With 20 years of experience, award-winning producer, Frederico Lapenda, has built a global career in all areas of the entertainment industry. As a filmmaker, he has produced over 20 films, and his documentary, Kidnapping, competed for Oscar nomination. Lapenda was the founding partner of Mandalay Lone Runner, independent division of Mandalay, a company chaired by Peter Guber, former CEO of Sony Pictures. Mandalay produced Seven years in Tibet,with Brad Pitt, Angelina Jolie in Beyond Boarders, Donny Brasco with Johnnie Depp, and others. Lapenda also produced two video games with XBox, Fight Game Rivals and with Sony Ericsson, Fight Game Heroes.

Hailed by many industry magazines as one of the originators of the MMA, Lapenda produced over 100 MMA fights in countries like USA, Japan, Russia, Ukraine, Israel, Brazil, etc. His TV show Channel 22 “COMBAT MORTALE has been in the air for more than 3 consecutive years in Los Angeles, achieving high ratings and raising Lapenda as the first producer to telecast on broadcast in the United States MMA. He was the fourth producer of conveying his franchise WVC fights on pay per view in the U.S. Introduced pay-per-view in Brazil in 1997 and in May 2011 produced the first pay-per-view on YouTube. This pay-per-view was televised live from Moscow.

In the world of music, Lapenda has already produced 10 shows in Brazil and his latest co-production was in the city of Americana in partnership with the Brahma where Lapenda brought country singer, Alan Jackson, who sang for an audience of 45 thousand people.

Nick Vallelonga is best known for winning two Academy Awards and two Golden Globes for Original Screenplay and Best Picture for “Green Book”. Nick wrote and produced “Green Book” with Peter Farrelly and Brian Hayes Currie, based on the true story of Nick’s father Tony Lip, who went on tour of the south with the brilliant pianist Dr. Donald Shirley in 1962. Directed by Peter Farrelly, Green Book stars Viggo Mortensen as Nick’s Dad, Tony Lip, Mahershala Ali as Donald Shirley and Linda Cardellini as Nick’s Mom, Dolores. Director Peter Farrelly cast real family members to play roles in the film. Nick’s brother, Frank Vallelonga, plays Rudy, Tony Lip’s brother. The real Rudy Vallelonga, plays his and Tony’s father, Nicola, and Lou Venere plays his and Dolores’ father, Anthony. Nick Vallelonga also plays the role of Mob Boss Augie in the film. Tony Lip went on to become an actor, appearing in many films and TV shows including The Godfather, The Pope of Greenwich Village, and Goodfellas. Lip is best known for his role as New York Crime Boss Carmine Lupartazzi in the HBO series “The Sopranos”. To date, “Green Book” has grossed over $330 million worldwide. Distributed by Universal and Steven Spielberg’s Dreamworks.

Recently, Nick added to his acting credits with a role in David Chase’s highly anticipated prequel film to The Sopranos, “The Many Saints of Newark,” directed by Alan Taylor, starring Ray Liotta, Vera Farmigia, Allesandro Nivola and Jon Bernthal, to be released in March of 2021. He also added roles in “The Birthday Cake”, directed by Jimmy Giannopoulos, starring Ewan McGregor, Val Kilmer, Lorraine Bracco, William Fichtner and Vinnie Pastore; “Pay Dirt” directed by Christian Sesma, starring Val Kilmer and Luke Goss; “The Comeback Trail” directed by George Gallo, starring Robert DeNiro, Tommy Lee Jones and Morgan Freeman; and “Poison Rose” starring John Travolta and directed by George Gallo.

