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Synopsis

Andrew Neiman is a 19-year-old jazz drummer, dreaming of greatness but unsure if his dream will ever come true. Haunted by the failed writing career of his father, Andrew is determined to rise to the top of the country's most elite music conservatory. One night, Terence Fletcher, a conductor equally known for his talent for teaching as he is for the terrifying method of his instruction, discovers Andrew practicing the drums. Even though Fletcher says very little to him that night, he ignites in Andrew a passion to achieve his goal. To Andrew's surprise, the next day, Fletcher requests that he be transferred into his band. This single act changes the young man's life forever.

At first, Andrew is an "alternate," confined to turning the pages of the "core" drummer. But at the band's next competition, in an act of either serendipity or sabotage, the core drummer's sheet music is misplaced. Having committed the music to memory, Andrew gets the opportunity to play. Though the act further alienates him from his fellow musicians, the band nonetheless wins the competition, and he seems poised to become Fletcher's new "favorite son."

Emboldened by this acceptance, Andrew summons the courage to ask out Nicole, the counter girl at his local theater for whom he'd nursed a silent and unrequited crush. But on that date, Andrew's musical preoccupations threaten to derail even his most genuine romantic overtures.

Andrew's maniacal effort to achieve perfection is further fueled by Fletcher's psychological brinksmanship. Andrew's family can barely recognize the stone-faced obsessive sitting at their dinner table. Andrew even elicits a sharp word from his otherwise mild-mannered father.

The nearer to perfection Andrew gets, the narrower his circle of intimates becomes until he is left only with Fletcher – and even that relationship is jeopardized by the ferocity of Andrew's ambitions.

A journey that can be seen alternately as a descent into madness or an ascent to greatness comes to a crescendo on the biggest platform for Andrew's talents – the unforgiving stage of Carnegie Hall.

Cast

MILES TELLER

Miles Teller (Andrew) had the distinct honor and privilege of making his feature screen debut opposite Nicole Kidman in the film based on the Pulitzer Prize winning play Rabbit Hole. In this tragic family drama, directed by John Cameron Mitchell, Miles played 'Jason Willette,' a bit of a loner teen who escapes into a world of comic books and science fiction.

Miles was born in Downingtown, Pennsylvania and during those formative years he developed a love of sports and has remained a die-hard Phillies and Eagles fan. The family moved to Citrus County, Florida when Miles was twelve. "Nice weather...we play baseball all year round."

During his sophomore year he and his best friend auditioned for Footloose because "the Drama Club Counselor was really pretty." His pal got the lead and Miles was cast as 'Willard,' the best friend. As a result he was recruited to attend a six-week performing arts class in New York City at the New York School for Film and TV. Back in Florida he participated in the Florida State Thespian Festival. His monologue was impressive enough to represent his district at the state event. He graduated Summa Cum Laude from high school and auditioned for Julliard and New York University. After what he thought was a disastrous audition, Miles was thrilled that NYU did accept him. Ironically Miles was cast once again as Willard, but this time in the new Paramount film Footloose, which was released in October 2011.

He was most recently seen in Relativity's 21 And Over, Todd Phillips Project X, The Spectacular Now with Shailene Woodley and recently wrapped production on Get A Job opposite Bryan Cranston and Anna Kendrick, Two Night Stand with Analeigh Tipton and Kid Cudi and That Awkward Moment with Zac Efron and Michael B. Jordan. He is currently filming Divergent, based on the best-selling novel by Veronica Roth, which has been compared to similar young adult books such as The Hunger Games.

J.K. SIMMONS

J.K. Simmons (Fletcher) has appeared in diverse projects spanning motion pictures, television and the stage on and off Broadway. He is known for playing the character J. Jonah Jameson in Sam Raimi's Spider Man trilogy. Other motion picture credits include Hidalgo, The Ladykillers, The Mexican, Off the Map, For Love of the Game, The Gift, Thank You for Smoking, Rendition, Burn After Reading and, memorably, his portrayal of the off-beat but not deadbeat father, Mac McGuff, in the hit comedy Juno.

