Earth To Echo (2014) Production Notes


Director: Dave Green
Main Cast: Ted Halm, Brian "Astro" Bradley, Reese Hartwig, Ella Wahlestedt
Release Date: 2014-07-11

An inspiring science-fiction adventure, Earth to Echo captures all the mystery, excitement and wonder of an extraterrestrial occurrence in a small Nevada suburb. But at its heart, the movie is about friendship. Our three young heroes – Tuck, Munch and Alex – are a closely bonded trio of outcasts, whose time together is coming to an end. Their neighborhood is being destroyed by a highway construction project; forcing their families to move away. Only the promise of one last thrill together – a journey into the desert to search for the source of strange and mysterious messages that have appeared on their cell phones –can distract them from their impending move. “The movie is really about this group of kids and how they have to say goodbye to each other,” says director Dave Green. “There’s something bittersweet about the fact they’re spending their last night together. But is goodbye really goodbye? In our movie, it’s not. It’s a beginning.”


Please note: Some production notes may contain spoilers.

About The Production

An inspiring science-fiction adventure, Earth to Echo captures all the mystery, excitementing that “[Panay]’s idea just sparked my excitement.”

According to Green, Panay’s idea was already in the family of concepts Green had been discussing with his writing partner, Henry Gayden; but Gayden wasn’t convinced. “At first, I didn’t know what to do,” Gayden admits. “It was too broad a container. But then I got this idea and started writing and by two in the morning, I had a rough story.” Gayden called up Green the next morning and said he had landed on something interesting.

As the next step, Green shot a one-minute clip to help sell the fun, the mystery, and the suspense of what Earth to Echo would ultimately become. When Panay saw it, he was immediately convinced. “It was practically a trailer for Earth to Echo,” he says. “After seeing that, I had no doubts at all.

From the beginning, Green wanted to approach things differently with Earth to Echo. In this case, the material isn’t simply raw footage, it’s a finished video created by Tuck, an avid, DIY filmmaker who regularly posts his videos on YouTube. “We wanted to lean into the idea that Tuck not only shot the whole thing, he’s also cut the whole thing, and he’s put music to it when he feels like it’s necessary, and he’s put titles in there, and he can pause the movie, and he can interject,” says Green. By doing this, Tuck could tell the audience the story the way he and his friends experienced it; pinpointing all of their adventures as they go, whether it be with a voice over or a piece of music.

If an extraterrestrial occurrence actually happened today, almost anyone would be able to capture it with the amount of video recording technology at people’s fingertips. “I thought it was very believable coming from a first person type of movie because nowadays with all this technology, a lot of kids and a lot of people can videotape and document everything,” says actor Teo Halm, who plays Alex in the movie.

Green also found a compelling advantage to creating a story that hewed solely to his main characters’ point of view, an attribute of many of his favorite movies from the likes of Spielberg and Hitchcock. “You build suspense out of what the characters don’t see and don’t know,” he explains. “And that’s the most exciting part. It’s fun to parse out information, just one seed at a time.”

With a firm production start date in place, the filmmakers embarked on an involved casting process for the four young leads. Green was particularly focused on authenticity, which meant finding actors who were comfortable with one another and who could think on their toes when the shoot demanded it.

The casting directors cast a wide net for the role of Tuck, the charismatic and extroverted leader of the trio. “Tuck is the motivator of the story,” says Green. “He’s the one who says, ‘Let’s not be lazy. Let’s not take no for an answer. Let’s not think small. Let’s go on the biggest adventure we’ve ever been on.’”

Tuck is also the character who, in most cases, is in charge of filming the movie. “Tuck is the performer,” explains Gayden. “He’s the one who needs to have a camera. Like so many kids, he films every moment of his life. He’s cast aside by his family who worships his more conventional older brother, so Tuck takes to the internet to get attention.”

After weeks of auditions, the team wasn’t satisfied with their options...until they received a video from Brian “Astro” Bradley, a young musician in New York who, like Tuck, has developed his own online personality and following. Remembers Panay, “He shot this off-the-cuff video at home and he was immediately so real to us that we knew we’d found our guy.”

Bradley immediately identified with the character of Tuck. “He’s kind of like me when I was younger,” he says. “I talked a lot. I just spoke based off of the moment. I didn’t really think too much. And it’s the same thing with Tuck. He trusts himself. Maybe too much!”

Tuck proves instrumental in encouraging his friends to follow the mysterious cell phone messages into the deep desert. “It’s an opportunity for Tuck to film,” explains Bradley. “Tuck’s not really the coolest kid in the neighborhood. It’s filming that makes him feel cool. So he’s like, ‘Let’s just go out there. Let’s do the impossible.’ And we end up going out there and discovering Echo.”

For the role of Alex, Tuck’s soulful best friend, the filmmakers turned to young actor, Teo Halm. “Alex is very observant of things, and he has a lot going on inside his head,” explains Halm. “He was orphaned at a young age and he went through a series of about five foster families. He hadn’t found true friendship until he met Tuck and Munch. So this is the first time he’s actually enjoying his life.”

On casting Halm, Green says, “When [he] auditioned, I could see the excited part of him, but I could also see the wounded part of him, too. That was crucial for the role and he ended up being phenomenal.”

Of the four lead characters in Earth to Echo, it’s Alex who develops a unique bond with Echo. Explains Gayden, “Alex is that kid who’s lost and feels like an alien on Earth, and then you have Echo, who obviously mirrors that outwardly. That’s what bonds them together.”

Reese Hartwig rounds out the trio of boys as Munch, the extremely cautious eccentric who provides much of the movie’s comic relief. “He’s just a shy hoarder,” says Hartwig. “He has a tool for anything, but he never wants to be out there. He's very under control.” Assuming the role of the impromptu guardian of the group, Munch always keeps the well-being of he and his friends in mind; often a little too strictly. But as the story progresses, Munch rises to the formidable challenges facing the kids, discovering a new side of himself. “He blossoms and transforms into a whole new guy. He becomes a do-everything, give-it-all-a-shot, daredevil guy.”

“Reese is hilarious,” avows Green. “In his audition, he was wearing a Hawaiian shirt and was very confident, and at first I wasn’t sure if he could play a character who’s scared all the time. But we had him improv a bit and he was just incredible.”

“Munch basically has all the eccentricities that I personally have thrown together and turned to hyper-drive,” laughs writer Henry Gayden. “And Reese just made the character sparkle.”

