THEATER CAMP

Patti Harrison

Patti Harrison was nominated for the Independent Spirit Award for Best Female Lead in Nikole Beckwith’s Together Together, co-starring Ed Helms, which premiered at Sundance. She can also be seen opposite Sandra Bullock and Channing Tatum in Paramount’s blockbuster The Lost City, which premiered this year. In addition to writing and starring on three seasons of Netflix’s I Think You Should Leave with Tim Robinson, Patti is known by fans for her roles on Shrill, High Maintenance, Search Party, and The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon. She’s written on multiple series including two seasons of Big Mouth on Netflix. She can currently be seen on the current and upcoming seasons of HBO Max’s hit series Made For Love and She Hulk, on Disney+. Next, she will soon be seen in Theater Camp opposite Molly Gordon and Ben Platt, which will premiere at the 2023 Sundance Film Festival. Most recently, she is filming Netflix's Electric State, by the Russo Brothers, opposite Millie Bobby-Brown and Stanley Tucci, as well as the independent feature Turn Me On, directed by Michael Tyburski.

Nick Lieberman

Nick Lieberman is a Los Angeles–based writer-director. He has made music videos with a variety of artists, including Ben Platt and Remi Wolf, and his commercial work includes projects with Samsung, Billboard, and Fendi. Theater Camp is his feature directorial debut.

Erik Feig, p.g.a.

Erik Feig is the founder and CEO of PICTURESTART, a media company specializing in premium Discovery of Voice content for worldwide engagement across all platforms. Since PICTURESTART launched in 2019, Erik has financed and produced a diverse slate of projects, including Luckiest Girl Alive with Mila Kunis and directed by Mike Barker, released on Netflix in Oct 2022 and was the #1 global movie that month; Sharper directed by Ben Caron and starring Julianne Moore, Sebastian Stan and Justice Smith; raunchy comedy Strays voiced by Will Ferrell and Jamie Foxx, and directed by Josh Greenbaum; Borderlands, the ambitious video game adaptation starring Cate Blanchett, Kevin Hart, Jamie Lee Curtis and Jack Black and directed by Eli Roth; and produced and financed both AM I OK? directed by Stephanie Allynne and Tig Notaro and Cha Cha Real Smooth directed by Cooper Raiff, both starring Dakota Johnson and premiered at Sundance 8 2022, with the latter film winning the Audience Award at the Festival and selling to Apple for the Festival’s highest sale of the year. Prior to founding PICTURESTART, Erik was one of the founding partners of Summit Entertainment which became the most successful independent film studio of all time, and then served as co-president of Lionsgate's Motion Picture Group when Summit was acquired by them. He has produced, supervised or originated the production of over 100 films ranging from the Step Up, Twilight, and Hunger Games series to Academy Award-winning films including La La Land and The Hurt Locker, and his films have collectively grossed over $13BN at the box office. According to The New York Times, "Feig has built a reputation among book authors for cinematic adaptations." He is a board member of the Columbia University School of the Arts, City Year Los Angeles, the MOCA Acquisition and Collection committee, and an ambassador for the ReFrame Project.

Samie Kim Falvey

Samie Kim Falvey is the President of PICTURESTART, the discovery-of-voice focused media company, where she oversees all efforts in scripted and unscripted content across film, television, audio and print media. With an extraordinary track record in developing, producing and programming zeitgeist-shaping hits across multiple platforms, Samie excels at finding unique voices and helping them tell the most powerful, memorable stories. She joined PICTURESTART from Imagine Entertainment, where she was Chairman of Imagine Television. In that role, she led the transition of Imagine Television from producing pod to boutique studio, with an eye to ownership and IP creation. Some of the projects she shepherded in her time there: Dan Brown’s The Lost Symbol, Swagger with Kevin Durant, Wu-Tang: An American Saga, Why Women Kill, Ms. Pat, and Willow. Samie's previous posts include leadership roles at M4 and ABC. At M4, the premium short-form mobile content service where she oversaw the development and production of all comedy pilots and international scripted formats for ABC. At ABC, Falvey and her team developed and launched the breakout Tuesday and Wednesday Night Comedy blocks, renowned for their quality and inclusivity including five- time Emmy-winning Best Comedy Series Modern Family, Peabody-winning and Emmy-winning Black-ish, and critically acclaimed series: Fresh Off The Boat, The Goldbergs, The Middle, and The Real O'Neals.

Julia Hammer, p.g.a.

Julia Hammer is a Vice President of Production at PICTURESTART. Julia most recently executive produced Netflix's Luckiest Girl Alive starring Mlia Kunis and Apple's Cha Cha Real Smooth starring Dakota Johnson, which also won the 2022 Sundance Audience Award. Her upcoming credits include Sharper for Apple and A24, starring Julianne Moore and Sebastian Stan, and Strays for Universal, starring Will Ferrell and Jamie Foxx.

