November 2011 Contest

Will Gluck is a filmmaker with a uniquely authentic voice and an aim to create projects that reflect popular culture and captivate audiences. He made his feature directorial debut with 2009’s darkly funny Fired Up!. His second feature, Easy A, was released in 2010. The film grossed over $75 million worldwide, and won “Best Comedy Movie” at the Critics Choice Awards. In 2011, his third feature Friends with Benefits, starring Justin Timberlake, Mila Kunis, Woody Harrelson, Patricia Clarkson, and Richard Jenkins, was released by Sony / Screen Gems.

Gluck is currently developing Sex on the Moon at Columbia Pictures for producers Scott Rudin, Dana Brunetti and Michael DeLuca. Additionally, he will produce Rehab with Chernin Entertainment and 20th Century Fox, as well as About Last Night for Sony / Screen Gems. Gluck also wrote the upcoming comedy Taildraggers, for Participant Media.

Gluck, a New York native, started in television as a staff writer for the NBC series The John Larroquette Show. He went on to serve as writer and producer on the shows Working, Grosse Pointe, and Andy Richter Controls the Universe. Gluck created and executive produced the 2003 Fox television series Luis, starring Luis Guzman, and co-created and executive produced The Loop, also on Fox, from 2005-2007. Gluck recently signed a two-year development and production deal for film and television with Sony Pictures.

Gluck lives in Los Angeles with his family.

Nina Wolarsky is Senior Vice President of George Clooney and Grant Heslov’s Smokehouse Pictures, where she oversees the company's slate of films in development. She joined the company at its inception in 2006 and has been responsible for films including The Ides of March (Executive Producer), which is based on Beau Willimon's play Farragut North and directed by George Clooney. The film features George Clooney, Ryan Gosling, Philip Seymour Hoffman, Paul Giamatti, Marisa Tomei, and Evan Rachel Wood. The film received its world premiere at the opening night of the 2011 Venice Film Festival and is being released by Sony Pictures in October 2011.

Nina is Executive Producer of the film Argo, which is currently in production with Ben Affleck starring and directing. The film is based on a Wired Magazine article by Joshua Bearman about the true story of how the CIA (with a little help from Hollywood) rescued six Americans during the 1979 Iran Hostage Crisis. Argo was written by Chris Terrio and will be released by Warner Bros in 2012. Other films Nina has been responsible for include the upcoming feature Our Brand Is Crisis (Executive Producer).

Previously, Nina worked as Vice President of Development and Production at Hart Sharp Entertainment, where her most recent credit was for the 2008 Academy Award-nominated film Revolutionary Road (Co-Executive Producer), starring Kate Winslet and Leonardo DiCaprio and directed by Sam Mendes. Nina is a graduate of the University of Pennsylvania and began her career as a book scout in New York City.

Shawn Levy is one of the most commercially successful film directors of the past decade. To date, his films have grossed over 1.6 billion dollars worldwide. Levy’s most recent film, Real Steel, a futuristic father-son boxing drama starring Hugh Jackman, for DreamWorks Pictures, opened October 7th, 2011 at the top of the worldwide box office. Levy also serves as executive producer of the hit ABC comedy Last Man Standing, which stars Tim Allen.

In addition to his directing slate, Levy is currently producing the comedy Neighborhood Watch, starring Ben Stiller, Vince Vaughn and Jonah Hill.

In 2010, Levy directed and produced Date Night, with a cast that included Steve Carell, Tina Fey, James Franco, Mila Kunis, Mark Wahlberg, Kristin Wiig, and Mark Ruffalo. Levy also produced and directed the blockbuster Night at the Museum franchise, which featured Ben Stiller, Robin Williams, Owen Wilson, Ricky Gervais, Hank Azaria, Amy Adams, Christopher Guest, Jonah Hill, Dick Van Dyke and Mickey Rooney. Prior to that, Levy directed the hit comedies Pink Panther and Cheaper by the Dozen.

Tim Hill began his career in live comedy in New York, writing music for and performing in sketch shows and fringe musicals. He moved into television writing and directing for Nickelodeon. He helped developed the hit series SpongeBob SquarePants, created by Steve Hillenberg, and eventually wrote and story edited The SpongeBob SquarePants Movie.

Tim has worked as a writer, story editor, producer and director on a number of television projects for Nickelodeon, Disney, Comedy Central, USA Network, ABC Family, and Discovery Kids.

He made his feature directing debut with Sony’s Muppets From Space. His second feature was the Disney comedy Max Keeble’s Big Move. He then directed Garfield: A Tale of Two Kitties for Twentieth Century Fox, followed by Alvin and the Chipmunks. He most recently completed Hop, for Universal, and is slated to direct the remake of Short Circuit for Dimension.

Tim was raised in Oakland, California. He studied French literature at the University of California, Berkeley.