Though her first appearance arrives later in the movie, the boys’ more popular classmate, Emma, makes a splashy entrance and soon becomes indispensable to the boys’ mission. “Emma’s parents force her to be someone she's not and she kind of wants to break away from that crowd,” explains actress Ella Wahlestedt. “And when this opportunity with the boys comes along, the sense of adventure really gets to her. She earns her place with her quick thinking and gets them out of a sticky situation.”

“There’s no question,” says Green, “Ella is a star.” Wahlestedt particularly impressed Green in her audition scene, when Emma got in an argument with her mom. He says, “She absolutely unwinds, and just starts crying and screaming, and we were all just totally struck and got chills.”

Last but not least, Green and his team had to design the most notable star of the movie: Echo, the digitally animated alien. A small, owl-like creature that can fit in a backpack, Echo communicates with the kids using a variety of inhuman sounds and demonstrates over the course of the movie that his extraordinary powers belie his diminutive size. The production visited several creature houses and considered sketches that were, according to Green, “all across the map. Some were really scary. Some of them were very abstract. But I said, ‘None of these are making me feel like I care for this being.’”

Through a network of friends who are designers, Green eventually got the phone number of Ross Tran, a 19-year-old designer who at the time was living with his parents in Santa Cruz between semesters at school. “I called him and asked him to come work with us and he thought we were crazy,” laughs Green. “A couple days later he came down, and from his very first sketch, right away, I was like, ‘That’s him. That’s Echo. It was futuristic but also warm, neither too robotic nor too organic. It just made sense and from there we refined it.” In a movie where the story is constructed by a group of kids, it was only fitting that a 19-year-old designer would help create the most crucial piece to the puzzle: Echo.

When it came time to take the drawing and idea of what Echo would look like and bring it into physical reality, there was no better person for the job than Alan Scott, co-owner of Legacy Effects and effects supervisor for the physical construction of Echo. Alan Scott has one of the strongest visual effects resumes in the industry, with titles ranging from Avatar to Jurassic Park. As Dave Green was inspired by the works of Steven Spielberg, it was only fitting that this would come full circle when he got the opportunity to work with Alan Scott, who had been a mechanical designer and effects supervisor on a number of Spielberg films.

Even with Alan’s extensive history with special effects in film, he saw working on this movie’s unique shooting style as a constructive challenge. “We’re always trying to look for new ways to improve. So for us it was a great adventure to try and figure out how to make our particular work habits work in a completely different venue,” says Alan. “It was exciting because when you're on set, you're constantly on your toes. And it was like ‘what are you gonna be shooting next’ and trying to figure out from an effects perspective what we can offer up.”

Not only would Legacy Effects help bring the character of Echo to life on the big screen, they would also bring something new to the production set as well. In order to get the design of Echo down and to have physical presence on set, Alan and his team used 3-D printing to create multiple Echos to use in production. Due to the rapid pace of the shoot and the short time frame from designing to shooting, Alan and his team had to work quickly. They would design a new Echo, print it and then mechanize it so that it was ready for production.

“We could direct manufacture, which is where all this 3-D printing, which is very popular right now, is heading,” says Alan. The Legacy Effects team would print multiple copies of Echo with different looks; whether it be different dents in Echo’s body or different placement of scratches. From there, the director, Dave Green would be able to choose the exact model that he felt fit the specific scene.

Alan recognized that the set was not always predictable and loved the challenge. When they would bring their animatronic Echo to set, “we wouldn’t tell everyone what it was capable of doing, especially the actors… We always try to hold back a little bit so that there something a little unexpected on set.”

As the movie is strongly rooted in the relationship that the three friends share, Green did everything possible to allow his young cast to bond with each other in the weeks before production began. “I wanted them to feel like they had known each other for a long time on screen,” he explains, “and the only way that was going to happen was if they connected with each other in real life.” In some instances, Green even took away their cell phones. “I didn’t want them going into the corner and IM-ing with their friends back home,” he says. With a steady schedule of rehearsals in place, nightly dinners, and even a trip to an amusement park, it was only a matter of time before the actors became just as close as their character counterparts.

Throughout production, Green encouraged as much freedom as possible. “Even though we had a fantastic script from Henry, we had to borrow from who the kids really were,” says Green. “If they felt like they wanted to invent something great. It gave the film glue that we were looking for.”

Adds Bradley, “Dave would ask, ‘Well, what would you say in real life as a teen? What kind of music would you listen to? He was very open, just as far as taking in ideas. And we were very open. Everybody was all ears.”

As it was his first time in the director’s chair, Dave wanted to come to set with every detail mapped out. “My instinct was, I’m going to know everything about how this whole thing’s going to go. We’re going to be razor sharp with all of this,” he says. Everything changed once he got his cast on set. “Giving the kids the long leash they needed to feel free to invent stuff, meant they wouldn’t naturally stand on mark all the time. So it became a little less precise than I had envisioned, but I think the energy we gained was crucial.”

That sense of spontaneity also affected the camerawork. The filmmaking team would light each environment for 360-degree movement, providing maximum freedom for the cast. Says Green, “Maxime, our cinematographer, was great at thinking about where the camera would go from the character’s point of view. He’d say, ‘Oh, it wouldn’t go here. It would go here because this guy’s scared. He would duck right now.’ It’s fantastic, because you feel that energy and emotion in the camera work.”

For the actors, working on this movie also allowed them to break the cardinal rule of film acting: Don’t look into the camera. “It was very hard to get used to,” recalls Wahlestedt. “We had to interact with the camera and talk to it like it was a character.”

“We had to look at different spots,” adds Halm. “Sometimes it was directly in the lens and sometimes we had to look at Tuck. And sometimes “Tuck” was actually the cameraman. It would change every scene.”

Green rose to the challenge of directing his first feature, despite contending with several big set pieces involving numerous effects – from car chases to actual spaceships. Says Panay, “He pays attention to every detail. You can see the detail in every frame, every pixel – it's incredible really. He cares so much and the movie's so well crafted. I was impressed.”

Through it all, Green set his sights on making every element in the movie feel as authentic as possible. “Everything we did was based in reality,” he says. “The more we embraced that, the more fantastical and believable the sci-fi elements became. The movie feels so real right up to the moment that Echo is revealed and then you're like, ‘Whoa.’ You get caught in this journey of reality and you go with it.”

“The movie has a very modern feel,” adds Panay. “Because of the way we shot this movie, it feels less traditional and slightly more edgy. We were able to explore this 1980s nostalgia in a language that kids today understand.”

Throughout the process, the filmmakers were careful not to lose sight of their original objective: to tell an inspiring, exciting and empowering story about adventure and the bonds of friendship. “It’s all about the closeness of friendships and working together,” says Gayden. “I love some of the hard sci-fi stuff, but I think if you have enough heart, the movie can work on a deeper, more human level. And that’s what we were after.”

