About the Panelists

NICOLE KIAN SADIGHI (Writer/Director/Actor - "Neda")

Nicole Kian Sadighi, who is originally from London, England is an accomplished actress, writer, producer. Following high school, she went on to obtain her ‘A’ levels in Business Studies, English Literature & Language and Art, after which she attended Kingston University, and received her BA in Fine Arts with Hons. After which she was she applied for perorming arts acedemy at Brooklands College and after 3 years graduated with distinctions.

A POET NOMAD ALI (Musician/Actor - "Mohammed")

A Poet Nomad Ali's (also known as "Poet") entertainment career began when his parents would throw him in front of all the guests at their large family gatherings.  He was often asked to dance, sing, rap, impersonate, play an instrument, and/or any other combination of humility and torture his wonderful parents could conjure.

In high school when he was host for the local community T.V. Show.  The show consisted of 1 episode a week spanning a total of 40 episodes in which he wrote, directed, line produced, and acted in several of the skits.  He also covered much of the local news as a journalist.  One of his stories received national acclaim for its journalistic merit winning him a trip to the nation’s capital.  

After high school, Poet directed his attention towards his music.  During the course of the next 5 years he released 2 albums with world-wide distribution and would be featured in every Iranian publication with national distribution in the States.  He has an opened for and shared the stage with the likes of: Colbie Callat, One Republic, Run DMC, Digital Underground, Mos Def, Talib Kwali, and Jurassic 5, to name a few.

He is often referred to as the Iranian communities "Ambassador of Hip Hop" because he has dedicated his life to 3 of the 4 elements that define Hip Hop culture: Emceeing, B-Boying, and DJ'ing.  Moreover, he has mentored many young Iranian talents wishing to enter music and entertainment steering them towards the route of integrity and hard work, distinguishing himself from other hip hop artists because of his lyrics and his live shows. Although Poet is most recognized in the American Market, he has kept close to his roots and managed to cultivate the respect and support of the Iranian community and continues recording and producing material, both for his upcoming album and for other artists.

He has recently reconnected with his love of performing through acting.  He has hosted a series of red carpet events, and taken on a few roles in projects he believes in. In acting he finds that his love of characters and relating to the depth of the human spirit is able to fully come alive.

This short film is very dear to him and prior to being cast for the role he composed a song for Neda.

MARY APICK (Actor - "Hajar Rostami")

Mary began her acting career as a child star in Iran. One of her earliest successes was Octopus, a long running television show where Mary performed in political and satirical skits that helped change and liberalize the society. Going on to star in countless television shows, feature films and plays, Mary became one of the most popular stars in Iran. She was the first actress in the Iranian Motion Picture history to win the Moscow International Film Festival Best Actress Award for her performance in Dead End, written and directed by Parviz Sayyad.

The Iranian revolution forced Mary to flee the country and find her new home in the United States. Here in America Mary starred in two critically acclaimed films, The Mission and Checkpoint. She also played featured roles in productions such as the NBC miniseries On Wings of Eagles and produced the MGM release, Mind Games. While working with her partner, Bob Yari, producer of the Academy Award winning film Crash, Mary expanded her involvement in socially significant projects.

Among many awards she recently received the prestigious ARPA International Film Festival Foundation Award for her Humanitarian efforts using the theater to mirror the true voices and the stories of the women of the Middle East. Theater has always been Mary’s greatest passion.

In 2005, she wrote, directed and produced the politically charged Critic's Choice play Beneath The Veil which was presented in many prestigious venues such as Lincoln and Kennedy Center and Geffen playhouse.

Mary has also created many projects for children, including A Fairy Tale In The Forest and Jewel of The Night, which gives the children of Iranian expatriates a bio lingual fairy tale show and an opportunity to learn about their parents’ culture and homeland.

Throughout her adult life, Mary has remained fiercely committed to improving the lives of women and children, especially in the Middle East. Through her work as an advocate for clearing land mines and reducing their use, and appearing as a spokesperson before the U.S. Congress and in all media, Mary remains vigilant and vocal in the pursuit of all freedoms.

DAVID BARTLETT (Editor/Producer/2nd Unit DP)

Born in Seattle, Washington, David was raised in Beaverton, Oregon, a small town outside of Portland. In the 32 years he has been in Los Angeles he has worked on more than 200 productions, most of them feature films from writing, producing, editing, director and director of photography and has worked with many the top filmmakers in the industry. Early in his career he worked as a camera assistant, apprenticed with director of photography Oliver Wood (The Bourne Identity, Face Off), and has since been the director of photography on the upcoming feature Capers and Crimes, did 2nd unit Cinemtography on Disrupt/Dismante and Love on a Leash and many festival film, shorts films and industrials.

In 1984 he was film editor and supervised sound on a film with long time collaborator director Damian Harris. "Killing Time" went on to win the award for Best Short Film by the Los Angeles Science Fiction Society, and their second production, "Greasy Lake", won the Grand Prize for best dramatic short subject at the Houston International Film Festival, winning out over more than 550 entries.

