BART FREUNDLICH (Director) wrote and directed his first feature, ìThe Myth of Fingerprints,î when he was 26 years old. The film starred Julianne Moore, Roy Scheider, Blythe Danner and Noah Wyle, was produced by Tim Perell in association with Good Machine, and premiered at the Sundance Film Festival, later winning the Audience Award in Deauville.
In 2001, Freundlich wrote and directed the drama ìWorld Traveler,î his second project with producer Tim Perell, which starred Billy Crudup and Julianne Moore.
Freundlich grew up in New York City and attended film school at New York Universityís Tisch School of the Arts. He wrote and directed the short film ìA Dog Race in Alaska,î starring Sam Waterston and James Waterston, as well as the documentary ìHired Hands.î
MICHAEL BRANDT & DEREK HAAS (Screenplay) started writing together after they both attended graduate school at Baylor University, where Brandt studied film and Haas studied English Literature.
During their early collaboration, Brandt was an editor, working with filmmakers Robert Rodriguez and Quentin Tarantino. At the same time, Haas worked for a large Atlanta advertising agency, producing commercials with budgets that rivaled some independent films.
Prior to CATCH THAT KID, Brandt & Haas wrote the screenplay for the summer 2003 action hit ì2 Fast 2 Furious.î The pair has also written films for Lionís Gate, Sony, Universal, DreamWorks and MGM. Brandt & Haas are working on a remake of the western ì3:10 to Yumaî for director James Mangold and Sony Pictures, and are prepping their original script ìBattle Worldî for Fox 2000 Pictures.
In 1995, ANDREW LAZAR (Producer) formed the production company Mad Chance with a mandate to focus on smart, intriguing material in every genre and budget range. Based at Warner Bros., Mad Chance has a non-exclusive first look deal with the studio that has enabled Lazar to set up projects all around town.
Lazar and Mad Chance are in pre-production on ìGodforsaken,î an action-comedy about an assassin who takes a hit out on himself. Academy AwardÆ-winning director Mike van Diem will helm the project.
Lazar produced ìConfessions of a Dangerous Mind,î marking the directorial debut of George Clooney and starring Sam Rockwell, Clooney, Drew Barrymore and Julia Roberts.
In 2002, he produced Danny DeVitoís ìDeath to Smoochy,î a black comedy starring Edward Norton, Robin Williams, and Catherine Keener. In 2001 he produced ìCats & Dogs,î a live action/CGI hit about the high-stakes world of espionage and domesticated pets. Lazar produced Clint Eastwoodís ìSpace Cowboys,î an inspirational adventure about a group of retired pilots sent on a NASA mission, followed by Nora Ephronís lottery comedy ìLucky Numbers,î starring John Travolta and Lisa Kudrow. The independent dramedy ìPanic,î starring William H. Macy and Neve Campbell opened in 2001, after a successful debut at the Sundance Film Festival.
Born in New York City and raised in Los Angeles, Lazar attended New York University. After making several student films, he got his first break working for Academy Award-winning producer Richard Zanuck. He next joined Dino De Laurentiis Communications, starting as a file clerk and ascending through the ranks to become executive vice president of production. He earned his first major film credit serving as executive producer on ìUnforgettable,î starring Ray Liotta.
Eager to broaden his range, Lazar began producing on the side, making his debut with Richard Donnerís ìAssassins,î a big-budget action film starring Sylvester Stallone and Antonio Banderas as dueling rival hit men. Lazarís next two projects were the Wachowski Brothersí noir thriller ìBoundî and the HBO film ìThe Maker.î Starring Gina Gershon and Jennifer Tilly, ìBoundî won accolades for its stylish, Sapphic twist on the classic suspense genre. ìThe Makerî was a raw and riveting journey into the world of reckless youth directed by Tim Hunter (ìRiverís Edgeî), starring Matthew Modine, Mary Louise Parker and Michael Madsen.
Lazar kicked off Mad Chance with the Shakespeare-influenced teen comedy ì10 Things I Hate About You,î starring Julia Stiles and Heath Ledger. Next came ìThe Astronautís Wife,î starring Johnny Depp and Charlize Theron, which marked the directorial debut of ìThe Makerî screenwriter Rand Ravich.