Earth to Echo is a story of wonder and friendship that is relatable and will resonate with children and adults alike. “What’s been so important for me,” says Green, “is telling a story about kids who can actually inspire change. By the end of the movie, these young kids have accomplished something much bigger than they are. And hopefully that will encourage kids to step up and take part in whatever way they know how. They can make a difference. They just have to take that opportunity.”

About The Cast

TEO HALM (Alex) got his start at age 10 playing Rolf in The Sound of Music, and then played a Neanderthal boy in the PBS Series Nova in Becoming Human: Last Human Standing. He will next appear as Frank Sullivan in the upcoming highly anticipated James Franco-directed Bukowski, the story of writer Charles Bukowski's formative years from childhood to high school and his struggles with an abusive father, disfiguring acne, alcohol addiction, and his initial attempts at writing. He will also be seen again with Franco in the upcoming 2014 release Memoria. Teo is a talented soccer player, avid surfer, skateboarder, and photographer. He is of half Ashkenazi and half Sephardi Jewish descent (his parents are from Australia and Morocco, respectively). He currently resides in Los Angeles with his family.

BRIAN “ASTRO” BRADLEY’S (Tuck) love of music was evident even before he could speak. Never one to be without his cd player, Astro made it clear at an early age that music was his purpose. He gravitated toward hip-hop taking a special interest in the intricacies of word play and metaphoric representation of life as he knew it. Determined to become a master of his craft, Astro immersed himself in the hip-hop culture, studying the methods of hip-hop’s greats in the likes of Rakim, Big L, Big Daddy Kane, Biggie Smalls, Tupac, Tribe called Quest and his idol, Jay-Z.

After five years of grinding and making a name for himself in the underground world of hip-hop, 2010 proved to be a breakout year for Astro. After his first single “Stop Looking at My Momz” became a viral sensation with over 500,000 hits on YouTube, Astro garnered a lot of attention, making him somewhat of a local celebrity. From it came a feature in the New York Daily News, an invitation to perform live on Good Day NY, an appearance on MTV’s The Seven and a feature on Fuse TV. He also had the honor of being chosen by BET as one of their Music Matters artists in addition to performing live on television.

2011 brought about a different kind of reality for Astro. With some encouragement from his mother, Astro auditioned for and made television history when he was chosen as a top sixteen finalist out of two hundred thousand auditionees for season one of the “X Factor”. He was the only emcee to have ever successfully made it to the live shows on any talent competition series.

Not only did Astro make a name for himself by being the only contestant to consistently write new lyrics week after week, he further etched his legacy into the minds of the millions who eagerly anticipated his next move by delivering performances comparable to those of seasoned professionals. He left the show a seventh place finalist with a record deal in hand. The experience proved to be a valuable one, opening doors in the entertainment industry that may otherwise not have been offered to the kid with a pen and a dream from Brownsville, Brooklyn.

Never one to settle for less than maximization of opportunities Astro used his new found attention to launch an acting career, appearing as a guest star in a title role alongside Jim Caviezel, Taraji P. Henson and Malik Yoba on CBS’s “Person of Interest.” Astro will soon wrap production on “Red Band Society,” a pilot from executive producer Steven Spielberg staring Octavia Spencer and directed by Alfonso Gomez-Rejon. Rejon will also be directing Astro in his next feature film Me, Earl and The Dying Girl set to shoot in 2014. In addition to other notable acting projects, he has recently finished production as the sidekick to Liam Neeson’s lead in Scott Frank’s Walk Among The Tombstones set for release in 2014.

Born July 31, 1998, REESE HARTWIG (Munch) is an up and coming actor and comedian. Reese was hooked in the business after he booked his first audition at 10 years old. A young man with a funny bone, Reese’s aspirations lie in comedy, where he hopes to follow in the footsteps of the comedic greats like Will Ferrell, Chris Farley, and Jim Carrey. Additionally, he would also like to become a plastic surgeon, in order to keep his co-stars looking young!

Reese can be seen later this year in the upcoming Disney feature, Alexander & The Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day. His other credits include the Disney feature, The Muppets Movie, the highly acclaimed television series “NCIS” and countless commercials. Reese has not limited himself to simply acting in film and television, as he has participated in various voice-over projects too. Reese was hired to voice all the young male characters in his favorite video game "The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim."  

His Irish Twin brother, Ryan Hartwig star of The Aggression Scale, is also an actor and his favorite airsoft battle partner. His father, a former fighter pilot and owner of Picture Car Warehouse, has helped Reese foster his passion for collecting movie cars over the years. His family has and always will continue to support Reese, as he continues to develop his career and passion for the entertainment industry.

At only fifteen years old, actress ELLA WAHLESTEDT (Emma) is quickly becoming one of the most watched young actresses in the business today. Wahlestedt was also recently seen recurring on Lifetime’s hit series “Army Wives” as Caroline Hall, a teenager struggling to deal with her parents’ divorce while adapting to life with her new step-family. Introduced in the show’s seventh season, Caroline is the daughter of Sergeant Eddie Hall (Burgess Jenkins) and has become known for her unfiltered bickering with new stepmom, Maggie (Torrey DeVitto) and stepbrother Tanner.

Born in Stockholm, Sweden, Wahlestedt and her family relocated to Palm Beach, Florida when she was six years old. Always an active child, she discovered a love for sports and athleticism at an early age, even learning how to ride a two-wheeled bike (without training wheels) by the time she was four years old. Wahlestedt’s mother was always keeping an eye on her lively daughter, and when she caught her swinging on their eleven foot canopy bed, she thought it might be best to enroll her in gymnastics so she could expend her energy. By the time she was 10, Wahlestedt had become a Level 7 USA gymnast. In addition to gymnastics, she also loved to play soccer, and played competitively for several years.

Although sports were a huge part of Wahlestedt’s life, she also had a growing passion for the arts, so her parents decided to enroll her at BAK Middle School of the Arts in West Palm Beach, where she delved headfirst into her growing interest in performing and theater. From 2010-11, Wahlestedt participated in ten independent and student film projects, she also started to land professional work in the print and commercial space. She would travel to Miami with her mom, and quickly booked nationwide print campaigns for the clothing store Justice, fashion line Cato, leading retail department store Belk, and Next (UK).

