Cinema Italiano 2009
Distinguished Jurors
Chris Lee, Jury President
Chris Lee, Executive Producer for Bryan Singer’s VALKYRIE starring Tom Cruise, is the Founder and Director of the University of Hawai’i Academy for Creative Media (ACM).
Previously, Mr. Lee was the President of Production at TriStar Pictures and Columbia Pictures, where as a Production Executive he oversaw such Academy Award-winning films as JERRY MAGUIRE, PHILADELPHIA and AS GOOD AS IT GETS. He also worked on numerous other hits such as MY BEST FRIEND’S WEDDING, LEGENDS OF THE FALL, THE FISHER KING, THE MASK OF ZORRO, GODZILLA and THE PATRIOT.
Mr. Lee was also a Founding Partner and President of Legendary Pictures which successfully raised $500 million in private equity to match an additional $500 million in production funding from Warner Brothers for pictures such as BATMAN BEGINS, SUPERMAN RETURNS and 300.
Mr. Lee was Executive Producer for SUPERMAN RETURNS for Warner Brothers, produced Columbia Pictures’ SWAT, the ground-breaking CGI feature FINAL FANTASY: THE SPIRITS WITHIN (2001) and produced and edited the Chinese feature ONE FOOT OFF THE GROUND.
The first Asian-American and minority to run production at a Hollywood studio, Mr. Lee is a frequent speaker on the economic opportunity through digital media and recently keynoted Digital Taipei 2009.
Mr. Lee served as Jury Chair for Korea's 2009 Pucheon NAFF Film Festival, the 2008 Tribeca Film Festival All Access Program, the 2007 San Francisco International Asian American Film Festival, and the 2002 Hawaii International Film Festival among others. He is a founding member of the Coalition of Asian Pacifics in Entertainment (CAPE).
A graduate of Honolulu’s Iolani School and Yale University, his first job was with ABC’s Good Morning America followed by Wayne Wang’s DIM SUM: A LITTLE BIT OF HEART.
Neal Israel
Neal Israel has worked as a writer, director, producer and occasional actor for films, television and Broadway. A sampling of over 30 film credits: created the POLICE ACADEMY (1984 - 1994) films, wrote and directed BACHELOR PARTY (1984) starring Tom Hanks, wrote REAL GENIUS (1985) starring Val Kilmer, co-wrote LOOK WHO’S TALKING TOO (1990), and Executive Produced FINDING NEVERLAND (2004) starring Johnny Depp (the film received seven Oscar nominations). Mr. Israel has directed numerous movies of the week and television shows from The Wonder Years to Clueless to Joan of Arcadia. He has just directed a new science fiction series for NBC Digital starring Rosario Dawson (Gemini Division), as well as writing a new comedy pilot for Fox starring Elliott Gould. He has received an Emmy, a Writers Guild of America Award and won a best picture honor from the National Board of Review.
Barbara Carrera
Barbara Carrera has garnered much acclaim in her acting career, including a Golden Globe Award nomination for "Best Supporting Actress" in the James Bond thriller "Never Say Never Again" with Sean Connery, directed by Irvin Kershner and an Emmy Award nomination for her role in James Michener's "Centennial" mini-series. Following Centennial she came to Hawaii to shoot another film, "WhenTime Ran Out", costarring Paul Newman and Jacqueline Bisset. Then came the role of Russian spy In Disney's "Condorman" before she returned to TV and a leading role In the ABC miniseries " Masada " with Peter O'Toole and Peter Strauss. She has worked with some of the greatest actors of our time, including Richard Chamberlain, Bette Davis, Burt Lancaster, Peter O'Toole and Sir Lawrence Olivier. Nicaraguan born, Barbara Carrera has traveled the world over, mastering five languages.
