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Hometown: San Antonio, TX
Fellowship Shadowing Opportunities: Desperate Housewives, Brothers & Sisters, Grey’s Anatomy, Greek (ABC Family), Wizards of Waverly Place (Disney Channel), General Hospital
A native of San Antonio, Texas, Stephen Acevedo was always fascinated with the behind-the-scenes dynamic of production, but since he wasn’t based in entertainment hubs like New York or Los Angeles, he thought his dream of working in mainstream entertainment was unobtainable. After earning a degree in English/Communications at St. Mary’s University, San Antonio’s oldest and largest Catholic university, Acevedo took a proactive step to make his dream a reality.
Having had limited access to a production set, Acevedo accepted a stand-in role for Antonio Banderas on the feature Spy Kids. The opportunity gave him access to observe director Robert Rodriguez and cinematographer Guillermo Navarro at work as well as a comprehensive understanding of production. Shortly thereafter, he pursued an array of production positions to broaden his knowledge including a production assistant job on John Sayles’ Casa de los Babys which was shot on location in Acapulco.
Acevedo later entered The Film School at Florida State University where he received his Master of Fine Arts in Cinematography. The curriculum allowed him to learn about many aspects of production and afforded him the opportunity to work in various capacities, including: producer, assistant director, script supervisor and production designer. In addition to the short film Shot, which he co-wrote, Acevedo’s credits include serving as cinematographer on the contemporary western film Cowboy Smoke as well as director of photography on several music videos and commercials. |
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Hometown: Boston, MA
Fellowship Shadowing Opportunities: Desperate Housewives, Ugly Betty, Private Practice, Boston Legal, Greek (ABC Family), Wizards of Waverly Place (Disney Channel)
Having attended the Dance Program at Harvard University, Matia Karrell brings the unique perspective of dance and choreography to her directing technique. The Boston native furthered her studies in New York where she trained under such renowned performers/educators as Hanya Holm, who is often referred to as one of the “Big Four” founders of American modern dance, and Martha Graham, a pioneer of modern dance whose influence on dance is often compared to the influence Stravinsky had on music and Picasso on visual arts.
With her sights set on directing, Karrell landed first assistant director jobs with such filmmakers as John Sayles, Spike Lee and Sam Shepard. She launched her directing career at the American Film Institute’s Directing Workshop for Women where she directed the Academy Award®-nominated short film Cadillac Dreams.
Among Karrell’s feature film directing credits are the romantic comedy Once Upon A Wedding starring Esai Morales and A. Martinez , and the psychological drama Behind the Red Door starring Kiefer Sutherland, Kyra Sedgwick and Stockard Channing. She co-wrote the latter. |
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Hometown: Sacramento, CA
Fellowship Shadowing Opportunities: Desperate Housewives, Grey’s Anatomy, Private Practice, Eli Stone, Greek (ABC Family), Wizards of Waverly Place (Disney Channel), General Hospital
The son of immigrant parents, Ravi Malhotra grew up in the suburbs of Sacramento, California watching Bollywood productions as his primary source of entertainment. After high school, he relocated closer to Hollywood where he earned a Bachelor of Arts degree at the University of Southern California’s School of Cinema-Television Production.
Malhotra is clearly on the right path of pursuing his dream of directing episodic television as he is already an Oscar® award-winning producer – his short film West Bank Story garnered the 2007 Academy Award® for Best Short Film. He followed up his win with his directorial debut, the short film Return to Sender starring veteran actor Bill Cobbs. In addition to landing Malhotra a position in the Disney|ABC Directing Fellowship, Return to Sender has played at several film festivals.
Malhotra’s path to directing has encompassed everything from working at a state prison to a career as a graphic designer. Most recently, he worked as an assistant to producer Michael Mendelsohn (Lord of War) and producer Mike Medavoy (Shutter Island, Shanghai, Zodiac), Chairman and CEO of Phoenix Pictures. |
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Unless Specified, Series Aired on ABC |
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