Asbury University

2013 Judges

Christopher Bessette

Christopher Bessette is an award winning Director, Producer, and writer. In 2012, Bessette was honored with a Premier’s Award Nomination by Niagara College. Most recently, he directed “Trade of Innocents” which will have a special screening during our Engaging Culture Weekend. Bessette’s career has led him internationally in search of compelling stories and has fueled his desire to right wrongs found in our world. He has had the honor to work with producers in 13 different nations. Through his various travels, Bassette has gained a unique perspective on differing cultures and worldviews in relation to film and the distinctive ways stories can be told. This wide view has propelled his ability to create impactful stories that are well-comprised and often life-altering.

Honing in on his skills and talents, Bassette was given the challenge of writing and directing “The Enemy of God”, a film that covers 50 years of an Amazonian tribe. He incorporated 300 natives, with 86 separate speaking parts. Most of the natives used had never seen a motion-picture, and Bassette was able to overcome the obstacles and make it into an award-winning feature film.

“Working internationally has definitely given me and edge to relating to and discovering nuance of human communication, I love working with actors to find truth in the scenes and respect my crew for their talents and contribution. I believe each story, like the flow of life, has a rhythm all its own. Once you capture the rhythm, it resonates as truth with the audience and they are moved,” Bessette says.

Bessette knows all aspects of the film process and knows that great stories don’t get told unless a team comes together and works as one towards a common goal.

Lana Corbi

Lana Corbi, a prominent business leader who has been known as one of the top executives in television, will be among the judges at the 2013 Highbridge Film Festival. Corbi and her husband are currently the co-owners of Strategically Armored and Fortified Environments (SAFE). Previously, she served as Fox Broadcasting Company’s President of Network Distribution and was the principle liaison between the network and its broadcast affiliates.

During her time with Fox Broadcasting she helped to establish the company as one of the nation’s strongest broadcast networks and to launch Fox Sports, Fox News, and the Fox Children’s Network. She also served as Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer of Crown Media Holdings, Inc., the parent company of the globally distributed Hallmark Channel. Corbi later became the President and Chief Executive Officer of Hallmark Channel’s domestic channel.

Brian Godawa

Filmmaker. Designer. Author. Speaker. Brian Godawa wears many hats. For more than 20 years, Godawa has worked in the professional media industry. Actors, clients, writers, and experts in the fields of filmmaking, design, and writing describe him as a “great writer,” “top notch,” an “actor’s director,” and “humble.” Godawa’s first feature film "To End All Wars" earned him the title of award-winning screenwriter. The film was awarded the Commander in Chief Medal of Service, Honor and Pride by The Veterans of Foreign Wars, it swept the first Heartland Film Festival, and was selected to be showcased at the 2003 Cannes Film Festival Cinema for Peace. His awards list does not stop there though. Godawa has numerous credits and further film and screenwriting awards to his name. Additionally, he has years of experience in marketing, advertising, and graphic design and has established an in-house ad agency and a start-up boutique design firm. Godawa is a renowned author and international speaker on the subjects of art, movies, worldviews, and faith. His book "Hollywood Worldviews: Watching Films with Wisdom and Discernment" is known, read, and loved by many and studied by students across the country including Asbury undergraduates.

Rodney Charters

Rodney Charters, a distinguished director and cinematographer, is most widely recognized as the cinematographer for the popular television political thriller “24”, starring Kiefer Sutherland as agent Jack Bauer. It was Rodney’s keen understanding of documentary filmmaking that was needed to create the intense realism of “24” never before seen on a network primetime series. Charters’ first feature was working 2nd Unit on the film,"Youngblood". His first American work was the television movie "Psycho IV". He has been nominated twice for an Emmy for Outstanding Cinematography, and in 2013 The American Society of Cinematographers (ASC) awarded him the Life Time Achievement Award for Television.