In 2011, Wahlestedt’s family made the move to Miami, Florida and she has been working ever since. In addition to her work on “Army Wives,” Wahlestedt recently appeared in a guest star role on A&E’s “The Glades.” When not acting, Wahlestedt loves to stay active and enjoys hiking and cross fit. She also tries to stay close to her Swedish roots, practicing the language regularly with her dad, and visiting Sweden with her family every summer. She currently splits her time between Miami and Los Angeles, and lives with her parents, younger brother, and their two dogs Freya and Oden.

About The Filmmakers

DAVE GREEN (Director) has been making twisted, silly short films since he was ten years old. After growing up in Los Angeles and graduating from U.C. Berkeley, he began working as a producer’s assistant on the Spider-Man trilogy.

Soon after, Dave directed several shorts, music videos, and commercial hits that showcased his unique talent in blending comedy and horror, which included the Sam Raimi produced Zombie Roadkill, as well as Meltdown, a short film starring David Cross. 

Dave is also currently attached to direct Lore for Warner Brothers, which will star Dwayne Johnson. 

HENRY GAYDEN (Screenwriter/Co-Story Writer) grew up terrified of aliens, but this movie taught him to love them. In addition to penning the web series Zombie Roadkill and short film, Ham Sandwich, for Dave Green, he has also written for director Jason Moore on a dance project at MGM. He recently finished work on an adaptation of P.B. Kerr's Children of the Lamp series, which is set up at Paramount with Nina Jacobson producing and Rob Rugan attached to direct.  He is currently working on Lore at Warner Brothers with Andrew Lazar producing, Dave Green attached to direct, and Dwayne ‘The Rock’ Johnson attached to star.

ANDREW PANAY’S (Producer/Co-Story Writer) entertainment career has spanned 20 years and his films have earned over $750 million in worldwide box office.  He’s built a reputation as a creative producer with an incredible talent for creating original ideas as well as cultivating strong talent relationships.

Panay created and produced the smash hit Wedding Crashers (2005), starring Vince Vaughn, Owen Wilson, Rachel McAdams, Christopher Walken and Bradley Cooper, which was directed by David Dobkin.  Released by New Line, the film was the highest grossing R-rated comedy at the time.

Panay co-produced the beloved romantic comedy Serendipity (2001) starring John Cusack, Kate Beckinsale, Jeremy Piven and Bridget Moynahan.  The following year, Panay created and produced the successful teen campus comedy Van Wilder (2002) starring Ryan Reynolds and Tara Reid.

In 2012 Panay produced the hilarious action comedy Hit and Run, which was written, directed and starring long-time Panay collaborator Dax Shepard.  The cast includes Kristen Bell, Bradley Cooper, Jason Bateman, Tom Arnold and Kristen Chenowith.

Prior to producing Hit and Run, Panay produced the Touchstone Pictures romantic comedy When In Rome (2010) starring Josh Duhamel, Kristen Bell, Dax Shepard, Will Arnett, Jon Heder and Anjelica Huston.

He also produced the successful family comedy Old Dogs (2009) starring John Travolta and Robin Williams for Walt Disney Studios, and the hilarious workplace comedy Employee of the Month (2006) starring Dax Shepard and Dane Cook.

Panay began his career as an executive where he developed the highly successful teen romantic comedy She’s All That (1999) starring Rachel Leigh Cook and Freddie Prinze Jr., and the inspiring drama Pay It Forward (2000) starring Kevin Spacey, Helen Hunt and Haley Joel Osment, based on the bestselling novel of the same name by Catherine Ryan Hyde.

Panay is the founding Principal of Panay Films, a dynamic media company specializing in production across film, television, commercial and digital media. Since 2009 they’d had a first-look deal with Walt Disney Studios. At the turn of 2014, Panay brought his team over to Relativity Media where he looks forward to continuing to produce the highest quality content with many of the industry’s most gifted talent and executives.

Following on the heels of Earth to Echo is Hot Tub Time Machine 2, sequel to the hilarious 2010 MGM time-travel comedy Hot Tub Time Machine. This time around, Panay will join director Steve Pink to lead an all-star cast including Rob Corddry, Craig Robinson, Clark Duke, Adam Scott, and Chevy Chase on an uproariously funny journey into the future. It will be released Christmas 2014.

RYAN KAVANAUGH (Producer) is the Founder and Chief Executive Officer of Relativity, a next-generation studio. The company is engaged in multiple aspects of entertainment, including film and television financing, production and distribution; music publishing; sports management and digital media. Kavanaugh is a highly successful producer and global expert in film finance. Under his leadership, Relativity has produced, distributed or structured financing for more than 200 motion pictures generating more than $17 billion in worldwide box-office revenue and earning 60 Oscar® nominations.

Among the newest Relativity films Kavanaugh has produced or executive produced are McG’s Three Days to Kill, starring Kevin Costner; Scott Cooper’s Out of the Furnace, with Christian Bale and Zoe Saldana; and Luc Besson’s The Family, starring Robert De Niro, Michelle Pfeiffer and Tommy Lee Jones.

Previous Relativity productions include Safe Haven, directed by Lasse Hallström; Mirror Mirror, starring Julia Roberts; Immortals, which grossed more than $225 million worldwide; Neil Burger’s thriller Limitless, starring Bradley Cooper; David O. Russell’s The Fighter, which earned seven Oscar nominations and won two; and David Fincher’s The Social Network (executive producer), which received eight Oscar nominations.

Kavanaugh began his entertainment industry career as the architect of innovative slate-financing arrangements for a number of major studios. He crafted feature-film funding structures for Sony, Universal, Warner Bros. and others, introducing more than $10 billion in capital to the sector. Relativity evolved from a finance and production company into a full-fledged movie studio after Kavanaugh led its acquisition of Overture Films’ marketing and distribution operations in 2010. He further strengthened the studio’s distribution network by negotiating a first-of-its-kind television deal with Netflix, forging a strategic partnership with Sir Richard Branson’s Virgin Mobile and Virgin Produced and overseeing the studio’s aggressive expansion into China.

Kavanaugh’s work has garnered numerous accolades. In 2011 he was named Variety’s Showman of the Year. The Hollywood Reporter honored him with its 2010 Leadership Award and he was honored with the 2009 Hollywood Producer of the Year Award at the 13th Annual Hollywood Awards Gala. In a special issue dedicated to him, Variety recognized Kavanaugh as a “Billion Dollar Producer.”

A devoted philanthropist, Kavanaugh serves as chairman of the board for The Art of Elysium, an organization that encourages artists to donate their time and talents to children battling serious medical conditions. He is a recipient of the Cedars-Sinai Medical Center Board of Governors’ Hollywood Humanitarian Award and the Anti-Defamation League’s 2011 Entertainment Industry Award. In recognition of his dedication to helping inner-city youth, he was presented with the Sheriff’s Youth Foundation Community Champion Award.

