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Elmar
Mamedov |
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Dmitri
Boudrine
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Polina
Zhitomirsky Rule
#2: Keep it in the family…unless of course you have a family of artists,
then see rule #1. Which brings us to Polina… Polina not only has one degree…but two, one in finance and the other in information systems…simply put, she's a smartee. Not only does she manage all the finances, but she's also in charge of the web site…so if something doesn't load …blame her. Sure, there's some nepotism going on - she's the wife of ARTA's vice president - but hey, we're in L.A., that's what the town was built on. In between putting out fires and raising money for ARTA, Polina spends her free time working at the Getty Museum as a (gasp!) software engineer. |
| Anastasia
Drake |
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Copyright © 2001 - 2007 ARTA. All rights reserved. |
"They won't let you stay in L.A. unless you have at least one screenplay,"
joked a friend when he found out that Elmar was moving to the west coast.
Elmar took it seriously. He started to write his first screenplay. Although
his screenplay wasn't completed, by some miracle he was allowed to live
in L.A. Here, Elmar finished his first script, then … he wrote another
one, then he translated Chekhov's vaudevilles and wrote a piece "Man
with a Paper" for ARTA theatrical production. He became … addicted.
But it doesn't come as a surprise. Elmar has a history of abusing the
substance of arts. He studied painting and sculpture since he was 6
years old, then he sang in a band for 4 years, he's a movie buff, he
is an avid reader … you get the picture. How bad is he in it? He's sober
enough not to quit his day job, but delusional enough to try to get
his last screenplay ("The Godgame", an adaptation of John Fowles's "The
Magus") off the ground. He claims it's brilliant. We suspect it will
only get
worse: he's incurable. 
Dmitri
started his artistic career in 1979, when he began acting, directing,
and writing for various productions in Kiev, St. Petersburg, and Moscow.
He has more than 10 years of teaching experience in North America. Graduate
and official representative of the Vakhtangov Theater School (Moscow,
Russia) he performed on the stages of world famous Moscow Art Theater
and Vakhtangov Theater.
Rule
#1: When setting up a company…don't let the artists near the money…that
is if you still want to have a company in three months. 
Anastasia’s
roots are in theatre. Originally from the east coast she received a
BFA in musical theatre performance from Otterbein College, but obtaining
an MFA in acting from California Institute of the Arts is what brought
Anastasia out west. The summers in between were filled with lots of
summer stock shows in northern California and on the east coast. Some
favorite roles were Abigail in the Crucible, Vera in Steppin Out, Adelaide
in Guys and Dolls, Cynthia in The Real Inspector Hound, and Corie in
Barefoot in the Park, to name a few. Noted directors she has worked
with in L.A. include Jules Aaron, Deborah LaVine, and Robert Bennedetti.
She is currently a member of ARTA. Just starting out in TV and Film
she has appeared in various shows like Brimstone, The Tonight show,
and Port Charles in which she had a recurring. Films include A Murder
of Crows with Cuba Gooding Jr. and Tom Berringer, Dreamers, and Tina
Gets Her Man a short directed by Greg Avellone and produced by TIG (Kevin
Costner’s production co.) which was up for academy consideration last
year. She also teaches acting to all ages at John Robert Powers in Beverly
Hills finding it both challenging and rewarding to excite beginners
about the craft as well as invaluable to her own growth as an artist.