Judging Panel 2007

BEN AFFLECK • JAMES CROMWELL • KIRK DOUGLAS • JENNIFER GARNER • ADOLFO GUZMAN-LOPEZ
JANE KACZMAREK • JOHN LITHGOW • MASIELA LUSHA • CONSTANCE MARIE • PAUL NEWMAN • KEKE PALMER
BURT REYNOLDS • BRANDON ROUTH • KJ STEINBERG • WANDA SYKES • JOBETH WILLIAMS • RAINN WILSON

BEN AFFLECK Benjamin Geza Affleck was born on August 15, 1972 in Berkeley, California, USA but raised in Cambridge, Massachusetts. At 8 years old Ben was given his first steady acting job on the PBS mini-series "The Voyage of the Mimi" (1984). Ben's teen years consisted of mainly TV movies and small television appearances, and made his big introduction into feature films in 1993 in Dazed and Confused. After that he did Kevin Smith's Mallrats and Chasing Amy. In 1997, Good Will Hunting was released, making Affleck and co-author Matt Damon instantly famous. The film was nominated for 9 Academy Awards and won two, including Best Original Screenplay. Since then, he has appeared in the hits Armageddon, Shakespeare in Love, Pearl Harbor and Daredevil. He most recently won acclaim for his portrayal of actor George Reeves in Hollywoodland.

JAMES CROMWELL was born in Los Angeles but raised in Manhattan and educated at Middlebury College and studied acting at Carnegie-Mellon. He went into the theater (like both his parents) doing everything from Shakespeare to experimental plays. He started doing TV in 1974, gaining some notice in a recurring role as Archie Bunker's buddy Stretch Cunningham in All in the Family (1971), made his film debut in 1976, and goes back to the stage periodically. Some of his more noted film roles have been in Revenge of the Nerds (1984) and the surprise hit about a charming pig, Babe (1995). He garnered some of the best reviews of his career - many of which said he should have received an Oscar - for his role as a corrupt, conniving police captain in L.A. Confidential (1997). Mr. Cromwell is most recently seen in the critically acclaimed movie Queen.

KIRK DOUGLAS was honored with a Special Oscar by the Academy of Motion Pictures in 1996 for "50 years as a creative and moral force in the motion picture community." He has a lifetime of achievement — which includes 87 films, 10 plays, 9 books, and a host of other contributions to his art and his country. In 1955, Mr. Douglas formed one of Hollywood's first independent film companies, The Bryna Company, which produced many memorable films, including Paths of Glory, The Vikings, Spartacus, Lonely are the Brave, and Seven Days in May. In 1964, Mr. Douglas and his wife formed the Douglas Foundation which supports the Anne Douglas Center for Women and the Motion Picture Relief Home's Alzheimer's Unit, and committed funds for the building of a theatre directory opposite the Wailing Wall in Jerusalem and for the Kirk Douglas Theatre in Culver City, among others contributions. In 1981, President Carter presented Mr. Douglas with the Medal of Freedom, America's highest civilian award in recognition of the many trips he had made at his own expense, speaking to audiences all over the world about why democracy works and what freedom means. Mr. Douglas has been married to his wife, Anne, for 50 years and they divide their time between residences in Beverly Hills and Montecito

JENNIFER GARNER, who catapulted into stardom with her lead role on the series "Alias" (2001), has come a long way from her birthplace of Houston, Texas. Raised in Charleston, West Virginia by her mother Pat, a retired English teacher, and her father, Bill, a former chemical engineer, Jennifer spent her adolescence studying ballet. New York attracted the young actress after college where she worked as a hostess while pursuing a career in film and television. Garner received four Emmy nominations for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Drama Series for Alias, as well as a Golden Globe and a Screen Actors Guild Award. She has appeared in the films Elektra, 13 Going on 30, Daredevil, Pearl Harbor and Dude, Where's My Car?. Aside from acting, Jennifer enjoys cooking, gardening, hiking, and inspired by her character on the show, kickboxing.