TUCKER TOOLEY (Executive Producer) is the President of Relativity Media, a next-generation studio. He oversees the company’s day-to-day operations, business divisions, personnel, and all aspects of its theatrical film slate. Since Tooley joined the company in 2007, the film division has earned numerous Oscar® and Golden Globe ® nominations and three of its releases have opened at No. 1 at the box office.

Tooley oversees all of Relativity’s divisions: film, music, sports, home entertainment, TV sales, digital distribution and the digital content studio. He is also responsible for marketing, theatrical distribution and the international business operations of Relativity’s network of foreign output partners, including 18 overall deals with international distributors around the world. 

Tooley is also producer of the 2013 summer box-office hit We’re the Millers, starring Jason Sudeikis, Jennifer Aniston, Ed Helms and Emma Roberts, and directed by Rawson Marshall Thurber.

Among the most recent Relativity films Tooley has executive produced or overseen are McG’s Three Days to Kill, starring Kevin Costner; Scott Cooper’s Out of the Furnace, with Christian Bale and Zoe Saldana; Luc Besson’s The Family, starring Robert De Niro, Michelle Pfeiffer and Tommy Lee Jones; and Joseph Gordon-Levitt’s daring directorial debut, Don Jon.

Tooley also spearheaded the acquisition of the action-thriller Act of Valor, which took first place at the box office in its opening weekend. Other credits at Relativity include Steven Soderbergh’s Haywire, starring Gina Carano and Channing Tatum; Tarsem Singh’s Mirror Mirror, starring Julia Roberts; Immortals, which grossed more than $225 million worldwide; 21 & Over, from the writers of The Hangover; Neil Burger’s Limitless, starring Bradley Cooper; David O. Russell’s The Fighter, which earned seven Oscar® nominations and won two; and Lasse Hallström’s hits Dear John, starring Channing Tatum and Amanda Seyfried, and Safe Haven, starring Josh Duhamel and Julianne Hough.

Joining Relativity as President of Worldwide Production in 2007, Tooley was integral in transitioning the company’s single-picture film division into a full-fledged studio that develops, finances, produces, distributes, markets and acquires features. In 2009 Tooley was named Executive of the Year by the Ischia Global Film Festival.

Before joining Relativity, Tooley served as CEO of Tooley Productions, where he independently produced television shows and feature films such as Lee Daniels’ Shadowboxer and Ric Roman Waugh’s Felon.

From 1999 to 2006 he ran production company Newman/Tooley Films with Vincent Newman, working with Hollywood’s top talent to produce a successful slate of independent and studio movies.

Tooley began his film career as a creative executive at Interlight Pictures. He earned a B.A. at the University of California, Santa Barbara.

MARK B. JOHNSON (Executive Producer) just wrapped principal photography on Fear Clinic, a feature film for Anchor Bay Films, starring Thomas Dekker, Robert Englund and Fiona Dourif.

In fall 2013, as executive producer, Mark completed photography on Miss Meadows, a feature film thriller starring Katie Holmes. In the spring of 2013, Mark produced “Full Circle,” an original 10 episode Direct TV series created by Neil Labute.

In fall 2012, Mark produced the ABC Family Pilot, “The Fosters,” starring Teri Polo and directed by Timothy Busfield.

In the early summer of 2012, Mark line produced the Steve Jobs biopic jOBS starring Ashton Kutcher. In the spring of 2012, Mark produced two commercials for the California Anti-Tobacco Initiative, “Flaming Dagger” and “Quicksand” in association with ad agency A-Partnership of NYC. Mark executive produced the online series “Fear Clinic” (2.5 Million viewers in 1st 3 weeks of live) for FEAR.net, in association with Comcast, Sony Pictures and Lionsgate, directed by Robert Hall, written by Aaron Drane and starring Robert Englund, Danielle Harris and Kane Hodder.

As co-producer, Mark successfully oversaw multiple films, including the Sony Screen Gems film, Easy A, directed by Will Gluck, starring Emma Stone, Thomas Hayden Church, Lisa Kudrow and Stanley Tucci and The Slammin’ Salmon, the latest comedy film from The Broken Lizard.

Mark partnered as co-producer with Wayne Rice, producer of New Year’s Eve and Valentine’s Day, on three films: Killer Pad, directed by Robert Englund, House Broken, written and directed by Sam Harper starring Danny De Vito, and Finding Amanda written and directed by Peter Tolan starring Matthew Broderick. Finding Amanda was an Official Selection of the 2008 Tribeca Film Festival.

Mark produced several award-winning short films, including: Special Delivery, which won the Silver Award in the Comedy Original Category at World-Fest Flagstaff and Patriot Son, an official selection at the Telluride Film Festival, winner of the Best of LA Award at the Los Angeles International Short Fest and winner of Best Dramatic Adaptation at World Fest in Charleston, SC.

Mark worked with Adam Sandler’s company, Happy Madison, on Grandma’s Boy and Strange Wilderness as a production supervisor.

Early in his career, Mark received a COLA Award for Location Manager of the Year for his work on some of Hollywood’s biggest films.

A graduate of the University of Colorado, Boulder, Mark began his filmmaking career in San Francisco before moving to Los Angeles, where he currently resides with his family.

ROBBIE BRENNER (Executive Producer) serves as President, Production at Relativity Media where she continues to shepherd Relativity’s homegrown productions while leading the production team and overseeing all production and acquisitions. Brenner was promoted from Executive Vice President, Production in September 2011.

As President, Production, Brenner most recently wrapped shooting on Best of Me, an adaptation of Nicholas Sparks’s novel starring James Marsden and Michelle Monaghan and Executive Produced the gritty dramatic thriller Out of the Furnace from the critically-acclaimed director Scott Cooper. She was also integral in acquiring Joseph Gordon Levitt’s directorial debut, Don Jon from Sundance and Earth to Echo, a found footage family adventure from Disney releasing on July 2nd. Currently, Brenner is in pre-production of Casey Affleck’s directorial debut, Miracle Shot, the Josh Hamilton biopic, and Hunter Killer, an action adventure directed by Steve Quale. Brenner also oversaw production and served as an Executive Producer on the comedy, 21 and Over, the film adaptation of Nicholas Sparks’ best-selling novel, Safe Haven, the family adventure, Mirror, Mirror, and the 3D epic, Immortals. Brenner also worked on The Fighter, Dear John, and was instrumental in acquiring Catfish. Before joining Relativity in 2009, Brenner produced Machine Gun Preacher starring Gerard Butler and directed by Golden-Globe nominated Marc Forster. Outside of Relativity, Brenner produced the AIDS drama, Dallas Buyers Club for which she was nominated for Academy Award for Best Picture in 2013.