David then returned to post production where he worked as a free-lance picture editor and sound designer on such productions as Paul Verhoeven's "Total Recall", William Friedken's "The Guardian", and three projects for Tobe Hooper, "Invaders from Mars", "The Texas Chainsaw Massacre II" and Steven Speilbergh’s Amazing Stories episode "Miss Stardust".  He has also been a member of the M.P.S.E. (Motion Picture Sound Editors), an organization of the top sound designers and editors, and earned both an Emmy Nomination and an M.P.S.E. Golden Reel Nomination for Best Sound Editing in 1985 on the Paramount Mini-Series "Space".  In 1990 he was nominated for a golden reel on the film “The Guardian”, won a golden reel for his work on “Total Recall”, which received n Academy Award nomination, and in 1995 won a second golden reel for “Speed”, which also won an Academy Award. During this period David also worked as head of post production, a post he held for two years for Cinetel films and then Tobe Hooper. He has served as Post Supervsor on many films since then as well.
 
Over the years David has produced many projects of a wide variety. He executive produced the upcoming Nowhere Fast, produced The Getdown and Jerkin’ is a habit, and co-produced Disrupt/Dismantle and Love on a Leash, and he is currently oin preproduction on a film titled “M” that will be shooting in China. In addition to the features, there are also the multiple award winning shorts “Greasy Lake” (Grand Prize, Houston Film Festival), and “Borderline” (Gold Award, Flagstaff and Charlston festivals, Silver at the Houston film festival).  He has the distinction of being the only filmmaker to win three awards for different films at the Houston International Film festival. His management skills have included budgeting dozens of features ranging from $20,000 to $85,000,000, the hiring and managing of over 500 employees at different times, and controlling several million dollars in production and post production funds.  

In 1993 David worked once again with Director Damian Harris as the editor of the Touchstone film “Bad Company” with Ellen Barkin and Lawrence Fishbourne and also served as second unit director. David has worked with many actors directing them plays, films and in ADR (looping) sessions, including Goldie Hawn, Mira Sorvino, Cary Elwes, James Spader, Charlie Sheen, Emilio Estevez, Mary Steenburgen, David Carradine and many others.

He has also written screenplays such as "Death Row Diner", and others two of which have won awards (Whiteout and The Woman Who Hugs Trees) and an adaptation of the play “Borderline” that he also produced and co-directed.

David has a staunch dedication to charitable organizations and educational institutions as well, and believes it is vital to give back to the world what he has learned. Experience here includes working with Author Services Incorporated adapting short stories and directing radio plays, producing a screenwriting competition for The Literacy Fund, a charitable organization dedicated to eradicating illiteracy in the world, which he founded, and has produced, directed and written dozens of fundraising events for ABLE International, The World Literacy Crusade, and The Way To Happiness International grand opening. In 2011 David traveled around the world with human rights activist Mary Shuttleworth and her organization Youth for Human Rights documenting video and stills for the 2011 World Tour. David is also an active member of Artists for a Better World and serves as a screenwriting instructor, and has served as moderator for panel discussions with the Slamdance Film Festival Filmmakers Bootcamp.

As a teacher he has been giving seminars in screenwriting for 12 years including the last 5 years at the Screenwriting Expo, the largest screenwriting conference of its kind in the world and was voted Star Speaker by the participants. And has taught acting and filmmaking at many schools including UCLA, USC, LA Film School. AFI and Loyola University.

BRIAN VERMEIRE (Moderator)

Brian Vermeire wears many hats in the Entertainment Industry as a writer, producer, executive producer, host and actor for various networks/production companies such as FOX, The Disney Channel, The Family Channel, Vin DiBona Productions and HombreTV. Brian is also a respected stand-up comedian known in the Los Angeles market as the "sharp and witty comedian with a 'late night-style' talk show host appeal." Brian performs stand-up comedy which often "hysterically lampoons current events with amazingly twisted, skewed and off-kilter punchlines."

Currently, you may find yourself snickering at the various characters Brian portrays in his humorous Mercury Insurance commercials. Brian also portrays “Mr. Storitz”, the commercial spokesman for Storitz, the nation's first rental and comparison shopping self-storage marketplace. Listen for Brian in the upcoming 3-D animated full-length feature from Lumiq Studios, “Blackie & Kanuto” voicing the characters Hu Flung Pu and Pinky.

Outside of performing, Brian is the CEO of Holdon Log ~ the Entertainment Industry’s number one provider of organizational logbooks and Webware for performers.

BrianVermeire.com

About Outside the Box [Office]

Outside the Box [Office] is a weekly showcase for upcoming releases highlighting world cinema, documentary and independent film titles. Recognizing a need for greater diversity on campus, the series will draw from around the globe to present movies that may challenge, inspire or simply entertain.

To view the calendar of screenings, click here.

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