Bill Dawes 
Bill Dawes graduated cum laude from Princeton University with a degree in aerospace engineering--a degree that, to this day, remains unused. He also studied acting at the Tisch School of the Arts at New York University. Since then he has consistently worked in theater, television and film. Dawes' credits in New York theater premieres include Lord Alfred Douglas in "Gross Indecency: The Three Trials of Oscar Wilde"; Kerry Max Cook in "The Exonerated"; Boner in "Burning Blue"; Daniel McClure in "Ears on a Beatle" and Cass in "Hellhound on My Trail". He also has performed extensively with the Williamstown Theatre Festival. Television credits include roles in "Sex and the City," "OZ," "Law and Order," "Feds," "The Beat" and "All My Children." Dawes is currently appearing as Eric Walsh on "One Life to Live." His film credits include about a dozen independent films, including lead roles in "EvenHand" (2002) and two MGM family films, "Just for Kicks" (2003) and "Recipe for Disaster" (2003). Dawes is a regular performer at the Laugh Factory comedy club.
Abe Gurko 
Abe Gurko packed a bag and left New York City for Hollywood, but he wasn't leaving a career in the fashion industry to follow the usual dream of becoming a movie star. He became, as he calls it, a "mechanic to the machine called celebrity." He came to know the inner workings of the machine first-hand through producing a short-lived talk show and working with actress and writer Carrie Fisher. As Fisher's liasion, Gurko read incoming scripts, met with studio development departments including Oxygen Media--home to Fisher's "Conversations from the Edge"--and organized Fisher's many written materials.
The Big Apple beckoned, however, and after seven years Gurko returned to create ABE-NYC Events, a venture that allows him to utilize his knowledge of the Hollywood entertainment industry and his New York street sensibility to create unique, high profile events. Gurko turned the theatrical release of the independent film "The Farm" into an event sponsored by Perry Ellis International and attended by celebrities such as Billy Baldwin, Chynna Phillipps and Anne Heche.
Gurko is also a playwright and actor, starring in "Drunks" (1995), an independent film also featuring Faye Dunaway, Calista Flockhart and Parker Posey.
Sophia Karteris
Sophia Karteris is vice president of programming for Turner South, Turner Broadcasting System Inc.'s regional entertainment network. In this position, she is responsible for all program planning, acquisitions and scheduling on Turner South.
Karteris joined TBS Superstation in 1988 as a programming assistant. In 1995, she was named junior programming executive, taking on the responsibility of scheduling all of the network's series, episodes, stunts and marathons. She was promoted to program executive in 1995 and expanded her responsibilities to include scheduling sports and kids' programming for the network. In 1997, she was again promoted, this time to senior program executive, adding operational issues and staff management to her duties. Later, Karteris served as vice president of programming for TBS Superstation, where she was responsible for programming original series, sports and specials for the Superstation.
Michael Mailer Michael Mailer is the president of Bigel/Mailer Films, a New York-based development and production company specializing in star-driven films that bridge the gap between Hollywood and the independents. The company, formed in December 1995 by principals Daniel Bigel and Mailer, has produced such films as "Harvard Man," starring Adrian Grenier, Sarah Michelle Gellar and Eric Stoltz (2001); "Empire," starring John Leguizamo, Denise Richards and Peter Sarsgaard (2002); "Lost Junction," starring Neve Campbell (2003); and "Loverboy," starring Kyra Sedgwick, Kevin Bacon and Matt Dillon (2004).
Nancy Spears
Nancy Spears is director of marketing for Warner Home Video, the world's largest distributor of video entertainment. Her responsibilities include developing and marketing movies for children. Spears also develops and positions classic animated cartoon collections to nostalgic adults, most notably the successful Looney Tunes Golden Collection, voted the #1 DVD of 2003 by Entertainment Weekly magazine.
In addition to her work with Warner Home Video, Spears advises up-and-coming filmmakers and produces short films, most recently completing production on "A Swingin' Fairytale," one young filmmaker's interpretation of the classic Cinderella story. No stranger to indie film, Spears regularly participates in large and small film festivals to promote awareness of and exposure to a wide variety of movies.
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