Brenner got her start in the film business after attending NYU Film School and worked at Miramax Films for nine years, where she cultivated great relationships with filmmakers as a production and development executive. During her time at Miramax, she became a Senior Vice President and worked on numerous films, including Peter Chelsom’s Serendipity, starring John Cusack and Kate Beckinsale, as well as the romantic comedy On The Line. She later went on to work at Twentieth Century Fox as Senior Vice President, Production between 2005 and 2006. There, Brenner was involved in acquiring and developing movies for the studio. Following her time at Fox, Brenner produced the romantic-thriller Deception, starring Hugh Jackman, Ewan McGregor, and Michelle Williams. In 2004, Brenner produced Haven, a Frank E. Flowers’ Cayman Islands crime drama featuring Orlando Bloom and Bill Paxton. Later, Brenner ran the classics division at Davis Entertainment. In 1997, Brenner worked with producer Michael Obel on Nightwatch, a Dimension Films release starring Ewan McGregor and Patricia Arquette.

She began her entertainment career working for Mickey Rourke’s Red Ruby Productions, where she assisted in the production of Bullet, directed by Julien Temple, and the bank-heist dramedy Fall Time.

JACK KAVANAUGH (Executive Producer) is Chairman of Riverrock Films, a full feature film and television production company.  He also as an, MD, DDS, and MBA.

In 1984, he co-founded International Strategy Consulting Group and did the Mexican merger of Merck and lead the team in the merger that created Cemex.   He is a past Board member of Team Global, a past Founder and CEO of Amerident, a past Chairman and Board member of Calhoun Vision, Inc., a past Board member of PreCash, Inc., a past Board member of Materia, a past Founder, Chairman and CEO of ZetaRx Biosciences and Co-founder and Chairman of Nanotech Energy, Inc.

DAVE MILLER (Executive Producer) is a Portfolio Manager at Elliott Management Corp., a New York-based investment fund with approximately $24 billion in assets under management, having joined the firm in 2003.  Mr. Miller received an A.B. degree, magna cum laude with high honors in field, from Harvard University. He is currently a director of ventures including Brazil American Automotive Group, one of the largest automotive dealership groups in Brazil.  He is a former director of ventures including JCIM, LLC, an automotive component supply joint-venture affiliated with Johnson Controls, Inc., ISCO International, LLC, a telecommunications equipment manufacturer, SemGroup Energy Partners GP, the general partner of a publicly traded midstream energy company, and DIP HoldCo 3, LLC, the acquirer of substantially all of the assets of Delphi Corporation in connection with its bankruptcy reorganization. Mr. Miller is widely involved in a number of the firm's investment practices.

Mr. Miller also serves on the boards of several charitable organizations including as a director of the National Urban Squash and Education Association.

MAXIME ALEXANDRE (Director of Photography) was born in Renaix, Belgium, in 1971, and moved with his family to Rome when he was five. His stepfather, Inigo Lezzi (at the time assistant director for Marco Bellocchio, Gianni Amelio, and Nanni Moretti), guided him through discovering the Italian cinema greats. Maxime was soon working as a young actor in several movies, including Une Page D’Amour, directed by Elie Chouraqui, with Anouk Aimee and Bruno Cremer, and Nanni Moretti's Bianca, in 1984. 

A few years later, Maxime discovered a passion for photography on the set of a short movie directed by his stepfather. In the late 1980s his family moved to Paris where he began his career in the camera department working on commercials, learning from great cinematographers like Darius Khondji, Jean-Yves Escoffier, Pierre Lhomme, Vilko Filac, and Italian cinematographers including Tonino Delli Colli and Franco Di Giacomo. 

His earliest work as a director of photography was shooting second unit on a commercial for Michel Gondry. Then in 2001 Maxime met Alexandre Aja and Grégory Levasseur when he shot second unit for Aja's father, Alexandre Arcady, on Break of Dawn, written by Aja and Levasseur. Two years later, the three of them collaborated on Aja's directorial debut, High Tension. The movie was internationally recognized as the beginning of the new wave of horror in French cinema, and was picked up for distribution by Lionsgate.

Maxime and Levasseur collaborated again on the remake of The Hills Have Eyes, and Mirrors. During the making of The Hills Have Eyes, Maxime met Wes Craven, with whom he worked with on Paris J’Taime. The film screened in Un Certain Regard at the Cannes Film Festival, the second time for Maxime after Marock, a movie directed by Laila Marrakchi in 2005.

In 2006 Maxime was recognized by Variety as one of its “Ten Cinematographers to Watch.” Several other films have followed, including P2, directed by Franck Khalfoun, and The Crazies, by Breck Eisner. 

In 2008 Maxime directed his first feature film, Holy Money, with Aaron Stanford, Ben Gazzara, Valeria Solarino and Joaquim De Almeida. His second film as director, Christopher Roth was selected for several festivals, including the Brussels International Fantastic Film Festival; the Rome Independent Film Festival; Brazil's Cinefantasy, where it won Best Movie, Best Villain, Best Make Up, Best SFX, and Best Soundtrack; and won the Best Director at the Italian 2nd Fantasy Horror Awards. Director Michael J. Bassett’s 2011 film Silent Hill Revelation was Maxime’s first feature as a 3D cinematographer.

KASRA FARAHANI (Production Designer) sold his short Noon to Peter Chernin and Fox where he is attached to direct the feature.  He comes from the production world, and was last credited as the Art Director on Thor, Men in Black 3, and Star Trek into Darkness. Here is a link to Kasra’s other work which will give you a sense of the breadth of his skill set and the depth of his relationships: http://zafron.com/

CRISPIN STRUTHERS (Editor) is a two time Academy Award nominee. He is best known for his collaboration with director David O. Russell. Crispin earned consecutive Oscar nominations for editing Silver Linings Playbook in 2012 and American Hustle in 2013. In addition, he won the American Cinema Editors Award for both Silver Linings Playbook and American Hustle. Crispin's other feature film credits include Russell's The Fighter as well as RockNRolla, Eagle Eye, and I Am Number Four.

A California native, Crispin grew up in the Highlands of Scotland. He received an honors degree in Physics from the University of Edinburgh and is a member of American Cinema Editors.