Lazar has several projects in development at Mad Chance, including a sequel to ìCats & Dogsî and a feature remake of the ë60s television series ìGet Smart.î In addition to his feature film work, Lazar is partnered with writer/director Rand Ravich in EXIT 135, a television production company housed at Fox Television.
DAMIEN SACCANI (Executive Producer) executive produced the feature ìOut of Time,î starring Denzel Washington. He is executive producing ìGodforsakenî and ìThe Well,î both of which are in active development. During a stint at Universal Pictures, Saccani worked on ìThe Grinch That Stole Christmas,î ìGladiator,î and the Steve Martin comedy ìBowfinger.î
JAMES DODSON (Executive Producer) is currently an independent producer/writer/director. Previously, he was Vice President of Production for Twentieth Century Fox. During his four and a half years in this capacity he worked with such filmmakers as Joel Schumacher (ìTigerlandî), the Hughes Brothers (ìFrom Hellî), Steven Soderbergh (ìTrafficî ñ during the filmís development period at Fox), Mike Newell (ìBest Laid Plansî), Art Linson (ìSunset Stripî) and John Davis (ìBehind Enemy Linesî).
Prior to that, Dodson was a director and CEO of Onelight Pictures, a Hollywood- based production company.
Dodsonís career in the film industry spans sixteen years, during which he has worked on over 30 film productions, including producing six feature films, three of which he also directed and photographed. He worked under the Academy Award-winning cinematographer, the late John Alcott, BSC, who photographed Stanley Kubrickís ìThe Shining,î ìA Clockwork Orangeî and ìBarry Lyndon.î Dodson also studied cinematography under Vilmos Zigmond, the award-winning cinematographer of ìClose Encounters of the Third Kindî and ìThe Deer Hunter.î
Dodsonís most recent film, executive produced for Twentieth Century Fox, is ìSunset Strip,î a nostalgic look back at the Sunset Strip circa 1972. He produced, with Abra Edelman, ìChanging Habits,î a bittersweet romantic comedy starring Christopher Lloyd, Moira Kelly, Shelly Duvall, Teri Garr and Eileen Brennan.
His most recent directorial effort was ìQuest of the Delta Knights,î
a fantasy adventure starring David Warner, Olivia Hussey and Corbin Allred. Prior to that, Dodson produced and directed ìDeadly Rivals,î starring Andrew Stevens, Joe Bologna, Margot Hemmingway and Richard Roundtree.
MIKKEL BONDESEN (Executive Producer) is a partner in Bondesen-Graup, a literary management and production company. Bondesen and partner Jeff Graup have focused their efforts around emerging writers and directors, with great success.
Bondesen came to the United States in 1996 from his native Denmark, where he produced commercials. Before starting and running his own management company in Los Angeles, he was a film student at the American Film Institute, earning an MFA degree in producing in 1998.
Since the inception of Bondesen-Graup, Bondesen has sold projects to every major studio, and has been named one of the top ten people in Hollywood to watch in Details magazine.
Bondesen is the founder of the Young Storytellers Program, an inner city program designed to teach fourth graders how to tell and write stories. He teaches film and story development at a Los Angeles high school, and he is a professor at the University of Southern California, where he teaches the screenwriting program.
Bondesen-Graup is producing ìIf Only,î starring Jennifer Love Hewitt, as well as a movie based on the successful videogame ìReturn To Castle Wolfenstein.î
JULIO MACATís (Director of Photography) first film was the box-office smash ìHome Alone.î He also photographed ìHome Alone 2: Lost in New York,î ìAce Ventura: Pet Detective,î ìThe Nutty Professor,î ìThe Wedding Planner,î ìCats & Dogsî and ìBringing Down the House,î all of which opened in the number one position at the box office.
Among his other credits are the features ìBallistic: Ecks vs. Sever,î ìA Walk to Remember,î ìCrazy in Alabama,î ìHome Alone 3,î ìSo I Married an Axe Murderer,î ìMy Fellow Americans,î the remake of ìMiracle on 34th Street,î ìMoonlight and Valentino,î ìOnly the Lonelyî and ìThe Borrower.î
An Argentinian native of Italian descent, Macat began his career at age 19, working his way up the ranks of the Hollywood Cameramanís Union. He trained under distinguished cinematographers Mario Tosi, ASC, John Alcott, BSC, and Chris Menges, BSC. After studying filmmaking at UCLA, Macat became a camera operator in Los Angeles and collaborated with Russian director Andrei Konchalovsky on four films, including ìRunaway Trainî and ìShy People.î As a cinematographer, Macatís early work includes numerous music videos and commercials shot in the U.S. and abroad.
