/co-writer, Silver Medal Park City Film Music Festival A GNOME LIFE - writer/director  - www.jeromegnome.com, and is an Adjunct Faculty, Screenwriting – Austin Community College, Fall 1995 – Spring 1997, Fall 2002 - present. Susan has a  Master of Fine Arts in Writing, The University of Texas at Austin, May 2000,  James A. Michener Fellow in Screenwriting, The University of Texas at Austin. 1997 - 2000 and a Bachelor of Science in Radio-Television-Film, The University of Texas at Austin, August 1982.
 

Doran William Cannon is a voting member of the writers branch of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, Hollywood screenwriter, Doran William Cannon, has written dozens of screenplays and teleplays in over 40 years experience in story development. He wrote Brewster McCloud (directed by Robert Altman), the TV adaptation of the Aldous Huxley novel, A Brave New World, wrote, directed, and produced Square Root of Zero, and was a staff writer on Knotts Landing,among other credits. He wrote Authorship: The Dynamic Principles of Writing Creatively and teaches his Paradigm of Story Structure at retreats at his Circle © Writing Ranch, north of Santa Barbara, California, and online through The Writing Academy (http://www.writingacademy.com). He has been a judge for the final round of the Nichols Competition for several years.
 

Carolyn Carpenter is a story analyst whohas read scripts for companies such as Village Roadshow Pictures (THE MATRIX, THREE KINGS, ANALYZE THIS), Constantin Films, (TRAFFIC) Phoenix Pictures (THIN RED LINE, LARRY FLINT, HANNIBLE), Dreyfuss James Prods, (MR. HOLLAND’S OPUS, QUIZ SHOW), Rhythm and Hues (BABE, CATS AND DOGS), the Sundance Institute and agencies such as INNOVATIVE ARTISTS.  She has personally covered scripts including BLACK HAWK DOWN, THE MAN WHO WASN’T THERE, O, LIFE AS A HOUSE, CONFESSIONS OF A DANGEROUS MIND, DOWN TO EARTH, BAIT, NEXT BEST THING, THE RED PLANET, THE LAST CASTLE, THE POLISH WEDDING and YOU’LL NEVER WIEZ IN THIS TOWN AGAIN.  Ms. Carpenter also participates as a judge for competitions such as THE NICHOLL FELLOWSHIP, FILMSTEW.COM, the AMERICAN SCREENWRITERS ASSOCIATION INTERNATIONAL SCREENPLAY COMPETITION and THE SCRIPTWRITER’S NETWORK. As a writer, Carolyn’s plays have appeared in various theatres around Los Angeles. Her short film FREE DOG was selected as part of the Panavision’s Young Fillmmaker’s Program and will be directed by Academy award nominee Colin Campbell. Her book, WHAT A READER WRITES is in the development stages and will explain the varying aspects of the reading process, what it means to the writer and what it takes to become a reader. 
 

R. J. Cavallaro of Stepping Stone Entertainment has had a successful career in both motion picture and television production, serving as Assistant Manager of the Ohio Film Commission, working on productions for Twentieth-Century Fox, Paramount Pictures, Tri-Star Pictures, CBS Theatrical Films and KingWorld Productions. His feature film credits include: Rain Man, Eight Men Out, Big Business, The Natural, Brubaker, Welcome Back Roxy Carmichael, Light of Day, Back Roads, Portrait of America and The Jesse Owens Story. 
 

Kathryn Cottam is a Vancouver, Canada based screenwriter. She was schooled at the University of Victoria, the University of Manitoba and in the screenwriting program at the Vancouver Film School. Austin Film Festival, 2006. Kathryn's scripts have placed asSemi-Finalist Adult Category Austin Film Festival, 2006, Screenwriting Expo Screenwriting Competition, 2006 Second Rounder, Los Angeles Screenwriting Expo Writing Tournament, 2005 Top Ten Finalist, “Apart,” Bloodshots Horror Filmmaking Challenge, 2004 Writer, 
“Nostalgia Boy,” Nostalgia Pictures, 2004 Story Editor, “Shakespeare Shopping Theatre,” Semi-finalist ‘Sketch in Time’ Arts Club Theatre Co-writer, “The Last Suppers,” VFS Productions
Writer, “Fag,” Documentary directed by Heather diPinto, VFS Productions Co-writer.
 