Nick Vallelonga developed his cinematic visions at an early age – at twelve years old he appeared in the wedding scenes of The Godfather. It was here that his love for filmmaking was born. He studied acting in New York with highly acclaimed teachers Tom Brennan of Circle in the Square, William Hickey of HB Studios and Julie Bovasso of the Actors Studio, and appeared in many off-Broadway productions, as well as small acting roles in films and television. During this time, Nick also worked running the teleprompter and editing scripts at CBS News for many shows, including CBS This Morning, The NFL Today, The CBS Evening News with Dan Rather and 60 Minutes. His first script, “Deadfall”, co-written with director Christopher Coppola, was made into a feature film starring Nicolas Cage, Michael Biehn, James Coburn, Charlie Sheen, Peter Fonda, Talia Shire, Angus Scrimm, Clarence Williams III and Micky Dolenz. Nick then went on to write and direct several independent films including “In the Kingdom of the Blind, the Man with One Eye Is King”. The excellent ensemble cast included William Petersen, Michael Biehn, Paul Winfield, Leo Rossi, Kristian Alfonso and Nick’s dad, Tony Lip. “Kingdom” was an official selection in the Nortel Palm Springs International Film Festival and the Santa Barbara Film Festival.

After the 9/11 tragedy, Nick wrote, performed and recorded a Christmas CD, “New York City Christmas”, dedicated to the New York City Police and Firemen. It is available on iTunes. During this time Nick starred with Dan Aykroyd in the Charter Communication commercial directed by John Landis. For his next film, Nick produced and directed, “All In”, a drama about a father and daughter who get caught up in the world of championship poker. It stars Dominique Swain, Michael Madsen, Louis Gossett Jr., James Russo, Colleen Porch, Leo Rossi, Scott Whyte, Michelle Lombardo, Kristen Miller, Christopher Backus, Johann Urb, Hayley DuMond, Leo Rossi and Tony Lip. In the fall of 2006, Nick produced “A Modern Twain Story: The Prince and the Pauper”, for Executive Producer, Academy Award Winner Bobby Moresco. It starred Cole and Dylan Sprouse, Vincent Spano, DeDee Pfeiffer, Sally Kellerman and Ed Lauter and is distributed by Sony Pictures.

In the spring of 2007, Nick produced and directed, the crime drama, “Stiletto”, written by Paul Sloan. “Stiletto” stars Tom Berenger, Michael Biehn, Stana Katic, Paul Sloan, William Forsythe, James Russo, Tom Sizemore, Diane Venora, Kelly Hu, Amanda Brooks, Dominique Swain and D.B. Sweeney. “Stiletto” was an official selection of the Newport Beach Film Festival and the Charleston Film Festival. In 2010, Nick Produced and directed the indy western “Yellow Rock”, starring Michael Biehn, James Russo, Christopher Backus and writer/producer Lenore Andriel. Yellow Rock went on to win several film festival awards, including the prestigious Wrangler Award for Best Director and Best film at the Western Heritage Museum in Oklahoma City.

In 2016, Nick line-produced “Chocolate City”, starring Michael Jai White and Vivica Fox. He then produced “I Am Wrath”, starring John Travolta, Christopher Meloni and Paul Sloan. He also was a producer on “Vigilante Diaries”, starring Paul Sloan, Michael Madsen, James Russo and Rampage Jackson. In 2017 Nick directed and produced the pilot “Unorganized Crime” starring Chazz Palminteri, which has won numerous film festival awards for Best Director and Best Crime Drama.

Nick’s Vallelonga Productions has several film and television projects in development, including, That’s Amore!, Reunion, Men at Sea, 10 Double Zero, American Noir, Brute Force, New York City Christmas and Copacabana.

In September 2017, Kirk Shaw embraced a new film-making adventure by forming the publicly traded company, Wonderfilm, as a founding producer along with Dan Grodnik, Jeff Bowler and Bret Saxon. Wonderfilm has a $60 million slate of production in place for 2018 with one of the first films under this new venture being Moose, with John Travolta, followed by Nicolas Cage in Primal, going to camera in Puerto Rico.

Kirk Shaw is one of the leading independent filmmakers in the U.S., having produced 230 films. Kirk has a proven, innovative approach to financing and packaging television and film content around the world including Canada, many U.S. states, Europe, Asia, and South America. In an industry often more interested in the bottom line than artistic merit, Kirk is equally proud that his producer resume illustrates a strong creative balance between strictly commercial films and more meaningful artistic film endeavors that can also turn a profit for the producer and investors.

