Organizers named 19 individuals, 15 production teams and 19 public employees as finalists for the 17th Annual California On Location AwardsTM (COLA). COLA is the premiere awards ceremony saluting film industry professionals and public employees for excellence during filming on-location in the State of California. Each year, COLA names Location Managers, Assistant Location Managers and Location Teams of the Year in an assortment of film project genres, plus city, county, state and federal Public Employees of the Year for their efforts to facilitate filming in the Golden State.
The path to COLA honors begins with an open nominations process, in which film commissioners and industry professionals nominate individuals and teams based on film, television, and commercial production work performed in California between July 1, 2010 and June 30, 2011. The core of each nomination is a 350-word essay describing, in detail, the work that nominees performed to facilitate local filming. In August, 2011, COLA organizers forwarded more than 100 nominations to representatives of Film Liaisons in California, Statewide (FLICS) and Teamsters Local 399 for a vote. Based on total votes received for each nomination, a select number of COLA nominees earn their finalist status.
COLA winners are announced annually at an invitation-only event. This year’s event will take place on Sunday, October 16 at the Millennium Biltmore Hotel in downtown Los Angeles.
“Our congratulations go out to all of the individuals and team nominated for this honor,” said COLA Co-Chair Paul Audley of FilmL.A. ―To the nominees, finalists, and eventual award winners, all of us at ‘COLA Headquarters’ thank you for your professionalism and wish you luck.‖
LIST OF FINALISTS 17th Annual California On Location AwardsTM
The following individuals and production teams were nominated by film commissioners throughout our state, film production executives and location professionals. Finalists are listed in alphabetical order. Winners will be announced at this year’s invitation-only COLA event on Sunday, October 16, 2011 at the Millennium Biltmore Hotel.
Location Professional of the Year, Commercials
Jonathan Arroyo – Buick
Louis de Fontanes – Jim Beam
Rob Gregory – Bank of America
Location Professional of the Year, TV Episodic
Gregory Alpert – “LUCK”
Briana Burke – “Wilfred”
Nancy Haecker – “House M.D.”
Location Professional of the Year, Independent Feature Film
Gerard Averill – “RED STATE”
Caleb Duffy – “The Artist”
Kristi Frankenheimer – “Judy Moody and the Not Bummer Summer”
Location Professional of the Year, Studio Feature Film
S. Todd Christensen – “Moneyball”
Doug Dresser – “Friends with Benefits”
Patrick Mignano – “J. Edgar”
John Panzarella – “In Time”
Location Team of the Year, Commercials
“CHEVY” – Furlined
Kevin Briles – Location Manager
Jonathan Gordon – Key Assistant Location Manager
Weston Marsh – Location Scout
“FRUIT OF THE LOOM” – Untitled Films
Wilson Wu – Location Manager
Greg Orselli – Assistant Location Manager
Peter Kwong – Location Scout
“HYUNDAI GBCS GLOBAL” – DUO FILMS
Brenda Ferrell – Location Manager/Location Scout
Sheri Salinas – Location Manager/Location Scout
Location Team of the Year, TV Episodic
“HOUSE M.D.” – NBC/Universal
Nancy Haecker – Location Manager
Stevie Nelson – Key Assistant Location Manager
Carole Segal – Key Assistant Location Manager
“LUCK” – HBO
Gregory H. Alpert – Location Manager
Jorge Luis Alvarez – Key Assistant Location Manager
Peter Costelli – Key Assistant Location Manager
Leo Azevedo Fialho – Key Assistant Location Manager/Location Scout
Alexander Kivlen – Key Assistant Location Manager
Lindsay Mizrahi – Key Assistant Location Manager/Location Scout
JP O’Connor – Key Assistant Location Manager/Location Scout
Robert Paulsen – Key Assistant Location Manager
Scott Trimble – Key Assistant Location Manager/Location Scout
Sam Gomez – Assistant Location Manager
“THE EVENT” – Open 4 Business Productions LLC/NBC Universal
Chris Campbell – Location Manager
Wes Hagan – Location Manager
Joe Akerman – Key Assistant Location Manager
Casey Boynton – Key Assistant Location Manager
Miles Henley – Key Assistant Location Manager
Brandon Thomas – Key Assistant Location Manager
Brett Williams – Key Assistant Location Manager
Amil Fuentes – Assistant Location Manager
Lauren Willdeboer – Assistant Location Manager
Location Team of the Year, Independent Feature Film
“BIG SUR” – Big Sur Productions LLC
Gail Stempler – Location Manager
Peter Moody – Location Scout
Peter Newfield – Location Scout
Daniel Lee – Location Assistant
“JUDY MOODY AND THE NOT BUMMER SUMMER” – Reel FX Creative Studios/Relativity
Kristi Frankenheimer – Location Manager