Simmons' latest films include The Words, The Music Never Stopped, Jennifer's Body, Extract, The Vicious Kind, I Love You Man, Beginner's Guide to Endings, Contraband and the Academy Award-nominated Up in the Air. Last year he filmed the Steve Jobs biopic, Jobs, as well as Jason Reitman's upcoming film, Labor Day. Earlier this year, JK wrapped shooting Marc Lawrence's film, The Reluctant Professor opposite Hugh Grant and Marisa Tomei and as well as Gillian Raimi's next feature Murder of a Cat. Most recently, JK filmed Jeremy Sisto's feature Breakpoint.

On the small screen Simmons played LAPD Assistant Chief Will Pope in TNT's hit series "The Closer." He also played Vern Schillinger on HBO's acclaimed drama "Oz," and had a recurring role as Dr. Emil Skoda on NBC's "Law & Order." He has had guest starring roles on NBC's "Parks and Recreation," and a recurring role on TBS' new hit comedy "Men at Work."

Simmons has appeared on the Broadway stage in performances of "Guys and Dolls," "Laughter on the 23rd Floor," "A Change in the Heir," "Peter Pan" and "A Few Good Men."

This winter, JK will start shooting NBC's new comedy "Growing Up Fisher" opposite Jenna Elfman.

MELISSA BENOIST

Melissa Benoist (Nicole) just wrapped production on the feature Imagine, opposite Al Pacino, Jennifer Garner, Christopher Plummer and Annette Bening for director Dan Fogelman. Benoist got her start in the independent film Tennessee. She guest starred on "Blue Bloods," "The Good Wife" and "Law & Order SVU" SVU before her arc on Showtime's critically acclaimed series "Homeland." Benoist beat out 900 other girls nationwide to land the new female leading role of "Marley" on FOX's hit show "Glee."

PAUL REISER

Paul Reiser (Jim) is a seasoned actor, writer, producer and stand-up comedian and continues to add to his list of accomplishments. In addition to co-creating and starring in the critically acclaimed NBC series, "Mad About You," which garnered him multiple Emmy, Golden Globe, American Comedy Award and Screen Actors Guild nominations for Best Actor in a Comedy Series, Reiser this year starred opposite Matt Damon and Michael Douglas in the Steven Soderbergh-directed HBO movie "Behind The Candelabra", a film that won eleven primetime Emmy's.

Also this year, Reiser can be seen in two highly anticipated Sundance Film Festival contenders; "Life After Beth," a horror-comedy starring Aubrey Plaza and Oscar-nominees Anna Kendrick and John C. Reilly; and "Whiplash," based on a 2013 Sundance-winning short film of the same name starring JK Simmons and Sundance Festival favorite Miles Teller.

In 2011, Reiser created, executive-produced and starred in, "The Paul Reiser Show" which aired on NBC in the Spring of that year.

2005 saw the release of, "The Thing About My Folks," Reiser's first original screenplay in which he starred alongside Oscar-winning actors Peter Falk and Olympia Dukakis.

In 2003 Reiser made his theatrical debut in Woody Allen's "Writer's Block." The evening of one-act comedies marked Mr. Allen's first time out as a director for the stage.

Reiser's successes also include his book Couplehood, which sold over two million copies and reached the number one spot on The New York Times bestseller list and Babyhood, his follow-up book which features his trademark humorous take on the adventures of being a first-time father, which also made The New York Times bestseller list. His third book, Familyhood, hit the shelves in 2011.

Born and raised in New York City, Reiser attended the State University of New York at Binghamton where he majored in Music – Piano and Composition. Reiser co-wrote "The Final Frontier" – the theme song from "Mad About You" with Grammy-winning producer Don Was, and in 2011 he released an album of original songs with British Singer/songwriter Julia Fordham called "Unusual Suspects."

Reiser is also remembered for notable performances in films such as "Diner," "Bye, Bye Love," "The Marrying Man," "Aliens," "One Night at McCool's" and "Beverly Hills Cop" ("I" and "II").

Paul Reiser and his family currently reside in Los Angeles.