2012 Judges

Peter J Lehman

Peter J. Lehman's career as a composer, sound designer, and mixer spans over 20 years in creative audio. His work on "Braveheart" garnered an Oscar for Best Sound Effects Editing and a MPSE Golden Reel Award for Best Sound Effects Editing. His work has also received six other Golden Reel Nominations and numerous other awards. Along with his accomplishments as a veteran sound designer, he has composed a produced music for several blockbuster feature films and dozens of the most popular themed attractions around the world. His experience as a mixer on-site in some of the most challenging venues and attractions in the world sets him apart as one of the most experienced and knowledgeable individuals working in the themed entertainment industry today. Peter has also lent his talents to some of the most highly regarded gaming titles of recent years. A partial credit list featuring some of his most notable screen credits includes: "Braveheart", "The Prince of Egypt", "Mulan", "True Lies", "Jerry Maguire", "Homeward Bound", "Heat", "Outbreak", "Grumpy Old Men".

Peter has also worked for theme parks such as Universal Studios for venues that include "King Kong", "Spiderman", "The Mummy and The Simpsons".

His audio work for gaming projects includes notable products from Electronic Arts such as Madden NFL Football, Superman Returns, and NCAA Football.

Brian Baugh

Brian Baugh is a director and screenwriter based in Los Angeles with over 15 years of experience in the film industry. He is best known for directing the teen drama "To Save a Life".

His creative endeavors began in Seattle as a flannel clad high schooler making lots of bad movies, directing theater, and playing grunge music. This lead him to USC's School of Cinematic Arts and after graduating with honors, he received a graduate scholarship to attend the University of Cape Town in South Africa. Then he spent the next ten years as a cinematographer shooting over twenty features ("The Ultimate Gift", "An American Carol", "Jack and the Beanstalk"), as well as shooting and directing dozens of commercials. After his work on "To Save a Life", he was asked to write and co-write several features, which he is attached to direct, that are all currently in development. His desire is to tell stories that inspire audiences, foster justice and healing, or expand imagination and wonder in the world.

Karen Covell

Karen is a television producer, Director of Hollywood Prayer Network (HPN) and co-founder and producer for JC Productions, an independent television and music production company.

Ms. Covell has had extensive experience producing TV specils, documentaries and children's programming; such as coordinating producer for the PAX special Changed Lives: Miracles of the Passion, as associate producer for Headliners & Legends with Matt Lauer, and as co-producer for the television special America's Throwaway Children, starring Dennis Franz and Danny Glover. She also produced a documentary DVD for HPN entitled The Hollywood Tribe and she has most recently written episodes of the new TV Series The Incurables. She created and produced the rock gospel music show pilot Good News Rock, and was associate producer with Shari Lewis Home Video including One Minute Bedtime Stories and One Minute Bible Stories. Ms. Covell was the post-production producer for the animation company TMS Entertainment, Inc.

Janet Batchler

In addition to her teaching post at the University of Southern California's School of Cinematic Arts, Batchler is a well-respected and accomplished writer in the film and production industry. Batchler, along with her husband and partner Lee Batchler, are well known for their scripts "Smoke and Mirrors", "Batman Forever", and "My Name is Modesty."

2011 Judges

Kristin Ross Lauterbach

kristin Ross Lauterbach is a film director with a wide variety of professional experience. Kristin, started her career in Los Angeles working with director Gary Fleder and then movedon to work with the president of 20th Century Fox Films, Joe Hartwick. She went on to become a Manager in Feature Production before leaving Fox to direct and produce full time.

Kristin has made several successful fictional shorts, which demonstrate her creativity and unique insight. "Food for Thought," takes and ironic look at death was produced in conjunction with Fox Films. "Midnight Clear," which was sold and distributed through Loinsgate Films, is based on Kristin's once estranged relationship with her younger brother and explores the depths of sibling relationships. "The Witch of Portobell," based on Paulo coelho's novel of the same name. In addition, Kristin has made several experimental spoken word short films, "Ambition," "Move," and "Intersections," all of which are poems with the themes of self-reflection.

