Panelist Bios

Joe Cali is a professional performer with an extensive background in the entertainment industry as a writer, producer, publicist and actor.  A full-time voice actor for over 10 years, his voice can be heard on broadcast commercials, corporate videos, station imaging, educational documentaries, promos, trailers, on-hold messages, books-on-tape and more.  He has also appeared in movies, corporate videos and on the stage.  Before becoming a full time actor, Joe spent seven years as Public Relations Director at the Richfield Coliseum, and taught in the Journalism and Mass Communications School at Kent State University. He sits on the board of the Cleveland Chapter of the American Federation of Television and Radio Artists and the Screen Actors Guild, and volunteers for Written Communications Radio Service, a radio station for the visually handicapped in Akron. Visit www.joecali.com

AC Earing is an actor who has studied modern dance, ballet and jazz dance in San Diego, Colorado Springs, and Pittsburgh and has also trained in Gymnastics, and Jiu Jitsu.  He studied acting in Virginia Beach, Pittsburgh, and Los Angeles.  He has worked as a little league head coach, and as a Summer Camp Counselor in the Pocono Mountains.   A life long dream, AC has aspired to be a professional actor since the age of 17 years and has been deterred, beat up, denied, and basically unsuccessful until June 2003 when he was cast for his first paid, principal role in Dead Men Don't Watch Soaps a dinner theater show produced by Cloak 'N Dagger.  He has appeared as an extra in the movie Dee Snyders Strangeland and has appeared in one commercial for the University of Pittsburgh that runs nationally during all televised sporting events, including now during March Madness.  AC has appeared in 2 episodes of Nipon Broadcasting, Japanese Television program shot in West Virginia,  and was cast as a secondary principal in a recently shot film: "The Bar is a Beautiful Place" by Rue Snider.  AC  was producer and assistant director for  Star Wars, Vader: the wonder years, a competition fan film to be judged by George Lucas sometime this summer.  He was currently cast in Stop It! theater production by Blankspace Arts in Pittsburgh, and as Steve Rodgers in the feature film The Redsin Tower by Toetag Productions.  AC’s goal is to create a 'studio city, Pittsburgh,' with  his own production company and separate production house. 

Seth Gordon is the Associate Artistic Director at the Cleveland Play House. At the Play House, he produces the Next Stage Festival of New Plays, helps with season planning, runs the Playwrights’ Unit, and directs plays. He recently returned from Cairo, where he directed the Arabic premiere of Our Town. His Play House directing credits include Dinner with Friends, Proof, Forest City (world premiere), Vincent in Brixton and most recently Tuesdays with Morrie..  He has also directed in Cleveland for Dobama Theatre, the Cleveland Shakespeare Festival, and the Beck Center for the Arts. Previously, he served as Literary Manager and then as Associate Producer of Primary Stages in New York, where he produced and/or directed countless productions, workshops and readings of new plays by this country’s leading playwrights. While at Primary Stages, he also founded the New American Writers Group, which supports the next generation of playwrights. He has also directed at many other New York theatres, and has directed and lectured at various universities including Case Western Reserve University.  He has received grants from the National Endowment for the Arts, Theatre Communications Group, The Jerome Foundation, and AT&T. Productions he produced at Primary Stages received Obie Awards, Theatre World Awards, and several Drama Desk nominations. He received his education at the High School of Performing Arts in New York, and Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh. He considers himself a very lucky man.

Christina Grozik  After working in radio as a disc jockey for several years at 107.9 The End, Christina Grozik made a career change to explore the world of television and film production. With a strong marketing and promotions background Christina decided to use her skills to coordinate both films and special events as a free-lancer. After working as an independent contractor on numerous commercials and films including "Welcome To Collinwood", she accepted a position at the Greater Cleveland Film Commission as a Production Coordinator.  She then went on to co-found a one day conference, The Cleveland Entertainment Conference to give those looking to break into the production business (either from a technical or talent aspect) a chance to learn and network with industry professionals.   Visit  www.clevelandentertainmentconference.com.

Mike Kraft is a native Clevelander and has been a full-time professional performer and AFTRA/SAG member since 1981. He also serves on the Board of AFTRA. He has appeared in well over 1000 industrial training films, hundreds of television and radio commercials, short films and numerous live performances. He also hosts distance learning events for General Motors and Volkswagen and moderates live interactive web casts for Ernst & Young.