AUSTIN STOWELL

Austin Stowell (Ryan) is one of the industry's most promising rising stars with an enviable slate of upcoming films. In 2014, he co-stars in film projects including WHIPLASH opposite Miles Teller; BEHAVING BADLY opposite Selena Gomez; and DOLPHIN TALE 2, the sequel to Warner Bros' 2011 hit film.

STOWELL was most recently seen in Steven Soderbergh's BEHIND THE CANDELABRA, the award-winning HBO film based on the life of celebrated pianist Liberace, played by Michael Douglas. In 2012, he starred opposite Liam Hemsworth in LOVE AND HONOR, winning the lead role over Hollywood's most in-demand young actors.

STOWELL broke onto the movie scene in 2011 with a compelling performance in DOLPHIN TALE, opposite Morgan Freeman, Harry Connick Jr. and Ashley Judd. From the producers of THE BLIND SIDE, this inspirational true story follows a brave dolphin and the compassionate strangers who banded together to fight for her survival. STOWELL plays a wounded Marine, whose quest for his own rehabilitation and his strong bond with his young cousin, serves as the inspiration for building a prosthetic tail that saves the dolphin's life. The Warner Brothers film was both critically acclaimed and widely received at the box office.

His introduction to Hollywood came as 'Jesse' on SECRET LIFE OF THE AMERICAN TEENAGER. What began as a single episode gig turned into a 17 episode arc spanning two seasons on the hit ABC Family series, thanks to STOWELL's charm and his character's popularity.

Growing up in Connecticut, STOWELL was a competitive athlete. After a sports injury sidelined him, he agreed to perform in a local theater production and it was there that he discovered a passion for acting. A college recruiter in the audience of this performance offered STOWELL a full scholarship the University of Connecticut Department of Dramatic Arts. Shortly after graduating, STOWELL moved to LA, where he currently resides, to pursue acting professionally.

NATE LANG

Nate Lang (Carl) is an actor, writer and musician based in Los Angeles.

He most recently finished shooting the independent film WHIPLASH opposite Miles Teller and JK Simmons. The project is written and directed by Damien Chazelle who also wrote and directed Nate in the 2013 Sundance Jury Prize Award winning short film by the same name. Jason Reitman and Blumhouse are producing.

He also co-stars in the upcoming Paramount Insurge feature, DESTINATION WEDDING. Other credits include Yahoo's THE FUZZ and HBO's FUNNY OR DIE PRESENTS.

Nate performs regularly at the UCB Theatre. He is originally from New Bedford, Massachusetts.

CREW

DAMIEN CHAZELLE

Damien Chazelle (Director, Writer) was born in 1985, and wrote and directed his first feature film, Guy and Madeline on a Park Bench, while an undergraduate at Harvard University. The film was was nominated at the 2009 Gotham Independent Film Awards and was released theatrically in 2010. It was one of Metacritic's 20 best-reviewed films of 2010 and appeared on the best-of lists of The New York Times, The Village Voice, The Chicago Tribune, The Boston Globe, Time Out New York, Film Comment and The Boston Phoenix.

In late 2012, Chazelle directed a short film based on part of his feature screenplay Whiplash. The screenplay appeared on the 2012 Black List, and the short won the Short Film Jury Award for U.S. Fiction at the 2013 Sundance Film Festival. Chazelle recently completed the feature version of Whiplash, produced by Jason Reitman's Right of Way Films, Jason Blum's Blumhouse Productions, and Bold Films.

JASON BLUM

Jason Blum (Producer) is the founder and CEO of Blumhouse Productions, a multi-media production company that has pioneered a new model of studio filmmaking – producing high-quality micro-budget films for wide release. Since its launch in 2000, Blumhouse has produced more than 30 feature films including the highly-profitable Paranormal Activity and Insidious franchises, The Purge and Sinister.

In the past two years, Blumhouse, a director driven company that helps filmmakers like James DeMonaco, Scott Derrickson and James Wan tell genre stories that they are passionate about, has produced eight movies that far out-grossed their budgets on opening weekend.

Blumhouse's The Purge, its first production under its first-look deal with Universal Pictures, opened to more than $34 million on its opening weekend of June 7th, with a budget of just $3 million. The company's most recent film Insidious: Chapter 2 from FilmDistrict, grossed over $40 million on its opening weekend of September 13th with just a $5m budget.