Kristin's interest in social and jhuman right issues has led her to promote awareness and provide relief for people who are suffering around the world. Her latest endeavor "Flesh," is an exploration of the widely overlooked, yet widespread, practice of sex trafficking in the United States. Kristin has also directed several short-length documentaries. Of these, "Emthonjeni: South Africa," a profile of a sttlement outside of Johannesburg, and "Help Haiti Heal," which shows the devastating effects of the 2008 flooding in Haiti, have together raised well over half a million dollars in relief money for victims of poverty and natural disaster in those countries.

Bob Yerkes

Stuntman Bob Yerkes (rhymes with "circus") is an ex-circus man who has become a legend in the world of motion picture stunts. Performing in stunts for over 50 years, Bob has doubled such stars as Paul Newman, Robert Duval, and Arnold Schqarzenegger just to name a few. For ten years he taught a seemingly endless number of celebrities circus acts for the "Circus of the Stars" television specials in the 1980's. bob resides in Northridge, California where he trains numerous stunt performers in his backyard. Most recently, Bob worked in "Water for Elephants" coming out April 22 starring Reese Witherspoon and was Exec Producer and appeared in the independent film - "Butterfly Circus." He has received the World Acrobatics Society's Lifetime Achievement Award - Gallery of Acrobatic Legends.

Movies in which you may have seen Bob's extraordinary stunts include:
Batman movies
Poseidon Adventure
Towering Inferno
Earthquake
Back to the Future I, II, III
Remo Williams (Award for Best High work)
Commando (Doubled for Schwarzenegger)
Return of the Jedi and many more.

Peter J Lehman

Peter J Lehman's career as a composer, sound designer, mixer spans over 20 years in creative audio. His work on "Braveheart" garnered an Oscar for Best Sound Effects Editing and an MPSE Golden Reel Award for Best Sound Effects Editing. His work has also received six other Golden Reel Nominations and numerous other awards. Along with his accomplishments as a veteran sound designer, he has composed and produced music for several blockbuster feature films and dozens of the most popular themed attractions around the world. His experience as a mixer on-site in some of the most challenging venues and attractions in the world sets him apart as one of the most experienced and knowledgeable individuals working in the themed entertainment industry today. Peter has also lent his talents to some of the most highly regarded gaming titles of recent years. A partial credit list featuring some of the most notable screen credits includes: "Braveheart," "The Prince of Egypt," "Mulan," "True Lies," "Jerry Maguire," "Homeward Bound," "Heat," "Outbreak," Grumpy Old Men."

Petere has also worked for theme parks such as Universal Studios for venues that include King Kong, Spiderman, The Mummy and The Simpsons.

His audio work for gaming projects includes notable products from Electronic Arts such as Madden NFL Football, Superman, Returns, and NCAA Football.

Mark Fincannon, C.S.A.

Mark is a casting director with Fincannon & Associates, Inc.

Although this is a renowned casting company for Southeastern U.S. Motion Picture & Television Casting, it has been involved in literally hundreds of films and television shows around the world. These include "The Blind Side," "The Princess and the Frog," "The Patriot," "Evan Almighty," "Dawson's Creek" and many more.

2010 Judges

Beverly Holloway

Beverly Holloway, a Casting Society of America member, has worked in LA as a Casting Director for TV and feature film projects for over 13 years. Focusing primarily on independent films, Beverly has had the opportunity to work with some of the best actors in the industry. Her credits include the David Zucker comedy An American Carol (Starring Kelsey Grammer, Jon Voight, James Woods, Dennis Hopper, Kevin Farley), The Ultimate Gift (Starring James Garner, Abigail Breslin Drew Fuller, Brain Dennehy), Bobby Jones: STroke of Genius (STarring Jim Ceviezel, Claire Forlani, Malcolm McDowell, Jeremy Northam), and the soon to be released award winning film Like Dandelion Dust (Starring Mira Sorvino, Barry Pepper, Cole Hauser). (For a full list of credits go to http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0391291/)

Jamey Durham

Jamey Durham is an award winning filmmaker and video producer. His first feature-length film The Prairie Pirates won Best Children's Film at The Creation Arts Film Festival. His second feature length film Winning Favor, starring Matthew Ashford, was released in February. Jamey earned his MFA in Screen and Script Writing form Regent University. He resides in Orange City with his wife of 16 years and their three children.