Greg Dorchak has been a reader, both prelim and secondary rounds for Austin Film Fest and Best Little Pitchfets in Texas; co headed screenwriter group for 6 years; five screenplays that have placed as high as Finalist in different competitions including AFF, Cinestory, Empire and Nicoll. Currently has one screenplay in pre prod and have had two others optioned in the past few years. Greg has 18 finished screenplays, 6 years as co-head of Austin UnBound screenwriters group, currently co-head a filmmakers group.
 

Cassian Elwes, Senior Vice President and Co-Head of William Morris Independent is, arguably, the first and last word in the business of independent filmmaking.  He has helped independent films crossover from the arthouse to the main house ­ mainstreaming on thousands of screens across the country and generating hundreds of millions of dollars in grosses, domestically and internationally. The English Patient, before going on to sweep the Oscars in 1997, needed Cassian's help to bring it to fruition before going on to gross over $75MM. The same can be said of the pet projects of Billy Bob Thornton (Sling Blade) and Robert Duvall (The Apostle). Thornton went on to win the Oscar for Best Original Screenplay that year while Duvall swept the Independent Spirit Awards. At the 2001 Sundance Film Festival, WMA Independent watched client Henry Bean¹s film The Believer take the Grand Jury Prize in Dramatic Filmmaking, the fourth year in a row WMA represented the creative forces behind the festival's winning film (2000's You Can Count on Me, 1999's Three Seasons and 1998's Hurricane Streets). This success mirrored last year's Sundance, where, in addition to representing that year¹s opening night film What's Cooking, Cassian sold Love and Sex to Lion's Gate, World Cinema Audience Award winner Saving Grace to Fine Line and Shadow Hours to Blockbuster. WMA Independent also represented Latin American Cinema Jury Prize winner No One Writes to the Colonel. Elwes began his career producing the 1983 film Oxford Blues starring Rob Lowe and Ally Sheedy.  Subsequently he made 30 features including: John McTiernan's Nomads, Donald Cammell's White Of The Eye, Men At Work starring Emilio Estevez and Charlie Sheen, and The Chase with Charlie Sheen. In 1994, Mr. Elwes joined the William Morris Agency's motion picture division. His relationships within the talent, production, financial and distribution communities have become invaluable resources in helping to set up films. His practical experience in the United States and abroad gives him powerful insight concerning the global film market and the expanding economics of this business. WMA independent has been directly involved with the making and financing of over 120 films, including titles such as "Pulp Fiction", "The English Patient", "Sling Blade", "Soul Food", "The Apostle", "HurlyBurly" and "Breakfast of Champions",  The Whole Nine Yards, Happy, Texas, Saving Grace and Monsters Ball, and The Good Girl. Many consider Cassian to be the eminent grise in the independent film world. If he believes in a picture, he has the resources and relationships to make it happen.
 