Blum's model began with the original Paranormal Activity, which was made for $15,000, released by Paramount Pictures, and grossed close to $200 million worldwide, making it the most profitable film in the history of Hollywood. Blumhouse also produced the phenomenally successful sequels Paranormal Activity 2, Paranormal Activity 3 and Paranormal Activity 4.

Blumhouse's franchises include James Wan's Insidious which had a budget of $1.5m and grossed close to $100m worldwide and Sinister, directed and co-written by Scott Derrickson and starring Ethan Hawke for Lionsgate/Summit which has grossed over $87 million worldwide on a $3 million budget.

Blumhouse's upcoming micro-budget wide releases include Paranormal Activity: The Marked Ones for Paramount; Jessabelle for Lionsgate; and Stretch for Universal.

For Halloween 2012, Blumhouse built The Blumhouse of Horrors, an innovative and frightening haunted house experience in the heart of downtown Los Angeles. Blumhouse's Los Angeles-based movie production team used its expertise in horror film production, storytelling, and movie set design to transform the Variety Arts Theater into a fully-immersive and chillingly intense Halloween attraction. In 2013, Blumhouse invited horror fans to experience The Purge: Fear the Night, a live-event inspired by the backstory to the feature film.

In television, Blumhouse has a first-look deal with Lionsgate and is working on both scripted and non-scripted projects. Blumhouse executive produced 'The River' for ABC, 'Stranded' for SyFy, 'The Normal Heart' directed by Ryan Murphy for HBO and 'Eye Candy' starring Victoria Justice for MTV.

Blum's credits also include: The Tooth Fairy, starring Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson, The Reader, for which Kate Winslet won an Academy Award; Hysterical Blindness, starring Uma Thurman, which aired on HBO and garnered Thurman a Golden Globe Award; and Hamlet starring Ethan Hawke, Bill Murray, Sam Shepard and Kyle MacLachlan.

Blum began his career as the producing director of the Malaparte theater company, which was founded by Ethan Hawke. He currently is a member of the Academy, is on the Sundance Institute's Director's Advisory Group and serves on the Board of Directors of the New Group Theater in New York City.

HELEN ESTABROOK

Helen Estabrook (Producer) is the producing partner of filmmaker Jason Reitman and runs Right of Way Films. She most recently produced Reitman's film, LABOR DAY, starring Josh Brolin and Kate Winslet, which will be in theaters January 31st. They also produced the feature version of the Sundance-winning short WHIPLASH, directed by Damien Chazelle, and will serve as executive producers on DEMOLITION, which Jean Marc Vallee will direct from the script by Bryan Sipe. Right of Way has a first-look deal with Indian Paintbrush with whom they made the Duplass Brothers' film JEFF, WHO LIVES AT HOME and Reitman's previous feature, YOUNG ADULT. They are currently shooting Reitman's next film, which he wrote with Erin Cressida Wilson.

MICHEL LITVAK

Michel Litvak (Producer) is a Belgian industrialist who founded the independent production and finance company Bold Films in 2004. With a dedication to making commercial films with artistic vision, Litvak has diversified the company's slate by developing films in a wide variety of genres that include dramas, thrillers, sci-fi and independent festival favorites.

Litvak recently wrapped production on HOW TO CATCH A MONSTER, his third production with Academy Award®-nominated actor Ryan Gosling. The film, which marks Gosling's debut as writer and director, stars Christina Hendricks, Saoirse Ronan, Ben Mendelsohn and Eva Mendes. Recent features include the award winning DRIVE starring Gosling and directed by Nicolas Refn, ONLY GOD FORGIVES starring Gosling and Kristin Scott Thomas; and EVIDENCE starring Stephen Moyer, Radha Mitchell, Torrey DeVitto and Caitlin Stasey.

Litvak continues to broaden and elevate the company's lineup by producing and financing feature projects NIGHTCRAWLER, starring Jake Gyllenhaal and Rene Russo, THE COUP starring Owen Wilson and Pierce Brosnan, and WHIPLASH from emerging writer-director Damien Chazelle. He is also producing and financing THE BLACK BOX, a 13-episode drama scheduled to air on the ABC Television Network, and DOMINION, a TV series for the SyFy Channel.