Sean McComber

Sean McComber has traveled everywhere from Dallas, Texas to Mumbai, India for his work, which focuses in Animation.

He attended Asbury University 1998-2000 and traveled with the Media Communications Department to the Sydney Olympics, after which he transferred to the Savannah College of Art and Design (S.C.A.D.). After graduating S.C.A.D. with a B.F.A. in Computer in 2004 he became part of the AnimationMentor.com program where he was picked up for an apprenticeship at Rhythm and Hues Studios, working on Alvin and the Chipmunks.

His animation career has soared since Alvin and the Chipmunks; he’s worked on well-known movies Open Season 2 and Land of the Lost.

Colmon Elridge III

In December of 2007, Colmon Elridge was appointed Executive Assistant to Governor Steve Beshear and Executive Director of the Governor’s Office of Faith Based Initiatives. At 27 he is the youngest Executive Director for the White House Faith Based Initiatives in the nation.

Colmon is from Cynthiana, Kentucky and attended Transylvania University where he obtained a degree in History with a minor in Education. After his Bachelor’s he pursued a Master’s in Public Administration at Eastern Kentucky University, and he secured a Master’s in Business Administration at Sullivan University.

A highly decorated speaker, Colmon has traveled across the nation delivering a message of strength in our moments of weakness and humility in our moments of strength. In the summer of 2009, Colmon was elected Vice-President of the Young Democrats of America by the largest margin of victory in the 77-year history of the organization, which was founded by President Franklin D. Roosevelt.

Colmon has been fortunate to perform in a host of plays and musicals including Neil Simon's Rumors, in which he played the lead role of Lenny, and Gilbert & Sullivan's The Mikado, in which he played the lead role of KoKo. He has also shared the silver screen in the independent film The Detail, in which he played the lead role of Tommy and in the major motion picture Seabiscuit.

Colmon, his wife Victoria, and their son Col, live in Lexington.

Phil Cooke

Phil Cooke is a writer, speaker, filmmaker, and Media Consultant. His work focuses on creating cultures that foster change and platforms in which creative ideas become reality.

To generate his vision, Cooke works through his Media Company, Cooke Pictures, advising many of the largest, most effective churches and Media Ministries in the world. As a working producer in Hollywood with a Ph.D. in Theology, Cooke is unique, and Christianity Today magazine calls him a “media guru.”

As a founding partner in the commercial production company Thomas Winter Cooke (TWC) Films, he produces national advertising for some of the largest companies in the country, including two TV commercials for the Super Bowl 2008.

His books and online blog are changing the way religious organizations use the media to tell their story. He's lectured at universities including Yale, the University of California at Berkeley, and the University of California at Los Angeles. In addition, he serves as an adjunct professor at The King's College & Seminary and Biola University in Los Angeles.

2009 Judges

Michael Flaherty

Michael Flaherty co-founded Walden Media in 1999 with his former college roommate, Cary Granat. Walden's Mission is to rekindle curiosity and recapture imagination through the development and production of family films and literature. Walden has financed and produced a number of films, such as The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe, Prince Caspian, Charlotte's Web, Bridge to Terabithia, Holes, Because of Winn-Dixie, and Journey to the Center of the Earth 3D. Through its publishing division, Walden has also co-published a number of award-winning books, including Mike Lupica's Comeback Kids series and the New York Times bestseller Savvy by first-time author Ingrid Law.

Michael Corwin

Michael Corwin is currently the President and COO of Highway Media, Inc., a privately-held, independent media company that produces, acquires, finances, and distributes short films for us in church worship settings, Highway's films provide Christian leaders with Biblically-based, artistically-inspired, and culturally relevant tools for communicating in a post-modern, media saturated culture (http://www.highwayvideo.com).