CARSTEN KURPANEK (Editor) was born and raised in Germany and moved to Los Angeles in 2007 to pursue a career in film editing. He worked as an assistant editor on films such as Machine Gun Preacher, The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo, and World War Z, before making the jump to feature editor with the drama-thriller Squatters. His recent credits include the indie dramas Diving Normal, and Fort Bliss. Carsten is currently editing the adventure film Earth To Echo which is set to be released in theaters July 2nd by Relativity Media. 

Three-time Academy Award nominee, JUDIANNA MAKOVSKY (Costume Designer), is a deeply respected costume designer who is well known for creating exquisite costumes spanning an array of time periods and tackling every genre.

Makovsky was born and raised in New Jersey. As a child she performed with the children’s chorus and ballet school of New York’s Metropolitan Opera at Lincoln Center. Ms. Makovsky has a BFA from The School of the Art Institute of Chicago. She also attended The Goodman School of Drama as well as the MFA program at Yale University School of Drama.

She began her film career in the mid-1980s when she assisted Milena Cononero on Francis Ford Coppola’s The Cotton Club (1984), Tucker: The Man and his Dream (1988) and again as associate designer for the visually stunning comic book come to life, Dick Tracy (1990).

Her first solo designing credits came with Coppola’s Gardens of Stone (1987) and when she masterfully dressed Tom Hanks in white tie and tails for Penny Marshall’s unforgettable age-defying comedy, Big (1988).

Accustomed to dressing characters that come with fantastical expectations, Ms. Makovsky has designed the costumes for The Last Airbender (2010), Cirque du Freak: The Vampire’s Assistant (2009), Mr. Brooks (2007), X-Men: The Last Stand (2006), both National Treasure movies (2004 & 2007), The Legend of Bagger Vance (2000), Practical Magic (1998), Great Expectations (1998), The Devil’s Advocate (1997), Lolita (1997), White Squall (1996), A Little Princess (1995), The Quick and the Dead (1995) and Reversal of Fortune (1990).

Her designs for the horseracing film Seabiscuit, the iconic Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone and the color-bending period film Pleasantville have all earned her Oscar nominations as well as the respect of her peers with Costume Designers Guild Awards for the latter two films. She also received a BAFTA nomination for Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone.

Ms. Makovsky brought the world of Panem to life with her action-packed and sometimes outrageous costumes for the film adaptation of best-selling novel, The Hunger Games. She has also completed Look of Love starring Annette Bening, Ed Harris and Robin Williams and Captain America: The Winter Soldier starring Chris Evans.

Adding to her extensive film work, Ms. Makovsky has designed in the various mediums of film, television, theatre and opera. In 2013, in addition to her Career Acheievement in Film Award, she was nominated for two Costume Designers Guild Awards: Excellence in Fantasy Film for The Hunger Games and Excellence in Commercial Costume Design for Captain Morgan Black.

JOSEPH TRAPANESE’S (Composer) love of classical music and electronic sound began at a young age. The duality continued through his formal conservatory training in New York, where he juxtaposed performing in Carnegie Hall and other major New York concert venues with scoring films, contributing to theatrical productions, performing with jazz and Latin bands, and writing experimental and interactive music. Upon arriving in Los Angeles, the seemingly parallel tracks began to come together, leading to collaborations with artists for several of the most anticipated soundtracks of recent memory: from Daft Punk (Tron: Legacy) to Mike Shinoda (The Raid: Redemption), as well as M83 (“Oblivion" and "Hurry Up, We're Dreaming") and Moby (“Extreme Ways” from The Bourne Legacy). A versatile composer in his own right, he has lent his unique sound to productions such as Tron: Uprising, The Raid 2, and The Bannen Way as well as numerous independent films and theatrical productions.

Joseph has also contributed as an arranger to albums from Kelly Clarkson (“Wrapped in Red”), Active Child (“Rapor EP”), White Sea (forthcoming album), and 3Oh!3 (co-writer and co-producer of “Do Or Die”). He has conducted live performances with M83 (2013 at The Hollywood Bowl with The Hollywood Bowl Orchestra; and 2012 Summerstage at New York City’s Central Park), Kelly Clarkson (“Kelly Clarkson’s A Cautionary Christmas Tale”), and with the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, when in February 2014 he was invited by composer Steven Price to conduct portions of his Oscar-winning score from the film Gravity at Royce Hall for the first ever Oscar Concert.

ADAM BLUM (Co-Producer) is currently the vice president of production at Panay Films, overseeing the development and production of their film, television and digital projects.

His credits include: Associate producer on the action comedy Hit and Run, starring Dax Shepard, Kristen Bell, Bradley Cooper, Jason Bateman, Tom Arnold and Kristin Chenoweth, written and directed by Dax Shepard and released by Open Road in August, 2012. Associate producer on the R-rated comedy Hot Tub Time Machine 2, starring Rob Corddry, Craig Robinson, Clark Duke and Adam Scott, directed by Steve Pink, to be released by MGM/Paramount on Christmas Day, 2014.

Blum, a native of Milford, Connecticut, now lives full time in Los Angeles. He received his BA in visual media arts from Emerson in 2002, and has been working full time in the motion picture industry for the last twelve years.

BOB BOWEN (Music Supervisor) As President of Music for Relativity Media, Bob Bowen is responsible for the overall creative direction, strategic development and implementation of Relativity’s music initiatives. He oversees all creative and production on Relativity’s film scores and soundtrack releases, as well as the music department’s administrative and day-to-day business functions. He also leads Relativity’s record label, Relativity Music Group, and directs the administration and licensing of Relativity’s music publishing catalog.

Bowen joined Relativity in 2011 as Senior Vice President of Music and was responsible for the creative and music production on Relativity’s worldwide box-office hit Immortals, by acclaimed director Tarsem Singh, as well as Relativity’s Snow White film, Mirror Mirror, with a score by eight-time Oscar®-winning composer Alan Menken.  Bowen has since overseen music production for numerous other Relativity Media films, including 21 and Over, Safe Haven, Free Birds, Out of The Furnace and the upcoming film The Best of Me.  Furthermore, he has also overseen production on over 15 Soundtracks for Relativity Music Group, including Act of Valor with the Golden Globe nominated RIAA certified Gold Single “For You” by Keith Urban, and the Safe Haven soundtrack featuring the Grammy nominated song written for the film entitled “We Both Know” by Colbie Caillat and Gavin DeGraw.

Before joining Relativity, Bowen was Executive Vice President, Music for New Line Cinema, a division of Time Warner. He was exceptionally successful in managing music production on more than 45 films and soundtracks, including the box-office hits Wedding Crashers, Elf, Austin Powers in Goldmember, Rush Hour 2 and 3, Blade II, Blade Trinity, Four Christmases and About Schmidt.  Also, under Bowen’s creative musical direction on the film, the Elf Soundtrack was certified Gold by the RIAA in 2011.

