Denny Clairmont, John Hora, Bob Lambert and Milt Shefter have accepted invitations to join the Science and Technology Council of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, bringing the Council’s 2011–2012 membership roster to 24.
Clairmont, one of the industry’s premier motion picture camera technologists, co-founded Clairmont Camera, a camera rental company that has grown into one of the largest in the world. In 2010 he received the John A. Bonner Medal of Commendation for “outstanding service and dedication in upholding the high standards of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.” A member of the Academy’s Scientific and Technical Awards Committee since 1993, Clairmont also has served for several years on numerous subcommittees. He has been an Academy member since 2002.
Hora is a cinematographer whose credits include Honey I Blew Up the Kid, Gremlins” and Twilight Zone: The Movie. He has been a member of the Academy’s Cinematographers Branch since 1986.
As a senior executive of The Walt Disney Company for more than 20 years, Lambert has been a leader in the transition to digital technologies in film, television, gaming, social media and emerging consumer media. He initiated the company’s successful collaboration with Pixar and oversaw the development of new digital production processes such as the “CAPS” system for feature animation, which was recognized with a Scientific and Engineering Award in 1991. Lambert has been an Academy member since 1999.
Shefter, a film preservationist and president of Miljoy Enterprises, is best known for the creation, design and management of the extensive Paramount Pictures Asset Protection Program, including construction of state-of-the-art archival facilities worldwide. He was the project lead for the Academy reports The Digital Dilemma and the upcoming Digital Dilemma 2, due out next month. He has been an Academy member since 1989.
The 2011–2012 Council co-chairs are Academy governor Bill Kroyer (Short Films and Feature Animation Branch) and George Joblove, a digital media technology executive and consultant.
The Council’s other 18 members are: Peter W. Anderson, Lisa Zeno Churgin, Elizabeth Cohen, Jonathan Erland, David W. Gray, Douglas Greenfield, Jim Houston, Rob Hummel, Brad Hunt, David Inglish, Randal Kleiser, Tad Marburg, Daryn Okada, Rick Sayre, Garrett Smith and Academy governors Craig Barron, Richard Edlund and Don Hall.
Established in 2003 by the Academy’s Board of Governors, the Science and Technology Council provides a forum for the exchange of information, promotes cooperation among diverse technological interests within the industry, sponsors publications, fosters educational activities and preserves the history of science and technology of motion pictures.
Utah Leaders and Locals Rally To Keep Sundance Film Festival In The State
With the 2025 Sundance Film Festival underway, Utah leaders, locals and longtime attendees are making a final push — one that could include paying millions of dollars — to keep the world-renowned film festival as its directors consider uprooting.
Thousands of festivalgoers affixed bright yellow stickers to their winter coats that read "Keep Sundance in Utah" in a last-ditch effort to convince festival leadership and state officials to keep it in Park City, its home of 41 years.
Gov. Spencer Cox said previously that Utah would not throw as much money at the festival as other states hoping to lure it away. Now his office is urging the Legislature to carve out $3 million for Sundance in the state budget, weeks before the independent film festival is expected to pick a home for the next decade.
It could retain a small presence in picturesque Park City and center itself in nearby Salt Lake City, or move to another finalist — Cincinnati, Ohio, or Boulder, Colorado — beginning in 2027.
"Sundance is Utah, and Utah is Sundance. You can't really separate those two," Cox said. "This is your home, and we desperately hope it will be your home forever."
Last year's festival generated about $132 million for the state of Utah, according to Sundance's 2024 economic impact report.
Festival Director Eugene Hernandez told reporters last week that they had not made a final decision. An announcement is expected this year by early spring.
Colorado is trying to further sweeten its offer. The state is considering legislation giving up to $34 million in tax incentives to film festivals like Sundance through 2036 — on top of the $1.5 million in funds already approved to lure the Utah festival to its neighboring... Read More