Scott Lax is a novelist, feature film producer, playwright, journalist, musician, educator and speaker.  Lax attained his B.A. in English from Hiram College and studied Shakespeare at Cambridge University in England.  Also a professional drummer who has performed with such legends as Bo Diddley. In 1992, Scott embarked on a life-long passion to become a writer. A love story and a war chronicle about young people facing the Vietnam War, Lax’s novel, The Year That Trembled, published in 1998, was widely praised by such publications as  The Midwest Book Review, Vietnam’s Veterans Advisor, and The Denver Post.  Along with Tyler Davidson, Lax also produced The Year That Trembled, a feature film now in international distribution.  The film, which premiered at The Cleveland International Film Festival in 2002, had a successful theatrical run in nearly sixty cities.  Lax and Davidson were awarded four first-place film festival awards: the “Midwest Filmmaker of the Year” by the Cleveland International Film Festival; The Cincinnati International Film Festivals “Winner, People’s Choice,” and “Best Regional Film”; and the Burlington, VT City Arts “Favorite Film.”  Lax, who writes a featured monthly column and features for Northern Ohio Live Magazine, teaches creative writing at The Fairmount Center for the Creative and Performing Arts, Lakeland Community College and The Chagrin Valley Arts Center. Lax has also written for Comedy Central and Lifetime TV. He has been a lecturer and writer-in-residence at The Cleveland Institute of Art, University School, Western Reserve Academy, Hawken School, Hathaway Brown and The Phillips-Osborne Academy.  Currently, Lax presents his program, “Translating Personal Experience into Art” at various schools, writing for magazines, is at work on a novel, and has started a new business.  Addressing then growing problem of poor writing in the business world, Lax has teamed up with fellow novelist Matt Bloom and created Lax+Bloom. Visit  www.scottlax.com and www.laxbloom.com

Shelly Marks is a native Clevelander who has been "in the business" for twenty years. She's traveled extensively throughout Asia, working as a model and actor. She was the Kenwood sound systems girl for two years. Beer has been very good to her. Her first television commercial was for Soporo beer in Tokyo, Japan. Years later, she booked a very lucrative national SAG spot for Busch Beer. She has also lived and worked in the Chicago, New York and LA markets.  Shelly is a member of SAG and AFTRA.  Her film credits include the movies Time Quest, Hit Me, and the soon to be released Connected, in which she plays the female lead. She's also appeared on The Drew Carey Show and many industrial videos and commercials. Shelly is represented by The Docherty agency, Affiliated, and CAM talent. You can currently catch her at the auto shows doing a narration gig for Acura. Check out  www.connectedmovie.com

Fred Sternfeld  is currently producing the JCC’s theatre seasons, most recently the critically acclaimed production of Ragtime, the musical that brought back the Arts & Culture program after a year long hiatus.  He is also Associate Director of Theatre at Fairmount Center for the Creative & Performing Arts. At Fairmount he founded an enormously successful Performing Arts Camp for young people with professional aspirations that drew over one hundred teens to it’s inaugural season.  In the near future, in collaboration with Tom Fulton, Fred will be assisting in the startup of a new professional theatre at Fairmount.  He previously served as Artistic Director at Lakewood Little Theatre - Beck Center for the Arts and the Seattle & Dallas Jewish Community Centers.  Fred is a freelance director in the Cleveland area, garnering numerous honors and awards. Selected credits: Fiddler on the Roof  & The Sound of Music at Cain Park; The Tale of the Allergist’s Wife & The Trestle at Pope Lick Creek at Dobama Theatre;  Man of La Mancha, Rags, The Twilight of the Golds, The Immigrant, Beau Jest & Conversations With My Father at the JCC Halle Theatre; Bad Seed at Ensemble Theatre; Amadeus at Willoughby Fine Arts; Broadway Bound & A Shayna Maidel at Center Stage in Seattle; On the Town, Of Mice and Men, La Cage aux Folles, Stephen Sondheim’s Saturday Night, Foxfire, Noises Off, Peter Pan, Children of a Lesser God & The Importance of Being Earnest at Beck Center and All My Sons & Enter Laughing at the Dallas JCC.  He lives in Beachwood with his wife Randi, and sons Danny and Adam.  Visit www.fredsternfeld.com.