In 2009 Bowen co-founded Ivy Road Productions, which co-produced the award-winning 2011 theatrical feature Norman, starring Dan Byrd, Emily VanCamp and Academy Award®-nominee Richard Jenkins.

Bowen has an M.B.A. (awarded with distinction) from the University of Oxford’s Said Business School. 

After working on blockbuster films like Terminator 2: Judgment Day, and co-supervising classic genre films including The Jurassic Park franchise, Interview with the Vampire, and War of the Worlds, ALAN SCOTT (VFX Supervisor) served as an effects supervisor on Steven Spielberg’s Academy Award nominated A.I. Artificial Intelligence. His artistic vision and business savvy quickly established him as a sought after partner in the world of special effects, bringing his wide range of talents to such films as The Bourne Legacy, Shutter Island, and Disney’s The Muppets. Alan is co-founder of Legacy Effects, a top design, makeup and effects studio that has played a pivotal role in the success of many of Hollywood’s biggest feature film productions, television programs, commercials, and live entertainment events. For decades, Alan has been involved with high-profile projects on both the large and small screen.

Alan founded Legacy’s commercial division, and has helped breathe new life into the area of practical and makeup effects, inspiring his team of artists all over the world to create effects, creatures and walk-around suits for over 1000 commercial campaigns such as the epic Halo commercials, the Kia Hamsters, Aflac’s Duck, Maxwell, the GEICO pig, Fox Sports’ character walk-around Beatus, and most recently, the Wonderful Pistachio campaign starring Stephen Colbert. Alan’s work can also be seen in dozens of Super Bowl commercials over the years, including, most recently, GoDaddy’s Danica Patrick muscle suit, Volkswagen’s angel wings, Snickers recent Godzilla commercial, and the dancing animals that grooved with Ellen DeGeneres in the Beats App ad.

RANDI HILLER (Casting By) is an award-winning casting director with over 18 years of experience, casting over 75 feature films in both independent and major motion picture studio productions.  Some of her credits include Academy Award Winner Crash, Academy Award Nominated In the Bedroom, Warrior, Thor, Iron Man, The Avengers, Miracle, Blue Crush, Crazy/Beautiful, Fast and the Furious , Coach Carter, Terminator 3, In the Valley of Elah, Life as a House , Don’t Mess With the Zohan, The Next Three Days and Cinema Verite for HBO.

Randi is a member of The Academy of Motion Pictures Arts & Sciences, The Television Academy of Arts and Sciences and The Casting Society of America (CSA). She’s received two Emmy nominations, 16 Casting Society of America Artios Award nominations, and 3 Artios Award wins. In 2009 she was declared one of ‘25 Power Casting Directors’ by Backstage Magazine.

Ms. Hiller is extremely proud to have been the casting director on both the Glamour Reel Moments short film series and the 24-Hour Plays, Los Angeles. Glamour Reel Moments supports female filmmakers in raising money to benefit the charity Film Aid, while the 24-Hour Plays benefits the Urban Arts Partnership, advancing intellectual, social and artistic development through arts-integrated education programs.

Randi Hiller is currently the Head of Casting at Walt Disney Motion Picture Studios. 

TAMARA-LEE NOTCUTT (Casting By), grew up in Gorleston, a small sea-side town in Norfolk on the East Coast of England. She graduated from the University of Luton in the UK with a BA Hons degree in Media Performance with Production Management in 2000, and came straight to Los Angeles on an Internship in Script Development. After two months of working with the company Independent Pictures, the company folded, and she was left looking for another placement.

She got an internship as a production runner on the Castle Rock film The Majestic, directed by Frank Darabont and starring Jim Carrey. When the production went on location to Northern California, Tamara looked for another internship on the production. She walked next door to the casting office and asked whether she could intern in the office of Deborah Aquila. After working in the office for a day, Tamara realized that casting was the career path she wanted to follow. She interned on and off in Deborah’s office whilst the production was running, and when her one- year internship Visa was over, she returned to the UK to pursue her career.

After 6 months of sending out resumes, she finally landed a floating assistant position at Hubbard Casting, one of the biggest and most prestigious casting companies in London. Their illustrious casting credits include The Lord of the Rings Trilogy, the Bourne Series, Tomb Raider 2, The Commitments, The Four Feathers and Bloody Sunday. She was promoted to being John Hubbard’s assistant after a few months and then was made an associate after a year and a half. After working with the Hubbards for two years, Tamara moved on to join forces with Carrie Hilton, who was a well-known, up-and-coming casting director in the UK. Together they worked on well-loved British TV shows such as “Doc Martin,” “Robin Hood” and “Benidorm.” They also casted large movies such as 300 for Warner Brothers, Garfield: A Tail of Two Kitties for Fox and Angus Thongs and Perfect Snogging for Paramount, as well as critically acclaimed films for the BBC, such as Beau Brummell, A Secret Life, The Haunted Airman and Sex, The City and Me.

Tamara was promoted from an associate to a casting director with Carrie, and they shared all their projects together. After 2 years of working together, Carrie Hilton was diagnosed with terminal cancer, and two years later she passed away. Tamara continued to run the company and finish the projects that they had started which were the TV Series “Plus One,”“W10 LDN” and the acclaimed British Film Adulthood.

After their work together had wrapped, Tamara turned her eyes back to Los Angeles, looking for a new start in casting. In 2008, she was hired as an associate to Randi Hiller, who had recently parted ways with her business partner, Sarah Finn. For 3 1/2 years she worked with Randi on films such as The Next Three Days for Lionsgate directed by Paul Haggis, Thor for Marvel directed by Kenneth Branagh, Warrior for Lionsgate directed by Gavin O’Connor, the Emmy nominated “Cinema Verite” for HBO, directed by Shari Berman and Bob Pulcini, and the MTV comedy series “Warren The Ape.”

Her casting director credits alongside Randi have been the Emmy nominated “FIVE” for Sony Pictures Television & Lifetime, directed by Jennifer Aniston, Demi Moore, Patty Jenkins, Alicia Keyes & Penelope Spheeris; the short film When You Find Me exec-produced by Ron Howard and directed by Bryce Dallas Howard and The Sapphires for The Weinstein Co., directed by Wayne Blair.

In September 2011, Randi took the position of VP of Feature Casting at Walt Disney Studios, with Tamara joining her in November 2011 as Manager of Feature Casting.