Edgy Lee
Edgy Lee is a fifth generation Hawaii-born filmmaker and producer. Her great-great grandfather was the Kingdom of Hawaii's Vice Consul to China
so it is no surprise that much of her film work is story telling deeply rooted in native history. Her last feature documentary film, THE HAWAIIANS- REFLECTING SPIRIT (2006), was presented at the opening of the Smithsonian Institution Museum of the American Indian in Washington DC. Ms. Lee’s filmography includes award-winning films such as PAPAKOLEA, A STORY OF HAWAIIAN LAND (1998, Corporation for Public Broadcasting Silver Award, Independent Program); WAIKIKI- IN THE WAKE OF DREAMS (2001, New York Film & Video Festival Best Cinematography, Best Editing); and PANIOLO O HAWAI’I- COWBOYS OF THE FAR WEST (2000, CINE Golden Eagle, Best Documentary History and Writing categories) among several other awards.
In 2004 and 2005, Ms. Lee produced two films on methamphetamine in unprecedented prime time simulcasts on eleven television stations throughout the state of Hawaii. For this work, she was honored in the Honolulu Star Bulletin’s Ten Who Made a Difference in 2004 editorial published on January 1, 2005. Ms. Lee recently founded the Pacific Network (www.PacificNetork.tv), an Internet network of nine channels: a nexus for Hawaii news, entertainment, sports, travel, science and environment, vintage comedy, music and interactive programs.
Anne Misawa
Anne Misawa was raised in Hawaii. Having graduated from University of Southern California’s Graduate Film and Television Program, she has worked internationally in producing, directing, cinematography, and editing. Her primary work is as a Director and Director of photography. Directorial credits include: Waking Mele, (Sundance 2000 Film Festival), and Eden’s Curve, (Emerging Film Best feature Award, NCGLFF,2003,) amongst others. Her work as cinematographer include many award-winning films: Treeless Mountain, 2008, directed by So Yong Kim, in Korea, (Toronto Int. Film Festival, Berlin Int. Film Festival, and New Directors/ New Films), is currently in theaters, Kamea, (Hawaii Int. Film Festival 2004 Best Short Award), Time Out, (directed by Xelinda Yancy, executive produced by John Singleton, HBO Award), Salt, (Caligari Award for Innovative Filmmaking at Berlin Int. Film Festival, 2003), Liv, (directed by Edoardo Ponti, executive produced by Robert Altman and Michaelangelo Antonioni, Venice Int. Film Festival, 1998). She has also edited various projects including the feature Punks, (directed by Patrik-Ian Polk, Sundance 2000 Film Festival, Best Independent Feature Film Award at the Cleveland Int. Film Festival.) Anne also teaches film production at the Academy for Creative Media, University of Hawai’i as an Assistant Professor where she has produced & directed the feature length documentary, State of Aloha, on Hawaii Statehood, a Halekulani Golden Orchid Award nominee, premiering at the Hawaii Int. Film Festival, 2009.
Special Guests
Thomas Takemoto-Chock
Born and raised in Hilo on the Big Island of Hawaii, Thomas Takemoto-Chock ventured into filmmaking at a young age, producing numerous narrative features and documentaries throughout middle and high school. Thomas honed his filmmaking skills at the Academy for Creative Media at the University of Hawaii where he produced short films that have been featured at international film festivals. While enrolled in the ACM, Thomas Takemoto-Chock received two Grace Abernethy awards for his screenwriting, a Mea No'eau Award from the Association of Independent Commercial Production for directing a Servco Scion commercial in 2005, and a Future Filmmaker Award from the Cinema Italiano film festival in 2008. Having recently graduated, Thomas intends to expand his production company Real Space LLC (www.realspacehawaii.com) and focus on screenwriting and directing, with the goal of someday writing and directing feature films in and of Hawaii. His priority as a filmmaker is to foster a strong sense of collaboration on his film sets, encouraging each cast and crew member to bring their own visions to life in his films. Through filmmaking, he hopes to bring the stories of Hawaii to a worldwide audience.