Earlier films included the 2006 Golden Globe® nominee for Best Picture BOBBY, directed by Emilio Estevez and starring Sir Anthony Hopkins, Demi Moore, Shia Lebouf, William H. Macy and Sharon Stone. Other films include the 2008 Toronto Film Festival Official Selection MIDDLE OF NOWHERE, with Susan Sarandon and Anton Yelchin, the sci-fi thriller STARSHIP TROOPERS 3, the acclaimed drama COME EARLY MORNING, featuring the powerful performance of Ashley Judd, and the Official Selection of both the 2009 Toronto and Venice International Film Festivals THE HOLE from GREMLINS director Joe Dante that won the first ever Primo Persol Award in Venice. In 2010, Sony released his apocalyptic thriller LEGION, which starred Paul Bettany and Dennis Quaid and grossed over $75 million worldwide.

DAVID LANCASTER

With a full slate of films and television to be released in the next 9 months, David Lancaster launched RUMBLE FILMS in June of 2014 after serving as co-president of Bold Films from 2006 through March 2014. He is currently filming EYE IN THE SKY with Helen Mirren, Aaron Paul, Barkhad Abdi, and Alan Rickman, directed by Gavin Hood in Cape Town, South Africa.

His upcoming slate of feature films includes Sundance 2014 Audience and Dramatic Jury Award winner WHIPLASH, directed by Damien Chazelle starring Miles Teller and J.K. Simmons, which appeared in the Director's Fortnight at this year's Cannes Film Festival and will be released by Sony Pictures Classics as well as NIGHTCRAWLER, written and directed by Dan Gilroy, starring Jake Gyllenhaal and Rene Russo, and set for release by Open Road, both in theaters this fall. For March 2015 THE COUP, which stars Owen Wilson, Pierce Brosnan, and Lake Bell will be released by The Weinstein Company. Also upcoming is Ryan Gosling's directorial debut LOST RIVER, starring Christina Hendricks, Saoirse Ronan, Ben Mendelsohn, and Eva Mendes, which debuted at this year's Cannes Film Festival.

Television projects include the 13-episode television drama THE BLACK BOX for the ABC Television Network, which just aired its season finale, and Syfy's new series DOMINION based on Bold's feature film LEGION.

Lancaster has been involved in the development, finance, production and distribution of over 35 motion pictures and several major stage plays and television series since his start in the entertainment business in the early 1980s. At BOLD, Lancaster oversaw the cult sensation DRIVE, starring Ryan Gosling and directed by Nicolas Winding Refn (Best Director award at Cannes), which was released by FILMDISTRICT and grossed over $80 million worldwide. Earlier films include Universal's 'NIGHT, MOTHER, starring Sissy Spacek and Anned Bancroft, Sony's A LOVE SONG FOR BOBBY LONG starring John Travolta and Scarlett Johansson, and PERSONS UNKNOWN, directed by George Hickenlooper and starring Naomi Watts, Kelly Lynch and Joe Mantegna. While at Bold, he oversaw the Golden Globe Best Picture Nominated RFK drama BOBBY; produced the Joe Dante directed suspense thriller THE HOLE 3D; the Toronto Film Festival Selection MIDDLE OF NOWHERE, starring Susan Sarandon and Anton Yelchin; and the 2010 apocalyptic thriller LEGION, starring Paul Bettany and Dennis Quaid which scored a 40MM domestic cume from Sony's Screen Gems.

Lancaster also returned to Broadway this season with the multiple Tony award winning musical production of The Bridges of Madison County, after previously producing the Pulitzer Prize winning, 'night, Mother, both with (long time colleague) Marsha Norman.