Shaw has worked with all the major studios and contributed his creative and financing talents to the Oscar-winning, The Hurt Locker and worked with many notable stars such as Charlize Theron, Woody Harrelson, Cuba Gooding Jr., Kim Basinger, John Travolta, Jean Claude Van Damme, Bruce Willis and Sylvester Stallone.

Nate Thomas has directed and/or produced numerous film projects including award-winning PBS documentaries, television commercials, public service announcements, music videos, etc. He spent in-flight and ground travel time with 1988 presidential candidate Jesse Jackson directing and producing for the campaign Under The Rainbow, a promotional film narrated by Casey Kasem. In addition, he produced several of Jackson’s television commercials.

In Hawaii, Nate line-produced a 70mm IMAX film presentation for Japan’s Expo ’89. He also produced and directed a series of award-winning anti-alcohol public service announcements geared toward Black women for the California Department of Alcohol and Drug Programs. These spots were telecast on television throughout California. He directed and produced Family Dinner, a gripping 30-second cyber predator public service announcement for television sponsored by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and U.S. Department of Justice. For his efforts, Thomas received a commendation from FBI Director Robert Mueller. In 2013 the FBI released a series of 30-second television public service ads on the dangers of intellectual property theft and cyberbullying produced and directed by Thomas. These garnered him an Emmy Award in 2014.

Thomas also produced the nationally televised PBS film The Last of the One Night Stands. This documentary, on the big band era, won numerous awards including a CINE Golden Eagle, a Focus Award, honors at the San Francisco International Film Festival, and an award from the Black American Cinema Society. It was given special screenings at the 15th annual Wellington Film Festival in New Zealand and the Smithsonian Institution where it is contained in the film archives.

Nate, a Warren, Ohio native, holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in Theater from St. Edward’s University in Austin, Texas. Using a graduate fellowship from Warner Brothers, he received a Master of Fine Arts degree in Cinema Production from the prestigious University of Southern California School of Cinematic Arts. He is also listed in Who’s Who Among African Americans and is a member of the Screen Actors Guild, the American Federation of Television and Radio Artists as well as the Academy of Television Arts and Sciences. Mr. Thomas is a tenured Professor of Cinema and Television Arts and head of the film production program at California State University, Northridge.

Mr. Thomas won a Sony Innovator Award in recognition of his film work and completed the independent feature film entitled East of Hope Street. Mr. Thomas directed the urban drama which was co-written and co-produced with long-time friend and associate Tim Russ, star of the Star Trek: Voyager television series. The film is a real-life story of a teenage Latina who comes of age while struggling to survive the abuses of home, the inner city, and an overburdened child protection system in a Los Angeles most of us never see. East of Hope Street won Best Feature Film at the 1998 New Orleans Urban Film Festival, Best Urban Drama at the 1998 New York International Independent Film Festival, 1st Place, Cross-Cultural at the 1998 Black Filmmakers Hall of Fame Festival, and a Jury Award at the 1999 Hollywood Black Film Festival. It was also honored at the 8th Annual First Americans in the Arts Awards Show and was nominated for the prestigious Imagen Award (Spanish Image Awards). East of Hope Street is distributed by The Cinema Guild and opened nationally in selected theaters Fall of 1999. It is available on home video through Maverick Entertainment. Thomas also directed the independent feature film Stompin’ starring Sinbad and Vanessa Bell Calloway. The film has been released on DVD by Warner Home Video.

Thomas has been featured in a variety of newspaper articles including the L.A. Times and The L.A. Daily News. He has also been featured on E! Entertainment Television, Starz Movie News, and numerous other television entities nationally. In Los Angeles, he has been featured on KNBC Channel 4 News and KCOP Channel 13 News.

Gary Shapiro launched his career in the movie business in NYC working for Columbia
Pictures immediately after graduating from college in Los Angeles to the present where
he has moved into the new digital technologies with several major Hollywood film
studios. He spent the 70’s as a very young man thru the present in various executive
marketing and distribution capacities at Columbia Pictures, MGM, Hemdale Pictures,
Sony Pictures Entertainment and Beacon Pictures, initially specializing in the United
States and Canada and later managing the marketing of major Hollywood studio films
and independent films worldwide.  In the early years at Columbia Pictures he created
the prototype for a college/university program which was then adopted by most major
movie studios. He also was one of the early developers of grass roots marketing which
became a valuable tool in marketing movies and still is a valuable tool on the Internet.