Ryan Galletta is a screenwriter, reader, and story consultant living in Vancouver. He has had several short scripts produced, and has received recognition for his writing in each contest he has entered. He has written hard but fair coverage and analysis on nearly two hundred screenplays for students, Hollywood producers, and agent represented writers. Ryan's experieince includes Brightlight Pictures: Story Editor Intern (2005) – coverage, story consulting; Contest Reader: Lions Gate Pitch Fest 2005, Rainmaker Studios Pitch Fest 2005, VFS Agent Search 2006; Script Analyst: completed dozens of detailed analyses for producers and writers, and Story Consultant: worked on several student and independent projects including: COLOR OF PASSION: Mihoko Nakano (2004)
- Special Jury Prize - Short Shorts Film Festival 2005, - Certificate of Merit - NextFrame Nippon 2005. His screenwriting awards include TV Pilot: BYTOWN – BIG JOE’S BOOT MARKS: Period Action Drama - Semi-Finalist - PAGE International Screenwriting Awards 2006; Short: LUCKY SHORTS: Romantic Comedy - Finalist - Hot Shot Shorts 2006 (ongoing), Feature: ADOLESSENCE: Drama - Finalist - Praxis Screenplay Competition Spring 2005. Ryan's credits are Electronic Arts: NEED FOR SPEED: MOST WANTED - In-game dialogue for cops and dispatcher received rave reviews and his education backgrouns is from the Praxis Centre for Screenwriters: Story Editor Intern (2005) – story consulting and the Vancouver Film School - Screenwriting diploma (2004).
 

Gary Goldstein is President of The Goldstein Company, a film and television production company based in Los Angeles. Gary Goldstein has been involved with some of Hollywood's highest box-office grossing films. In theaters January 2002, Goldstein produced the much heralded adaptation of THE MOTHMAN PROPHECIES, a poignant romantic drama for Lakeshore Entertainment and Sony, starring Richard Gere and Laura Linney, directed by Mark Pellington (Arlington Road). Beginning his career as an attorney, Goldstein moved from San Francisco to Los Angeles in 1982 to create a literary management firm specializing in the representation of writers and writer-directors. By 1988, he had segued into producing films for his clients and others and, after producing a number of lower budget theatrical features and films for television, he dissolved his management firm to begin producing full time. With J.F. Lawton's original screenplay in hand, Goldstein developed and co-produced the critically acclaimed PRETTY WOMAN with Julia Roberts and Richard Gere. Directed by Garry Marshall, PRETTY WOMAN went on to become the highest grossing live-action film in Disney's history, garnering the People's Choice Award for Best Picture, Best Comedy, Best Actor and Best Actress. Goldstein went on to Executive Produce J.F. Lawton's UNDER SIEGE for Warner Bros., directed by Andrew Davis and starring Tommy Lee Jones and Steven Segal; as well as produce THE HUNTED at Universal, starring Christopher Lambert, Joan Chen and John Lone. With the success of UNDER SIEGE, Goldstein optioned and developed the original screenplay "Dark Territory", which he tailored for production as the sequel UNDER SEIGE 2: IN DARK TERRITORY for Warner Bros. Goldstein produced the comedy RINGMASTER, starring Jerry Springer and released November of 1999 by Artisan entertainment. Also being readied for production at New Line, Goldstein will produce Eric Kmetz's thriller screenplay THE OTHER SIDE OF SIMPLE, to be directed by Ted Demme ("Blow", "Beautiful Girls"). Through his partnership with Ron Howard and Brian Grazer of Imagine Films, Goldstein will jointly produce the upcoming comedy LIVE BAIT for Universal Pictures, to be directed by Bo Welch. In addition, he is paired with Arnold Kopelson (Devil's Advocate, Seven, Outbreak, The Fugitive) to produce the adventure film MAELSTROM for Warner Bros. Likewise, he will team up with Konrad Pictures (Copland, Scream) to produce the period romance CHEROKEE ROSE for Miramax Films. Through his studio and independent successes, Goldstein has also formed a relationship with Lumiere Films (Leaving Las Vegas), for whom he is adapting and will produce a contemporary American remake of THE WOMAN NEXT DOOR, a film by Francois Truffaut. Concurrently, Goldstein's company has several projects in various stages of development and pre-production. In concert with major agencies and management firms, Goldstein is currently packaging a variety of films, including THE CHAIN, an epic early American drama, as well as several dramatic and reality-based television properties. Gary Goldstein is a graduate of the University of California at Berkeley and earned a J.D. from Golden Gate University School of Law. He served as a faculty member at Emerson College and currently lectures periodically at UCLA, USC and AFI in their graduate film programs. He dedicates time as a member of the steering committee for the Entertainment Industry Foundation, as well as acting as chair of 'Principal For A Day' (designed in conjunction with Los Angeles Educational Partnership and the Los Angeles Unified School District to involve the private sector with the improvement of public education throughout Los Angeles). 
 