Ryan Heller

Ryan Heller is Executive Vice President of Film and Documentary, Topic Studios, the entertainment unit of First Look Media. He is responsible for building and shepherding the company’s film slate through development, financing, production and distribution as well as seeking out key acquisitions to complement original studio productions. Recent projects Ryan has overseen and executive produced for the studio include Pablo Larraín’s Academy Award®-nominated Spencer (NEON/Topic Studios) starring Kristen Stewart; Nikyatu Jusu’s psychological horror film Nanny which won the 2022 Sundance Grand Jury Prize; Debra Granik’s acclaimed Leave No Trace (Bleecker Street); Michael Angelo Covino’s buddy comedy and winner of Cannes’ Un Certain Regard Heart Prize The Climb (Sony Classics); Julius Onah’s three-time Independent Spirit Award-nominated dramatic thriller Luce (NEON/Topic Studios) starring Kelvin Harrison Jr., Naomi Watts and Octavia Spencer; Steven Soderbergh’s Panama Papers satire The Laundromat (Netflix) starring Meryl Streep; and Kevin Macdonald’s Golden Globe®-winning legal thriller The Mauritanian (STXfilms) starring Jodie Foster, Tahar Rahim and Benedict Cumberbatch. Ryan’s documentary projects include PGA Award and Emmy-winning HBO series 100 Foot Wave; Ry Russo Young’s acclaimed series Nuclear Family (HBO); Lucy Walker’s California wildfire exposé Bring Your Own Brigade (Paramount+); and Lizzie Gottlieb’s documentary on literary giants Robert Caro and Robert Gottlieb Turn Every Page (Sony Classics). Upcoming projects include Brandon Cronenberg’s Infinity Pool (NEON) starring Alexander Skarsgård and Mia Goth, Ben Platt and Molly Gordon-starring musical comedy Theater Camp; and Toni Collette’s directorial debut Writers & Lovers based on Lily King’s bestselling novel. Ryan was previously at Starz Entertainment where he led the buying and releasing of feature films for the Starz Digital banner including: Amy Berg's Every Secret Thing starring Diane Lane, Dakota Fanning and Elizabeth Banks; Jason Bateman's The Family Fang starring Bateman, Nicole Kidman and Christopher Walken; Sophie Goodhart's My Blind Brother starring Adam Scott, Nick Kroll and Jenny Slate; and two- time Academy Award-winning director Barbara Kopple's Miss Sharon Jones! Ryan is a member of the Producers Guild of America. He holds a BA from Boston College and is a graduate of New York University’s M.B.A./M.F.A. dual degree program. He is based out of First Look Media’s headquarters in New York City.

Maria Zuckerman

Maria Zuckerman is an award-winning producer and entertainment executive. She most recently served until June 2022 as President of Topic Studios, leading content and strategy for development, financing, production, go-to-market and distribution across theatrical and streaming films, documentaries, television and podcasts. In Maria’s three-year tenure leading the Studio (and encompassing the pandemic), projects which she greenlit garnered multiple Academy Award, Emmy, Golden Globe, Independent Spirit, BAFTA, Critics Choice and Peabody wins and nominations, the 2022 Sundance Grand Jury Prize and a Pulitzer Finalist honor, and sold to outlets such as HBO, Netflix, Amazon, Paramount/Viacom, Blumhouse, and Sony Pictures Classics. Projects include the Emmy-winning HBO surfing documentary series 100 Foot Wave; Pablo Larrain’s Spencer, starring Kristen Stewart; and Nanny, Nikyatu Jusu’s directorial debut, acquired by Amazon and Blumhouse. Maria previously worked for nearly 20 years at HBO, where she served as Senior Vice President, HBO Films, overseeing the development and production of original movies for the network. Her more than 30 titles include movies from filmmakers such as Spike Lee, Tom Hooper, Stephen Frears, Dee Rees, Peter Morgan and David Yates. These films earned HBO 95 Emmy® nominations, winning 17 Emmy® Awards, including three Best Movie/Miniseries; 22 Golden Globe® nominations with five wins, including two for Best Miniseries or Motion Picture Made for Television; 23 BAFTA® nominations and numerous NAACP®, GLAAD® and SAG® Awards. Maria is a member of the PGA, the Academy of Television Arts and Sciences, and BAFTA, and was named in 2015 to Variety’s Hollywood’s New Leaders in Television list.

Jessica Elbaum, p.g.a.

Jessica Elbaum originally launched Gloria Sanchez Productions in 2014 with a focus on female voices in comedy, and from that point the company has expanded into multiple genres and platforms in both film and television. Elbaum was named one of Variety’s “10 Producers to Watch” shortly after the launch and appeared in the Hollywood Reporter's "The 40 Most Powerful People in Comedy" in 2019 and 2021.