ADOLFO GUZMAN-LOPEZ is the education and arts reporter at 89.3 KPCC, a National Public Radio affiliate. He's been with the station for six years. He was the lead reporter for KPCC's coverage of LA Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa's LA Unified reform proposal. Adolfo is also an accomplished poet. Twelve years ago, he founded the performance poetry group The Taco Shop Poets. Most recently, his poetry was published in Geography of Rage: Remembering the Los Angeles Riots of 1992. His news reporting has earned him the Edward R. Murrow, L.A. Press Club, and Ruben Salazar awards.

JANE KACZMAREK starred on Malcolm in the Middle, and was nominated for the Emmy, Golden Globe, and SAG awards and won the Television Critics Award and American Comedy Award. Other television includes Felicity, Equal Justice, Paper Chase: The Second Year, Party of Five, Frasier, The Practice, and Hill Street Blues. Her film credits include Pleasantville, Vice Versa, DOA, Falling in Love, and Uncommon Valor. On Broadway, Kaczmarek appeared in Lost in Yonkers. In Los Angeles, she appeared in Kindertransport, for which she received an Ovation Award, the premiere of Dinner With Friends, and Raised in Captivity, for which she won an LA Drama Critics Award. Her new show Help me Help You with Ted Danson is on ABC at 9:30pm

JOHN LITHGOW starred as Dr. Dick Solomon on the hugely successful television series, 3rd Rock from the Sun. He began his distinguished career on Broadway, where he received a Tony award for The Changing Room, a second nomination in 1985 for Requiem for a Heavyweight, and a third in 1988 for M. Butterfly. He received an Academy Award nomination for his portrayal of Roberta Muldoon in The World According to Garp, and a second Oscar nomination followed for Terms of Endearment. Other film credits included The Life and Death of Peter Sellers, Kinsey, and voice work for Shrek. You can currently catch Mr. Lithgow in Dreamgirls.

MASIELA LUSHA is best known for her role as Carmen, George Lopez's daughter on The George Lopez Show. She was also the voice of Nina in Clifford's Puppy Days. First raised in Tirana, Albania; Budapest, Hungary; and Vienna, Austria, she settled with her mother in Michigan at the age of seven. Masiela Lusha has been named "the youngest author in the world" to publish a book in two languages. Dorrance Publishing recently released her second book of poetry, Drinking the Moon.

CONSTANCE MARIE currently stars as Angie, the devoted wife of George Lopez on the ABC family comedy The George Lopez Show, now taping its 6th season. In 2002, the de aughter of Raquel Welch, in the celebrated film Tortilla Soup. The film received a 2002 Alma Award nomination for "Outstanding Motion Picture." Marie's career began when she was a teenager in Los Angeles' underground break-dancing scene. She was selected out of a group of 500 hopefuls to dance on tour with David Bowie. Upon returning to Los Angeles, she was cast as a dancer in the movie Salsa. This led to her very first acting job, a starring role as Penny on the CBS series Dirty Dancing. She has also appeared in Mi Familia and Selena, and played Michael J. Fox's antagonistic love interest, Gabby, on the hit series Spin City.

PAUL NEWMAN, screen legend, superstar, and the man with the most famous blue eyes in movie history, was born in 1925 in Cleveland, Ohio. Upon graduating from Kenyon College, he spent a year at the Yale Drama School and then headed to New York, where he attended the famed New York Actors Studio. After his first Broadway appearance in Picnic (1953), Mr. Newman was offered a movie contract by Warner Brothers. He went on to become one of the top box office draws of the 1960s, starring in such films as The Hustler, The Prize, Hud, Cool Hand Luke, and Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid. He also produced and directed many quality films, including Rachel, in which he directed wife Joanne Woodward and received an Oscar nomination for best picture. Nominated nine times for the best actor Oscar, he finally took one home for his performance as an aging pool shark in The Color of Money. He is the founder of Newman's Own a successful line of food products that has earned in excess of $100 million, every penny of which has been donated to charity. He lives with his wife in Westport, Connecticut.