In the mid 80’s Shapiro moved into the production arena and was Executive V.P. of
Production and Marketing for Longstocking Productions which produced the first
American PIPPI LONGSTOCKING movie along with legendary Swedish film company
Svensk for Columbia Pictures. He designed the worldwide search for the new PIPPI
which became a media sensation at the time. Shapiro managed worldwide marketing
activities with Columbia Pictures and Svensk.

During this decade, Shapiro also was appointed Senior Executive Director Marketing of
Hemdale Film Corporation which was one of the film industry’s most important
independent companies in Hollywood and London producing award nominated and Best
Picture Oscar winning awards from films like PLATOON, THE LAST EMPEROR, the
first TERMINATOR and HOOSIERS.

During the 90’s Shapiro was a Senior V.P. at Sony Pictures Entertainment working in
the Columbia Pictures division and shifting to Sony’s Triumph Films unit which
developed, produced and marketed the studio’s specialized films. His duties included
managing the studio’s marketing and production development. Triumph morphed into
Sony’s Screen Gems which continues in a similar tradition.

Following that in the 2000’s he moved over to Beacon Pictures as Senior V.P.
Worldwide Marketing. Beacon’s long slate of successful films were produced in
conjunction with and distributed thru Universal Pictures, The Walt Disney Co, and Time
Warner’s New Line Cinema. Among the titles he guided thru the global distribution and
marketing process for Beacon were  SPY GAME, THIRTEEN DAYS, THE FAMILY
MAN, BRING IT ON, THE EMPEROR’S CLUB and TUCK EVERLASTING all with major
Hollywood stars.

Shapiro began consulting to various film and entertainment industry firms several years
ago. In this capacity, he helped create the initial worldwide marketing strategy for
Paramount Picture’s and Steven Spielberg’s WAR OF THE WORLDS,  managed the
marketing and grass roots campaign for Anschutz Film Group’s /Walden Media GAME
OF THEIR LIVES,  managed the strategy and execution of the highly successful and
controversial independent film A DAY WITHOUT A MEXICAN.  He has been a U.S.
special consultant to one of Europe’s most important publishing and media companies,

Among the major film makers and talent he recently arranged to appear at major film
festivals are Robert De Niro, Danny Di Vito, Hillary Swank, Michael Douglas, Meryl
Streep, Clive Owen, Richard Gere, Andy Garcia,  Rene Zellweger, Clint Eastwood and
Martin Scorsese.

Shapiro is currently consulting with a number of film companies including the Canadian
company Inner City Films, a major supplier of diverse film and TV content.  Thru his
association with Showbizzee, he has been engaging the Hollywood movie studios
(Universal, Twentieth Century Fox, Sony, Warner Bros, Dreamworks, Paramount,
Amazon Studios) on  utilizing a global digital platform and media player for extending
the marketing value and e commerce revenue streams of their content. He has
consulted with The Telluride Film Festival in the U.S., and  with The Karlovy Vary
International Film Festival in The Czech Republic, The Berlin International Film Festival
in Berlin and The Montblanc Company in Hamburg. He has advised The Cuban Film
Institute (ICAIC) in Havana on cultural exchange programs between the U.S. and Cuba.
He has been a periodic guest lecturer at UCLA and is a longtime member of The
Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences and serves on The Foreign Language
Film Selection Committee.

Brett Leonard is a film director. Mr. Leonard has recently been named by The Producers Guild of America, in association with Variety Magazine, as one of its “Digital 25”, recognizing the twenty five leading visionaries, innovators and producers who have made significant contributions to the advancement of storytelling through digital media. The Guild’s 4,500 members, including producers of film, television and new media, along with a distinguished Digital 25 Advisory Board, voted Mr. Leonard for this honor. Other recipients include directors James Cameron and Ridley Scott.