JASON REITMAN

Jason Reitman (Executive Producer) premiered his first short film, Operation, at the Sundance Film Festival in 1998. Reitman made his feature film debut with the 2006 hit Thank You For Smoking. He next directed Juno in 2007 for which he earned his first Oscar nomination, followed by Up in the Air in 2009, which was recognized with six Academy Award® nominations and earned Reitman a Golden Globe® and the WGA Award for Best Screenplay. In 2011, Reitman reteamed with Diablo Cody for the critically acclaimed Young Adult, starring Charlize Theron and Patton Oswalt. His latest film, Labor Day, which he adapted from the novel by Joyce Maynard and stars Kate Winslet and Josh Brolin, will be released on December 27 by Paramount. He is currently in pre-production on MEN, WOMEN & CHILDREN that he adapted from the novel by Chad Kultgen.

GARY MICHAEL WALTERS

Gary Michael Walters (Executive Producer) is the Chief Executive Officer of Bold Films and is actively involved in all aspects of the company including production, development, distribution and finance. In early 2004, European industrial mogul Michel Litvak founded Bold Films along with Walters and hired him as President of the company. Since that time, Walters has played a vital role in the growth and success of the company, establishing Bold Films/Sierra Affinity partnership and redefining the direction of company's slate, placing a firm focus on studio caliber features with top tier filmmakers and A-List talent.

Walters was born in New York, the son of legendary music agent, Norby Walters. He was educated at both Princeton University, where he majored in Statistics and Fordham Law School, where he graduated cum laude. In addition to his academic achievements, Walters also has the rare distinction of being a winner on JEOPARDY. After working on Wall Street as a financial consultant for Johnson & Higgins and serving as a corporate lawyer at Cravath, Swaine & Moore, Walters moved to Los Angeles and entered show business via the entertainment law division of Loeb & Loeb. Following several years of solo law practice, Walters commenced his film producing career in 2003, specializing in the financing of independent features. During this period, he produced a number of features including STANDING STILL starring James Van Der Beek, Mena Suvari and Colin Hanks; and I LOVE YOUR WORK starring Vince Vaughn, Christina Ricci, Giovanni Ribisi, Jason Lee and Franka Potente.

He has served as Executive Producer on all of Bold's pictures, most notably the critically acclaimed DRIVE directed by Nicolas Winding Refn and the Golden Globe Nominated RFK drama BOBBY, featuring a star studded ensemble cast that included Anthony Hopkins, Sharon Stone, Shia LaBeouf, Demi Moore and Martin Sheen. Other Executive Producing credits at Bold include the Sony release, LEGION starring Paul Bettany; THE HOLE 3D from visionary director Joe Dante; 2008 Toronto Film Festival Official Selection MIDDLE OF NOWHERE starring Susan Sarandon and Anton Yelchin; MINI'S FIRST TIME starring Nikki Reed, Alec Baldwin, Luke Wilson, Carrie Anne Moss & Jeff Goldblum; 2006 Sundance Dramatic Competition Selection COME EARLY MORNING starring Ashley Judd; director Olatunde Osunsanmi's found footage thriller EVIDENCE starring Stephen Moyer and Radha Mitchell; and Nicolas Winding Refn's ONLY GOD FORGIVES starring Ryan Gosling and Kristin Scott Thomas.

Walters continues his role serves as Executive Producer on all of Bold's pictures, including current feature films WHIPLASH, the Sundance 2014 Audience and Drama Jury Awards winner which will be released on October 10, 2014 by Sony Pictures Classics; NIGHTCRAWLER, starring Jake Gyllenhaal and Rene Russo, which will be released by Open Road Films on October 17; THE COUP, starring Owen Wilson, Pierce Brosnan and Lake Bell which will be released by THE WEINSTEIN COMPANY on March 16, 2015; and LOST RIVER, Bold's third production with Ryan Gosling which marks his debut as writer and director and stars Christina Hendricks, Saoirse Ronan, Ben Mendelsohn and Eva Mendes.

Bold recently expanded into television with two dramatic series in summer 2014 with Syfy's DOMINION, based on Bold's feature film, LEGION and ABC Television Network's BLACK BOX, the 13-episode drama starring Keilly Reilly and Vanessa Redgrave. Walters served as Executive Producer on BLACK BOX.

Walters is also a member in good standing with the California Bar Association.