Helene Weinberg is a national event entertainer, writer and producer. She is a union member of Actor’s Equity Association and AFTRA, where she serves on the Executive Board as Treasurer for the Cleveland local. Helene is the owner of OUT TO LUNCH EVENTS- the business of fun, a live event production company which creates innovative showcases and training programs that are completely customized for any group or industry.  Since making its theatrical debut at Playhouse Square in1994,  OTL has grown as a national business theater company and has created over 300 original productions for national sales meetings, awards ceremonies, videos, conferences, conventions, fund-raising and social events across the country. Helene has been seen and heard coast to coast in national radio and television shows and in commercials for such clients as McDonalds, Pizza Hut, Cadillac, JC Penney, Goodyear, Sears and Pepsi. Favorite stage roles include Forbidden Broadway at The Hanna Theater,  A Christmas Carol at Great Lakes Theater Festival and Company at Cain Park. Emcee highlights include Helene as “Joan Rivers” at the Regional Emmy Awards with Jerry Springer (the real one) and for the Academy Awards Gala, Oscar Night America. Helene also hosts such prestigious events as The Addy Awards, Best of Cannes Commercial Awards and The National Inventors Hall Of Fame Awards and has earned standing ovations performing at such National Event Expos as Event Solutions and The Special Event.  Visit www.outtolunchevents.com

Johnny K. Wu  is a veteran filmmaker in Cleveland who has written, produced and directed shorts and feature films which still continue screening at various locations in the world by request (Film Festivals, Sci-Fi Conventions, TV Stations, Public Access Channels, etc).. Wu also had produced several successful workshops and fundraising events for Independent Pictures, OCAGC and others. He has worked with Hollywood publicist in producing celebrity attended events and is also the founder of Cleveland IndieClub, a monthly networking opportunity for local filmmakers. Wu has been featured in many publications including Cleveland Magazine, Plain Dealer, Cleveland Scene, Cleveland FreeTimes, Filmthreat.com World Journal, Blue-Ize Magazine, Smart Business Magazine, to name a few. Johnny is also the first in Cleveland to shoot wire-stunt work films starting with The Chase and now with A Joker’s Card, he had found a special niche to further challenges himself. A Joker’s Card will be premiered on April 22, 2005 at 7pm (sharp) at Grid N’Orbit located at 1437 St. Clair Avenue, the short film is a parody/fan film based on DC Universe, it is his most ambitious short film ever produced with a cast and crew of 100 and much elaborated wire-stunt work. It is a free screening, don’t miss it! Visit  www.mdifilm.com

Jean Zarzour has appeared internationally in television, radio, film and theater for over 20 years. Film credits include The Public Eye, Lost In Yonkers, Street Corner Justus and Proximity. TV credits include Candid Camera, America’s Funniest People and hundreds of commercials nationwide. Off-Broadway credits include West Side Story, A Midsummer Night’s Dream,  Scapino and Nuts. Locally Jean has appeared at The Cleveland Play House, Great Lakes Theatre Festival, Dobama Theater, Berea Summer Theater, Actors Summit, Cleveland Public Theater and Ensemble Theater. Celebrating their first anniversary at the 14^th St. Theater at Playhouse Sq., Jean is currently understudying 2 roles in the critically acclaimed, open ended run of Menopause The Musical and recently performed the show in Des Moines, IA and Ft. Lauderdale, Fl.  As Founder of LIPSCHTICK, Jean has been putting the "Show" in "Business" with customized sketch/musical comedy, improv and Laugh & Learn WorkshopsÔ for corporate events nationwide, since 1989.  Since 2000, she has been a member of the Laughing Stock Comedy Co. based in Tucson, AZ, also specializing in corporate entertainment, nationwide.  As a dance instructor and choreographer, Jean spent 2 years hoofing her way through England, Wales and Italy.  She continues to teach movement, stage acting, on-camera acting, voice-overs and improv both privately and on a freelance basis for Playhouse Square Foundation, The Beck Center, Brecksville’s Theater On The Sq., Wake Up & Live Actors Studio and The Cleveland Film Society. On  May 21, Jean will be a panelist at the Cleveland Entertainment Conference.  She served on the local AEA Liaison Committee for 2 years,  the local AFTRA Board for 3 years and has been the local AFTRA Newsletter Editor for the past 6 years. Developing the GOT PAY? Campaign is a distinct honor that Jean hopes will serve our community of “artists mentoring artists”, for many years to come.   Visit www.lipschtick.com