Mr. Leonard became a globally-recognized pioneer of digital filmmaking when he directed and co-wrote the hit motion picture Lawnmower Man, starring Pierce Brosnan and Jeff Fahey. The film is considered a cult classic, way ahead of its time in the use of groundbreaking computer graphics, and the portrayal of a networked data culture. Lawnmower Man is one of the true progenitors of the “cyber genre” and was the number one commercially successful independent film of 1992, costing under $6 million and earning over $200 million worldwide.

Mr. Leonard was a key participant of the Sony 2000 think tank, a small group of media visionaries assembled to discuss the future of media by the top brass of the Sony corporation.

He directed Peter Gabriel’s Kiss That Frog, the first HD all computer graphic music video/ride film. Kiss That Frog toured the world as a wildly popular theme park attraction, and won Mr. Leonard a 1994 MTV Music Video Award.

In the ensuing years, Mr. Leonard has continued to push the envelope in his feature film work, establishing himself as a pioneer of digital visual effects and cutting-edge independent film, and 3D production.

He first stepped into the third dimension with his IMAX 3D work, and directed T-Rex in IMAX 3D, which was the No.#1 hit 3D movie in history for over ten years, having grossed over $100 million worldwide on IMAX screens alone. It was also the first 3D film to use photo-realistic computer graphics and stereoscopic compositing; techniques that led to the innovations of current 3D film spectaculars such as James Cameron’s Avatar. He then went on to direct Anthony Hopkins in the IMAX 3D spectacular The Magic Box.

Mr. Leonard is also known for having a keen eye for new talent, both in front of and behind the camera. He was instrumental in bringing Russell Crowe to American film audiences, giving Russell his first lead in a Hollywood film, Virtuosity, starring Denzel Washington and directed by Mr. Leonard. He did the same for Alicia Silverstone in his film for Tri-Star, Hideaway, and started Rachel Taylor’s career (Transformers, American Horror Story) in his film for Marvel Studios, Man-Thing.

Television star, Alex O’Loughlin (lead in the smash-hit series Hawaii Five-O), was given his first break by Brett, and first appeared in Mr. Leonard’s films, Man-Thing and Feed.

Mr. Leonard has also been instrumental in dozens of careers behind the camera – Some of the most notable are production designer, Alex McDowell (Minority Report, The Terminal, Watchmen) who’s first feature was Lawnmower Man, and director of photography Russell Carpenter, who went on to win the Academy Award for Titanic. Literally hundreds of computer graphic animators and 3D innovators who are now in the top ranks of the business, all got their start on Mr. Leonard’s groundbreaking films.

Most recently, Mr. Leonard is again pioneering new media forms with a musically driven feature film concept for the Internet called PopFictionLife – Believing that new content distribution platforms need their own creative “genres”, Mr. Leonard and his team have focused on creating projects in a style designed specifically for “personal screens” (iPhone, iPad, etc.). PopFictionLife is an Internet movie concept where a music-driven story is told in 5min “Frags” that connect together to form a full-length feature film. A FragFilm is not a typical web series – it delivers the “movie” experience in a form parsed for the short attention spans of the YouTube generation, designed for easy viewing and downloading on the Internet and mobile platforms. FragFilms of the PopFictionLife genre revolve around the actual lives of developing or established music artists, fictionalized in fun and creative ways to have the dramatic impact of a Hollywood movie. This presents the artist and their music in an entertaining and compelling context beyond “reality”, with the style and high production values audiences expect from feature films and television.

Mr. Leonard has produced and directed the first two FragFilms of the PopFictionLife concept, entitled Feel (for Hollywood Records/Disney), and The Other Country (for PFL Transmedia), both of which have been distributed world-wide through the Internet.

While continually directing feature films over the last twenty five years, Mr. Leonard also produced numerous interactive projects that were well ahead of their time – many at the forefront of defining what is now called “user-created interactive entertainment”.

He created a sensation when he took his Swarm Cam-Fusion Station onto the Tonight Show with Jay Leno and Billy Idol, and implemented one of the first live web-casts ever, from the House of Blues in Los Angeles.