COUPER SAMUELSON

Couper Samuleson (Executive Producer) is the executive vice president of Blumhouse Productions, the low-budget production company behind original horror franchises like Paranormal Activity, Insidious, and The Purge. He previously worked at Paramount, where he produced that studio's upcoming micro budget comedy Drunk Weddings. Prior to that, he worked at the production company 2929, where he co-produced two films that were nominated for Cannes' Palme d'Or, We Own The Night and Two Lovers. He began his career as an assistant in CAA's motion picture department. In addition to executive producing the feature length film, Samuelson produced the short film Whiplash that won the US Jury Award at the 2013 Sundance Film Festival.

JEANETTE VOLTURNO BRILL

Jeanette Volturno Brill (Executive Producer) has more than 20 years of production experience working in the film, television and music video industries. She established her company CatchLight in 1999 and has served as an executive producer for the romantic comedies In the Weeds and Amy's Orgasm. She produced of the World Festival of Sacred Music documentaries, which were inspired and hosted by His Holiness the Dalai Lama.

In 2012, Brill joined Blumhouse Productions as Head of Production. Since taking that post, she co-produced Dimension Films' Dark Skies in addition to Film District's upcoming Insidious: Chapter 2, among others. Prior to joining Blumhouse Productions full-time, Brill line produced for The Purge producer Jason Blum on the hugely successful Paranormal Activity franchise: Paranormal Activity, Paranormal Activity 2 and Paranormal Activity 3, as well as James Wan's Insidious, and Barry Levinson's environmental thriller The Bay.

MELANIE PAIZIS-JONES

Melanie Paizis-Jones (Production Designer) is a Los Angeles based production designer and art director. Her diverse body of work includes commercials for companies like Disney, Toshiba, and Capital One as well as art directing for Annie Leibovitz's Vanity Fair magazine photoshoots, featuring Hollywood's biggest and brightest stars. Currently, Melanie's work can be seen in The Purge starring Ethan Hawke, which opened number one at the box office. Her most recent project as production designer was for the feature film Lazarus, directed by David Gelb (Jiro Dreams of Sushi) starring Mark Duplass and Olivia Wilde. Melanie is a member of the Art Director's Guild.

SHARONE MEIR

Sharone Meir (Director of Photography) was born in Israel, and his interest in film began with photography classes in high school. That catalyst led him to attend both the Bezalel Academy of Arts in Jerusalem and the prestigious Sam Spiegel School of Film and Television, where he received numerous scholarships and cinematography awards. After graduating with honors, Sharone moved to Los Angeles to continue his education at the American Film Institute (AFI).

Since graduating from AFI, Sharone has established himself as a distinctly unique cinematographer, shooting a remarkable variety of projects, including the award-winning indie drama MEAN CREEK, the dark and disturbing LAST HOUSE ON THE LEFT, the sports drama COACH CARTER and the period musical DARK STREETS. His work also encompasses television where he has created the quirky and stylized pilots for "Suburgatory" and "Raising Hope" plus the gritty dramas "Men of a Certain Age" and "Medical Investigation". Sharone has also photographed commercials all around the world and enjoyed shooting music videos for such diverse artists as Joe Cocker, Pink, Nas and The All-American Rejects.

Sharone recently went back to his native Israel to shoot the feature UP THE WRONG TREE and was subsequently nominated for the Israeli equivalent of the Academy Award for his cinematography in that film. In addition to his ongoing career in cinematography, Sharone continues to explore still photography with large format fine art projects.

TERRI TAYLOR

Terri Taylor (Casting Director) has worked on over 40 feature films over the course of her almost 20-year career in casting. They've ranged from big studio releases to surprise gems from the independent film world. She has worked with Academy Award winning directors, such as: Steven Spielberg, Mike Nichols, Sam Mendes and Steven Soderbergh; as well as acclaimed up-and-comers, like: Craig Brewer, Sasha Gervasi and most recently, Whiplash director, Damien Chazelle.

Taylor first met Chazelle when producer Jason Blum introduced them on the short-film version of Whiplash. The short caught the attention of critics and audiences when it premiered at the 2012 Sundance Film Festival and went on to win Best U.S. Short Film. Its success led to Bold Films financing and producing the feature length film and Taylor once again teamed up with Blum, Jason Reitman (Executive Producer) and Chazelle to cast the movie.