TOM MEYER (Production Designer) was production designer on ìWelcome to Collinwood,î directed by Anthony and Joe Russo, and ìBlue Crush,î directed by John Stockwell. He was art director on ìCrazy/Beautiful,î also directed by John Stockwell; ìThe Way of the Gun,î directed by Chris McQuarrie; ìThe Crow: Salvation,î directed by Bharat Nalluri; and ìNo Vacancy,î directed by Marius Balchumus. He has worked on television shows, commercials, music videos and theater productions.
STUART LEVYís (Editor) credits include James Foleyís ìConfidence,î Renny Harlinís ìDriven,î Oliver Stoneís ìAny Given Sunday,î and ìJesusí Son,î starring Billy Crudup. Levy was supervising sound editor on ìLiving Out Loud,î ìMadeline,î ìKama Sutra: A Tale of Love,î ìJulian Po,î ìBeautiful Girls,î ìThe Refî and ìWhoís The Man.î
SALVADOR PEREZ (Costume Designer) studied his craft at the Fashion Institute of Design & Merchandising in Los Angeles. He gained practical experience while working as a wardrobe manufacturing foreman on his first major feature, ìSuper Mario Bros.î
Perez continued working as a costume manufacturing foreman on ìThe Flintstones,î ìStargate,î ìCasper,î ìThe Brady Bunch,î ìAce Ventura: When Nature Callsî and the OscarÆ-winning epic ìTitanic.î He was assistant costume designer on ìNothing to Lose,î ìThe Phantom,î ìBarb Wireî and ìOperation Dumbo Drop.î
Perez graduated to costume designer on Twentieth Century Foxís ìSoul Foodî and ìLight It Up,î both produced by Kenneth ìBabyfaceî Edmonds and Tracey Edmonds.
Perez reunited with filmmaker George Tillman (ìSoul Foodî) on the historical drama ìMen of Honor,î and also designed the wardrobes for ìThe Man in the Iron Mask,î Patrick Tatopoulosí directorial debut, ìBird of Passage,î and the debut season of the Fox television drama ì413 Hope Street.î
Perez was costume designer on the Fox hit ìDrumline,î directed by Charles Stone III, and on the Fox comedy ìChasing Papi,î directed by Linda Mendoza.
GEORGE S. CLINTON (Music) was born in Chattanooga, Tennessee, and began his professional career in Nashville, where he wrote songs and did session work while earning degrees in both music and drama from Middle Tennessee State University. After graduation, he moved to Los Angeles, formed the acclaimed but short-lived George Clinton Band, and signed a songwriter deal at Warner Bros. Music. At Warner, Clintonís songs were recorded by Michael Jackson, Joe Cocker, Diana Ross, Johnny Mathis, The Four Tops, Smokey Robinson, The Jackson Five, Bobby Darin and others. He also studied acting and appeared in the Broadway production of ìPump Boys and Dinettesî with Maria Muldaur, Shawn Colvin and Tom Chapin.
Clintonís film scores include ìSpeaking of Sexî for director John McNaughton, as well as the hits ìAustin Powers: International Man of Mystery,î its blockbuster sequel, ìAustin Powers: The Spy Who Shagged Meî and ìAustin Powers in Goldmember.î
His first film scores were for the Cheech and Chong movies ìStill Smokiníî and ìThe Corsican Brothers,î but he first gained public awareness in 1992 as the result of his association with Zalman King on the features ìWild Orchid 2î and ìDelta of Venus,î as well as the Showtime television anthology ìThe Red Shoe Diaries,î narrated by David Duchovny.
Since then, Clinton has composed music for a number of films, including ìJoe Somebody,î ìThe Santa Clause 2,î ìMortal Kombatî and its sequel, ìMortal Kombat: Annihilation,î ìBeverly Hills Ninja,î ìWild Things,î ìThe Astronautís Wifeî and ìResident Evil.î His other works include two musicals for theatre, ìSmoky Mountain Suiteî and ìSpirit of the Mountain,î both of which were commissioned by the Cumberland County Playhouse near his hometown.
