Gunn to Deliver Keynote at IFTA Conference

LOS ANGELES, June 17:
Writer/producer/director James Gunn will deliver the keynote speech at the
Independent Film & Television Alliance’s (IFTA) 10th annual production
conference, which will take place on Friday, June 27, at the InterContinental
Hotel in Los Angeles.

The conference features
industry leaders discussing issues pertaining to the production, distribution
and marketing of independent content. Panels highlighted at the conference
include “How Emerging Technologies Affect Sales Agents, Distributors and
Producers” and “The Independents’ Strategies to Gain Market Access in the Face
of Media Consolidation.”

Panelists “How Emerging Technologies Affect Sales
Agents, Distributors and Producers” include Jeffrey Calman, the senior advisor
of digital strategy at GeniusProducts; Marc DeBevoise, the senior VP of
business development and strategy at Starz Media; John Ferro, the executive VP
of TV distribution and digital sales at Lionsgate; David Garber, the
president/CEO and co-founder of Lantern Lane Entertainment; Britta Schewe, the
head of acquisitions and business development at filmatic; and Dean Wilson, the
COO of First Look Studios. The panel will be moderated by Pierre David, the
chairman and CEO of Imagination Worldwide and chairman of the IFTA Producers
Committee.

Gunn began his
filmmaking career with Troma Entertainment, where he wrote the independent film
Tromeo and Juliet. His other
writing credits include The Specials, with Rob Lowe and Thomas Haden Church, and Scooby Doo and Scooby Doo 2: Monsters Unleashed. He wrote the 2004 remake of Dawn of the Dead and in 2006, wrote and directed the comedy horror
film Slither. Gunn’s next
feature will be Pets, with Ben
Stiller as producer.

“The Independents’
Strategies to Gain Market Access in the Face of Media Consolidation” will
feature John Flock, the president and COO of
Peace Arch Entertainment; Avi Lerner, the co-chairman of NuImage; Gary Marenzi, the co-president of MGM
Worldwide Television; Steve Scheffer, the former president of film programming
and enterprises at HBO; Eric Schotz, the president and CEO of LMNO Productions;
David Straus, the CEO and co-founder of Withoutabox, a division of IMDb; and
Michael Weiser, the president and CEO of Pinnacle Entertainment. Paul
Hertzberg, the president of CineTel Films and IFTA’s vice chairman/secretary,
will moderate the panel.

“New technology and
media consolidation are at the forefront of shaping the future of our business
and they are having profound effects on the independent community,” said
Prewitt. “This year’s production conference, highlighted by James Gunn and our
esteemed group of panelists, will address how we, as independent content
providers, can best navigate the many challenges our business faces daily.”

—By Irene Lew