KEKE PALMER is an actress/singer who won a small role in the feature film, BarberShop 2 - Back In Business, at the age of nine. That role led to a series of guest-starring roles on television shows like Strong Medicine, Cold Case, ER, and Law & Order SVU. Keke later starred in an Emmy-nominated made for TV movie entitled, The Wool Cap with William H. Macy. That role earned her an NAACP Image Award nomination for Best Actress in a Movie Made for Television, as well as a Screen Actors Guild Nomination in the Best Leading Actress category. Keke is the youngest actor to ever be nominated by the guild in a Lead Actor Category. Keke starred in two LionsGate family movies, Madea's Family Reunion, and Akeelah and The Bee. Keke is also an accomplished singer/songwriter and has signed a major recording contract with Atlantic Records. At the age of twelve, Keke has a long way to go, but no one can argue the fact that she is off to a fantastic start!

BURT REYNOLDS is an Academy Award nominee and Golden Globe winner. He has enjoyed enormous success as an actor and director in feature films, television and stage productions. In addition to receiving an Oscar nomination and winning the Golden Globe Award for Boogie Nights, The New York Film Critics, The Los Angeles Film Critics, The Chicago Film Critics and The National Society of Film Critics honored Reynolds with Best Supporting Actor awards for his memorable role in that film. He recently filmed for Paramount Angel in Montgomery, a drama with Willie Nelson, and current work includes The Longest Yard with Adam Sandler and Chris Rock, The Dukes of Hazzard, End Game with Cuba Gooding, Jr., Forget about It, Cloud Nine and Grilled.

BRANDON ROUTH (pronounced like "south") was born in Des Moines, Iowa and grew up in nearby Norwalk. He attended the University of Iowa and starred in many productions at the Norwalk Theater of Performing Arts. His first professional acting role was in the ABC television series "Odd Man Out" (1999), and he went on to guest star in the series "Gilmore Girls" (2000) and "Undressed" (1999). In his spare time, Routh enjoys playing soccer and basketball, swimming, biking and reading. He most recently starred in the film "Superman Returns".

KJ STEINBERG is the co-creator and co-executive producer of ABC's new drama The Nine. Her writing credits include "Judging Amy" and "Beautiful People."

WANDA SYKES has been called "one of the funniest stand up comics" by her peers and ranks among Entertainment Weekly's 25 Funniest People in America. Sykes was seen in the New Line feature "Monster-In-Law" starring opposite Jennifer Lopez and Jane Fonda and was recently heard in the animated feature "Over The Hedge" for Dreamworks. She has recently completed filming the comedy "Evan Almighty," the sequel to "Bruce Almighty," in which she co-stars with Steve Carell. She will also return as a guest star on the CBS comedy "The New Adventures Old Christine." Her first book titled Yeah, I Said It, published by Simon and Schuster, hit bookstores in September 2004. Yeah, I Said It is a hilarious collection of essays touching on life, family and current events.

JOBETH WILLIAMS hails from Houston and was catapulted to the big leagues after a star-making turn as the strong-willed mother of three who fights to save her brood from home-invading demons in Steven Spielberg's critical and box-office hit Poltergeist. She then joined the cast of The Big Chill, and appeared opposite Nick Nolte in Teachers. She also won Emmy nominations for her performances in TV-movies Adam and Baby M. Behind the scenes, she was nominated for an Academy Award for her directorial debut of Showtime's On Hope and continues to pursue directing opportunities. She has two children with husband and director, John Pasquin, who directed her in the film Jungle 2 Jungle and on the TV series Payne. More recent film roles include playing Drew Barrymore's mom in Fever Pitch and Mrs. Mayer in Crazylove

RAINN WILSON portrays Dwight Schrute, an eccentric paper salesman whose ego knows no bounds, in the NBC comedy series The Office. Wilson recently starred in Ivan Reitman's comedy, Super Ex-Girlfriend, opposite Uma Thurman and Luke Wilson. He was previously in the feature film Sahara starring opposite Matthew McConaughey, Steve Zahn and Penelope Cruz. Wilson has appeared in other features including Cameron Crowe's Almost Famous, Steven Soderbergh's Full Frontal, America's Sweethearts, House of 1,000 Corpses and Galaxy Quest.

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