Consequently, Mr. Leonard was approached by the Creative Artists Agency and Intel Corporation to direct a state-of-the-art “interactive show” for the CAA/Intel Media Lab, with his team at L-Squared Entertainment doing the technical implementation. The “show,” IS?TV®: The Virtual Studio Tour, was to introduce the Hollywood community to the “future of entertainment.” As producer and director of this ambitious and pioneering project, Mr. Leonard digitized his star Danny DeVito, creating an interactive animated character named “Mr. Head”, who guided the audience/participants through the interactive experience. Looking at this presentation now, over ten years later, the volcanically changing media landscape we inhabit today is incredibly similar to what this presentation predicted back then – Mr. Leonard was one of the first to envision the “YouTube”, “Facebook” cyber-world of our new millennium.

John Posey, a graduate of the University of Florida, hails from Florida.  He was noticed while toiling on stage for the Atlanta-based, 80’s comedy group, “Comedia”, an ensemble he co-founded.

He was brought to Los Angeles by casting executives in 1986, where he has since compiled a long, 35-year list of theatre, television and film credits that include HOW TO GET AWAY WITH MURDER, CRIMINAL MINDS,  “24”,  BOSTON LEGAL, TEEN WOLF, NCIS, SCORPION,  E.R., SEINFLED, CHEERS, CHICAGO HOPE,  A SOLDIER’ STORY, MANHUNTER, FROM THE EARTH TO THE MOON, NEWSRADIO, among many others. He has also performed in hundreds of radio and TV commercials over the span of his career.

A screenwriter, Posey has sold original feature scripts to Disney, HBO and Sony. His OWN feature, LEGENDARY, a coming-of-age drama, starring Patricia Clarkson and Danny Glover, was produced in 2010. Posey wrote, produced and starred in the film. His original script GORGEOUS GEORGE has been set up at WWE Film Studios. He will produce the sports drama WHERE MY SPIRIT RIDES, slated for Spring of 2021.

He has performed his critically acclaimed, one-man stage production, FATHER, SON & HOLY COACH, to rave reviews, all over the country, since it premiered in Los Angeles in 1993.

Since 2015, Posey has taken his nearly four decades of knowledge and experience to the classroom. He teaches scene study, audition technique and even solo live performance classes to hundreds of students in L.A, (and nationwide and abroad, via Zoom).

He lives in Los Angeles County, CA. and is the father of two boys you may know; Jesse, 26, and Tyler 29, both actors.

Tyler, as a 10-year-old, starred opposite Jennifer Lopez in the film “MAID IN MANHATTAN”. In addition to his many other roles, he may be best known as SCOTT MCCALL, in the global hit TV series TEEN WOLF.

Jesse, an ex-college baseball player, is also an actor, plays series regular, CHRIS PEREZ, in the Netflix Series SELENA.

Mandylor’s first major role was in the 1989 film Triumph of the Spirit playing a European Jew, which was filmed at the Auschwitz-Birkenau death camp. He returned to Los Angeles meeting director Oliver Stone and auditioned and got the role of an Italian count in The Doors (1991). Mandylor landed a leading role in Mobsters playing Mafia boss Frank Costello. He went mentally prepared for the role, telling the Los Angeles Times, In 1992 he had a lead role on the CBS television drama, Picket Fences, playing officer Kenny Lacos until the show ended in 1996. Mandylor also had a lead role in the Saw films as Detective Mark Hoffman. Mandylor’s career has spawned to 146 films and television credits since.

Amy Lord began her career in NYC at the Noble Talent agency. In her early twenties, Amy was the first actress in a regional production of Tony n Tina’s Wedding which brought her out to Los Angeles for the pilot episode. Amy’s literary career afforded her the opportunity to have two produced shows in NYC, Grandma Sylvia’s Funeral and The Boychick Affair. Amy is a contributing writer for Huffington Post. She worked for many years as a theatrical manager at YPS and then returned to the agenting world where she worked at LB Talent for many years representing actors in NY and LA.  As a partner at Eris, Amy continues to dedicate herself to her clients in both the performing and literary world.