Claudia Eastman – Key Assistant Location Manager/Location Scout
Eva Schroeder – Key Assistant Location Manager
Jessica Strauss – Key Assistant Location Manager
Brad Warden – Key Assistant Location Manager
Hannah Kozak – Assistant Location Manager
Corey Schmidt – Assistant Location Manager
“LINCOLN LAWYER” – Lionsgate/Lakeshore
Ralph Meyer – Location Manager
Kandice Billingsley – Key Assistant Location Manager
Jane E. Graves – Key Assistant Location Manager
Carrie Cantore – Assistant Location Manager
Mike Cruz – Assistant Location Manager
Location Team of the Year, Studio Feature Film
“HORRIBLE BOSSES” – New Line Cinema
Alasdair Boyd – Location Manager
Leo Fialho – Key Assistant Location Manager
Michael Soleau – Key Assistant Location Manager
Nate Taylor – Key Assistant Location Manager
Ron Haynes – Assistant Location Manager
Dan Milner – Assistant Location Manager
“MONEYBALL” – Columbia Pictures
S. Todd Christensen – Location Manager
Mike Brewer – Key Assistant Location Manager
Victoria Leskin – Key Assistant Location Manager
Kyle Snappy Oliver – Key Assistant Location Manager
Matthew Riutta – Key Assistant Location Manager
“SUPER 8” – Paramount Pictures
Paul Schreiber – Location Manager
Peter Robarts – Location Manager
Kandice Billingsley – Key Assistant Location Manager
Elisa Ann Conant – Key Assistant Location Manager
Kai Ephron – Key Assistant Location Manager
Ron Haynes – Key Assistant Location Manager
Brian Kinney – Key Assistant Location Manager
Manny Padilla – Key Assistant Location Manager
Scott Trimble – Key Assistant Location Manager
Brad Warden – Key Assistant Location Manager
Anthony Ragonese – Entry Level Assistant
Production Company of the Year, Reality Television
“AUDRINA” – CJ Worldwide (Mark Burnett Productions)
John Grant – Location Manager
“TOP GEAR” – Sun Never Sets Productions
“TOP SHOT” – Fibby, Inc.
Assistant Location Manager of the Year, Features
Presented by Teamsters Local 399
Leo Fialho – ―Horrible Bosses‖
Peter Gluck – ―Friends with Benefits‖
Mike Soleau – ―Horrible Bosses‖
Assistant Location Manager of the Year, Television
Presented by Teamsters Local 399
John Brown – ―UnderCovers‖
Dorion Thomas – ―NCIS:LA‖
Justin Healy – ―CSI:NY‖
Public Employee of the Year, City
Christine Damko, City of Temecula
Michael Dihn, City of Los Angeles Department of Transportation
Ben Gonzales, City of Santa Clarita
Public Employee of the Year, County
Sandy Dininger, L.A. County Dept. of Parks & Recreation
Shared Nomination, County of San Bernardino
George Watson, Office of County Supervisor Neil Derry
Michael Delgado, Government Relations Officer
Curtis Markloff, San Bernardino County Fire Dept.
Sgt. Todd Cole, San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Dept.
Shared Nomination, Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department
Deputy Westfall
Sergeant Myers
Deputy Velek
Sergeant Olfert
Sergeant Lewison
Public Employee of the Year, State
John O’Rourke, California State Parks
Joel Quintero, California Dept. of Water Resources
Steve Senet, Caltrans
Public Employee of the Year, Federal
Larry Blaine, Bureau of Land Management
Barry Lane, United States Coast Guard
Dallas Meeks, Bureau of Land Management
COLA is a project of Film Liaisons in California, Statewide (FLICS), a network of film commissioners and others seeking to promote and facilitate in-state filming. In December 2010, FilmL.A., Inc. — Los Angeles’ not-for-profit film office — was tapped by FLICS to serve as COLA event coordinator, financial agent of record and volunteer organizer. Throughout its sixteen-year history, COLA has bestowed honors on more than 80 individuals, 60 teams and 55 public employees.
A full list of awards and finalists appears on page three of this announcement and on the COLA website (www.californiaonlocationawards.com).
About Film Liaisons in California, Statewide (FLICS)
FLICS is a network of regional film offices and commissions that work cooperatively with the California Film Commission (CFC) to retain, attract and facilitate feature film, television, commercial and print media production in California. FLICS welcomes project inquiries and offers a variety of services to help expedite and assist productions. Visit www.filmcalifornia.com to learn more.
About FilmL.A., Inc.
Founded in 1995, FilmL.A. is a private, not-for-profit community benefit organization that coordinates and processes permits for on-location motion picture, television and commercial production under contract to an ever-increasing roster of public-sector clients in the Los Angeles region. FilmL.A. works to strike a balance between the needs and interests of the entertainment industry and the neighborhoods affected by on-location production. Visit www.filmla.com to learn more.