When Larry F Hill decided to pursue screenwriting after a successful career in  the commercial/corporate world, he had the worst possible experience--he had instant success. With the option and continuing development of his very first script, DRY SPELL (Script DRY SPELL in development. Script THE SCOREKEEPER in post production. Top-30 semi-finalist in Nicholl Fellowship. Quarterfinalist and finalist in multiple competitions), and immediate professional recognition of his second script, THE BAR, he naturally assumed, "How hard can this be?" He soon found out. Now deep in the trenches, he's making a living as a full-time writer and is more than happy to try and spread some of the cheer to aspiring writers.
 

Julie Huey is the Vice President of Development, Samuel Goldwyn Films.  She holds a BFA in directing and screenwriting from SUNY Purchase College in New York where she worked with talented directors such as Ilya Chaiken (Margarita Happy Hour, 2002).  She earned her MFA from Emerson College in screenwriting with a minor focus in young adult fiction. Since moving to Los Angeles in 1998, Julie has worked as a reader for various companies including Wendy Finerman Productions before going on to join the team at the Samuel Goldwyn Company where she has steadily risen through the ranks to her current position developing such projects as the remake of The Secret Life of Walter Mitty in conjunction with Paramount Studios and Dreamworks. Outside of work, she continues to write feature length screenplays, teleplays as well as YA novels.
 

Lew Hunter has Master degrees from UCLA and Northwestern University, and has worked for Columbia Pictures, Lorimar, Paramount, Disney, NBC,  ABC (program executive supervising series like Batman and Bewitched) and CBS as a writer, producer and executive. An internationally renowned screenwriting speaker, Hunter teaches the popular Screenwriting 434 course at UCLA until his retirement this year. Hunter's Screenwriting 434 book is a best seller and has won acclaims from students, colleagues and industry professionals such as Grant Tinker, Steven Bochco and Aaron Spelling. Considered one of the foremost experts in screenwriting, Hunter continues to travel the world teaching screenwriting and inspiring thousands of students. His feature film credits include Fallen Angel (an Emmy nominated movie), Desperate Lives and Playing with Fire. Hunter remains an active professor at the University of Paris-Sorbonne and at the Croatian Summer Film Academy.
 

Heather Kindberg of Kinetic Entertainment - her recently completed Blue Light Special stars Casey Affleck, Luke Perry, Cathy Najimy and Nestor Carbonell, and was entered in the Sundance Film Festival. Heather's background includes feature film development, Production Supervising and Line Producing. She has six years experience working in-house at CCI and co-wrote the one hour radio show, "City Beat from Hollywood." 
 

Susan Lee was born and raised in San Diego. She loves to read and write and was a Featured Author, 2002 UC Irvine Festival of Staged Readings of Original Student Screenplays. Susan was a Finalist, 8th Annual Screenwriting Showcase Awards sponsored by Screenwriter’s Utopia and Screenwriter’s Monthly, a Quarter-finalist, 10th Annual Writer’s Network Screenplay and Fiction Competition and past reader for Oshun 55, Century City and Slandance Screenwriting Competitions. Susan has degrees from University of California, Irvine with a B.A., English and Film Studies
Dean’s Honor’s List, 2001 National Dean’s List; the University of California, Los Angeles Dept. of Film, TV and Digital Media, Professional Program in Screenwriting, June 2005, and the UCLA Extension
Story Analysis and Script Development for Film/TV, taught by Harrison Reiner. Susan is also a Freelance Script Reader at various companies. 
 