Whiplash marks the sixth film Taylor has cast for Blumhouse Films. She met Jason Blum when she was hired to help cast the wildly successful Paranormal Activity 2. She went onto cast each installment of the series thereafter; as well as the Blum-produced upcoming film, Curve, directed by Iain Softley (Wings of the Dove, K-Pax).

Last year, Taylor cast the critically acclaimed Hitchcock, directed by Sasha Gervasi. The movie garnered much attention and praise for its ensemble cast of Anthony Hopkins, Helen Mirren, Scarlett Johanson, Jessica Beal and Toni Collette. For her effort, Taylor was nominated for Casting Society of America's ARTIOS Award.

Taylor started her casting career as an assistant and then associate to reputed casting director Debra Zane. As an associate, she helped cast Catch Me If You Can, Traffic, Road To Perdition, Galaxy Quest and The Legend of Baggar Vance, to name a few. Later she partnered with Zane, co-casting Seabiscuit and War of The Worlds. Spielberg then hired her to be his US Casting Consultant on the Oscar nominated film, Munich.

Besides her career as an independent casting director, Taylor spent time as a casting consultant for Miramax Films, working on such projects as: Adventureland, The Debt and Don't Be Afraid of the Dark. She also worked as a studio executive for Paramount Pictures where she helped oversee No Strings Attached, Transformers: Dark of the Moon, Super 8, Footloose and Mission Impossible: Ghost Protocol.

Taylor has been married for 18 years to Gregg Taylor, the Head of Development for Dreamworks Animation. They have two children and live in Los Angeles

TOM CROSS

Tom Cross (Editor) is an editor of feature films, documentaries and television. Notable credits include Travis Fine's ANY DAY NOW (Editor), Scott Cooper's CRAZY HEART (Additional Editor), the David Milch HBO series DEADWOOD (Assistant Editor), and Michel Negroponte's science-fiction documentary W.I.S.O.R. (Editor).

He received his B.F.A. in Visual Arts from SUNY Purchase in 1993 and cut his teeth in commercial editing in NYC. He then entered the independent film world as an Assistant Editor on such films as Ang Lee's Civil War drama RIDE WITH THE DEVIL and Rob Schmidt's horror film WRONG TURN, before becoming the Additional Editor on James Gray's WE OWN THE NIGHT and TWO LOVERS. Next, he edited THE SPACE BETWEEN and ANY DAY NOW for director Travis Fine. Both films premiered at the Tribeca Film Festival. Cross then collaborated with director Damien Chazelle on the short film, WHIPLASH, which won the Short Film Jury Award: U.S. Fiction at the 2013 Sundance Film Festival. In addition to editing the feature version of WHIPLASH, Cross recently cut the feature film TIME LAPSE for director Bradley King.

JUSTIN HURWITZ

Justin Hurwitz (music) graduated from Harvard University in 2008, where he studied music. He composed the songs and score for Damien Chazelle's 2010 film musical GUY AND MADELINE ON A PARK BENCH. Having completed the score for WHIPLASH in 2014, he and Chazelle are currently prepping their third movie together, LA LA LAND, a song and dance musical for Lionsgate.

Gallery

Reviews

Wesley Morris Grantland

"Exhilarating."
Matt Goldberg Collider

"A work of bravura filmmaking. Anchored by extraordinary performances from Miles Teller and J.K. Simmons…Simmons absolutely dominates every frame of the picture."
Joe Neumaier Daily News

"An extraordinary film."
Travis Hopson Examiner.com

"'WHIPLASH' will have audiences cheering and begging for an encore."
A.A. Dowd Onion AV Club

"In its feverish tempo, 'WHIPLASH' moves like a thriller – as meticulously precise, and as thrillingly volatile, as the music it celebrates. Astounding."
Chris Martins Spin

"'WHIPLASH' careens into the unexpected before coming to a jaw-dropping close."
Andrew O'Hehir Salon

"Provocative and emotionally intense. A muscular and accomplished work of kinetic cinema built around two tremendous acting performances."

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