Jason Epperson

In an exhaustive worldwide search of more than 12,000 applicants, Steven Spielberg hand-picked 50 Filmmakers to participate in a competition to find the newest, freshest, and most talented director in the world. On The Lot was a joint venture created by Mark Burnett and Steven Spielberg. After 14 weeks, 7 Short films, and lots of sleepless nights, Jason Epperson finished 1st Runner-Up in the competition.

Brian Godawa

Brian Godawa is the screenwriter for the award-winning feature film, To End All Wars. Most recently, he adapted to film the best-selling novel The Visitation by author Frank Peretti for Ralph Winter (X-Men, Fantastic Four), and wrote and directed Wall of Separation, a PBS documentary and Lines That Divide, a documentary on stem cell research. He is attached to direct his award-winning horror script, Cruel Logic, for Boulevard Pictures. Mr. Godawa’s scripts have won multiple awards in screenplay competitions and his articles on movies and philosophy have been published around the world. His book, Hollywood Worldviews: Watching Films with Wisdom and Discernment (InterVarsity Press) is in its ninth printing.

Beverly Holloway

Dennis Babcock

Dennis Babcock is President of PalmTree Productions, Inc. and Triple Espresso, where he serves as Executive Producer of Triple Espresso, a highly-caffeinated comedy. He is also Producer for Mr. Wonder Boy. Bob Briner’s Lambs Among Wolves, a book about the impact of Christians working in the cultural mainstream, featured and referred to Babcock as “perhaps the ultimate professional theatrical veteran.” The idea of being a light in the darkness, rather than deserting the arts and entertainment world to take refuge in the Christian sub-culture, has been a guiding force in his desire to promote wholesome, high-quality entertainment projects and is the genesis for the PalmTree vision.

2008 Judges

Bruce Broughton

Bruce Broughton composes in almost every medium, from theatrical motion pictures and television to computer games, in styles ranging from large symphonic settings ("Silverado") to contemporary electronic scores (the recently Emmy-nominated "The Dive from Clausen's Pier"). Broughton has written the scores for major motion pictures such as "Tombstone," "Lost In Space," "Young Sherlock Holmes" and "Bambi II." With 23 nominations, he has received 10 Emmy awards, most recently for his score to the HBO movie, "Warm Springs." His television credits include the main title themes for "Jag" and Steven Spielberg's "Tiny Toon Adventures," as well as the scores for countless television series ("Dallas," "Quincy," "Hawaii Five-O") and movies and mini-series ("The Blue and the Gray," True Women"). His score for "Heart of Darkness" was the first orchestral score composed for a CD-ROM game.

Clayton Ferguson

After a successful transition into artist and touring management in the music industry, Ferguson joined Walden Media, the film company that would bring C.S. Lewis' "The Chronicles of Narnia" to the big screen. While there, Ferguson developed a marketing approach to soundtrack promotion that was so successful he was appointed to expand these approaches into film marketing. Ferguson directed key marketing initiatives for "The Lion, The Witch, and The Wardrobe" (2005), "Hoot" (2006), "Charlotte’s Web" (2006), and "Amazing Grace" (2007). In 2007 Ferguson moved to Becker Group, an experiential marketing company. Clayton produced the promotional "Big Cheese Tour" for Disney/Pixar’s "Ratatouille" and is now producing "The Chronicles of Narnia - The Exhibit" opening in June 2008 - a 10,000 sq. ft. interactive and educational exhibit scheduled to tour internationally over five years. Ferguson lives with his wife in Eagle Rock, CA.

Erik Lokkesmoe

Erik Lokkesmoe is the founder and managing partner of DIFFERENT DRUMMER, a social good media and marketing firm. Erik recently left AFG/Walden Media/Bristol Bay Productions where he served as the VP of Strategic Partnership and Outreach. An author, political and celebrity speechwriter, and former Capital Hill press secretary, Erik has a MA in Public Communication from American University, with an emphasis in Social Marketing. He and his wife, Monica, have two children and split time between Malibu and Capital Hill.