Patrick Markey is an Emmy nominted and highly successful television and feature film producer in Hollywood with such film credits as The Horse Whisperer, The Quick and the Dead, The Joy Luck Club, White Oleander, and A River Runs Through It. 
 

Laura Perez has a Juris Doctor degree, a Bachelor’s Degree in Psychology with a minor in Communications, and an Associate’s Degree in Theatre are among the academic tools Laura Perez utilizes in the film business. Although a law degree could have been her entry to a lucrative career as a trial attorney, Perez chose to “pay her dues” in a world she has always been passionate about; the world of film.  She began as a production assistant, hair and make-up artist ,and set designer, but rapidly worked her way up into set management positions such as the unit production manager and line producer on several projects. During this period she subdued her intitial passion as a writer which was displayed when she wrote the stage play No More Empty Chairs for The Teen Theatre Hope (a production recognized and applauded by The National Coalition of Hispanic Health and Human Services Organization). Eventually, however,  her hunger for writing resurfaced and she merged her writing skills and film skills to co-write the screenplay and co-produce the feature Harvest of Redemption (inspired by a true story about a migrant farm workers family’s struggle to cope with a murder in the 1920’s) alongside her law school friend, colleague, and now business partner Javier Chapa.  Together, Perez and Chapa formed Chapa-Perez Entertainment, a film production company based in Los Angeles.  Perez’s background in psychology and law has provided her with unique insight into the marketing and placement aspect of the film industry and therefore manages the script development component of CPE, grooming scripts to be attractive to the current market.  She has been a screenplay judge for Scenarios USA, a panelist for The CineSol Latin Film Festival, and honored for her contributions as a speaker by The Migrant Students College Assistance Program.
 

Blair Richwood has enjoyed working with top producing, directing and writing talent on the lot and on-set since 1986. She has evaluated, analyzed or developed hundreds of screenplays, pitches, stories and specs, from concept to release. Now independent, her prior executive positions include: Vice President of Creative Affairs to Barry Sonnenfeld (THE SONNENFELD COMPANY/ DISNEY), Independent Development for DOUGLAS/REUTHER PRODUCTIONS (PARAMOUNT), Associate Producer for and Director of Development to Garry Marshall (WALT DISNEY STUDIOS), and Executive Assistant to Laura Ziskin (LAURA ZISKIN PRODUCTIONS/TOUCHSTONE PICTURES and GUBER-PETERS ENTERTAINMENT). Since 1998 Blair Richwood has applied her 16 years of feature experience to Richwood Script Consultants. Those consulting credits are confidential but prior feature credits include: The Other Sister (co-story credit, Disney), Frankie & Johnny (Paramount), The Doctor (Touchstone), Pretty Woman (Touchstone), What About Bob? (Touchstone), Beaches (Touchstone), The Lottery (Disney) and Overboard (MGM) as well as several pilots, series and stage productions. She teaches development for UCLA Extension, holds workshops at her office in Santa Monica and can be reached at ScriptNotes.com. 
 

Mary Roland began writing professionally with contemporary plays for young people in the late 70's/early 80's.  In the mid-80's she began writing screenplays with several scripts gaining the notice of judges and agents in the early '90's.  In 2002, she co-founded Austin Unbound Screenwriters Group which helped budding and struggling screenwriters finish their projects and find representation or markets through "Best Little Pitchfest in Texas" and other events. Mary is also a past screenwriting judge for Austin Film Festival and First 10 Pages Screenwriting competition. She has been a guest speaker for Texas Writers League "Screenwriting" panel. An emerging indie film maker, Mary is shooting her first short film in October 2006.
 

Kathie Fong Yoneda is a consultant, teacher and specialist in story analysis and development for movies and television. She has worked at Paramount, Columbia Pictures Television, MGM and Universal. Kathie's 21-year career includes executive positions with Walt Disney Pictures, Disney TV Animation, Touchstone Pictures and Island Pictures.