Will Ferrell

Actor/Writer/Producer Will Ferrell has created some of film’s most iconic characters with his roles in Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy, Elf, Step Brothers, and Stranger Than Fiction, among many others. Along with partner Jessica Elbaum, Ferrell is a co-founder of Gloria Sanchez Productions. The company has a three-year first-look deal with Netflix and a multi-year existing first-look film deal at Paramount Pictures. The Netflix deal came on the heels of the incredible overnight success of Dead to Me, which aired its second season on the streaming service in May 2020. That same year, Dead to Me was nominated for four Emmy Awards, including “Outstanding Comedy Series” and “Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy Series” for Christina Applegate and Linda Cardellini respectively. The show has since been renewed for a third season, which is slated to premiere in the fall of this year. Gloria Sanchez’s recent film and TV credits include Barb & Star Go to Vista Del Mar, Hustlers, Booksmart, and Live From a Studio Audience, all of which garnered both critical acclaim and awards nominations. This holiday season, Ferrell will be seen starring alongside Ryan Reynolds and Octavia Spencer in Spirited. The holiday musical, written and directed by Sean Anders and John Morris, is a modern retelling of Charles Dickens' 1843 novella A Christmas Carol. The project is set to be released on Apple TV+. In 2023, Ferrell will be seen in Greta Gerwig’s highly anticipated live action feature Barbie, starring alongside Margot Robbie and Ryan Gosling. Ferrell can also be seen starring opposite of Reese Witherspoon in Nick Stoller’s Untitled Wedding Comedy. Ferrell is also set to star in and co-produce Untitled Sister Comedy starring Awkwafina and Sandra Oh. Ferrell recently starred in and executive produced the Apple TV+ and Gloria Sanchez TV series The Shrink Next Door, directed by Michael Showalter and written by Georgia Pritchett. The show premiered in Fall 2021 and was an eight-episode limited series starring Ferrell, Paul Rudd, and Kathryn Hahn. The series, which is based on the No. 1 new podcast of 2019 by Wondery and Bloomberg Media, follows the bizarre relationship between a psychiatrist and his longtime patient. Other recent projects include Netflix’s Eurovision in which Ferrell starred alongside Rachel McAdams. Ferrell served as a producer on the project through his Gloria Sanchez banner and the movie premiered in Summer 2020. It then went on to receive an Academy Award nomination for “Best Original Song” for “Husavik,” which was performed by Ferrell in the movie. Ferrell also starred opposite of Julia Louis Dreyfus in Searchlight Pictures Downhill, which premiered at Sundance Film Festival in 2020. A graduate of the University of Southern California, Ferrell became interested in performing while a student at University High School in Irvine where he made his school's daily morning announcements over the public address system in disguised voices. He started as a member of the Los Angeles comedy/improvisation group The Groundlings where fellow cast members Ana Gasteyer, Maya Rudolph and former Saturday Night Live repertory players Laraine Newman, Jon Lovitz and Phil Hartman began their careers. Prior to his time on Saturday Night Live, he appeared on several television programs, including Strangers with Candy, Grace Under Fire, and Living Single while still a member of The Groundlings. It was there he met Chris Kattan and the two became good friends before joining Saturday Night Live in 1995. During his first season, Ferrell was declared quite possibly the worst cast member ever. However, his talented impersonations and wide range of characters soon made him arguably the greatest Saturday Night Live cast member ever. Over his seven-year run, Ferrell played George W. Bush and became one of the few cast members to be nominated for an Emmy for a Saturday Night Live performance. In 2002 he left Saturday Night Live and was the only cast member to ever receive a farewell from all the current cast members at the end of a season finale show. Ferrell is widely considered a comedic genius with enormous box office power, starring in hits Old School, Wedding Crashers, Zoolander, Talladega Nights, and Daddy’s Home among many others.

Nate Hurtsellers

Nate Hurtsellers is an award-winning cinematographer whose work has been screened at festivals around the world. He received his bachelor's from New York University and master’s in cinematography from the American Film Institute. Working early on in documentaries, Nate developed an affection for intimate naturalism and an interest in storytelling through images of emotional depth. Nate brought that sensibility into the narrative space, notably lensing SXSW 2019 Special Jury and Audience Award Winner, Saint Frances. Other feature credits include Snatchers (SXSW 2019), I Used to Go Here (SXSW 2020), and Down Low (2023), starring Zachary Quinto. Nate is currently wrapping up an HBO documentary series alongside frequent collaborator, Lance Oppenheim.

Jon Philpot

Jon Philpot is an Emmy award winning editor known for his work on a wide range of projects. Most notably the HBO Max dark comedy Search Party, Comedy Central’s Broad City and the A24 psychological horror, False Positive. Theater Camp is his second feature film and first feature to make it into the Sundance Film Festival.

Charlotte Royer, Jordan Janota

Michelle Li

James McAlister & Mark Sonnenblick

Noah Galvin, Molly Gordon, Nick Lieberman, Ben Platt, Mark Sonnenblick

Bill Sherman, Will Van Dyke

Lindsay Wolfington

Maud Arnold