Editor

The Indian Film Festival of Los Angeles (IFFLA) has announced its 2010 Board of Directors and Advisory Board. Each Board consists of a group of distinguished experts in a variety of entertainment-related areas and will draw on their collective knowledge to steer IFFLAs long-term development.

IFFLA Board of Directors Chair Arnold Peter stated, I am very proud of the new slate of Directors. They have already demonstrated their leadership in the business and artistic community. Working as a team with our outstanding Executive Director, along with dedicated staff and volunteers, we will certainly take IFFLA to new and greater heights.

We are extremely gratified that we have such accomplished and enthusiastic members on our Board and I am certain that through their guidance IFFLA will continue to flourish in the coming years, said IFFLA Executive Director Christina Marouda. She added, voted unanimously as the new Chair of the Board, Arnold Peter has already proven to be instrumental in creating a strong business profile for our organization and we are truly honored to have him lead the Board."

The Board of Directors includes:

President- Christina Marouda, Executive Director, IFFLA

Prior to launching IFFLA in 2002, Ms. Marouda worked in various capacities at Lions Gate Entertainment, the American Film Institute (AFI) Film Festival, and the Los Angeles Film Festival (LAFF). Ms. Marouda also produced the Los Angeles Greek Film Festival in 2008. She participated in the prestigious IFP Producers Lab where she honed her producing skills and is now producing the short film TRANCE directed by Andrew Scoles. Born and raised on the island of Crete in Greece, Ms. Maroudas went on to earn a B.A. in International Relations from the Athens University of Economics, an MBA in Marketing from California State University, Long Beach, and a certified program in Business and Management for Entertainment: Marketing and Distribution, from the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA).

Chair- Arnold Peter, Partner, Peter Rubin & Simon

Mr. Peter began his career in the entertainment industry at Universal Studios, first as Director of Labor Relations and then as Vice President of Legal and Business Affairs. Prior to this, Mr. Peter was Assistant City Attorney for the City of Fresno, where he was elected Chair of the California State Bar Labor and Employment Section. Mr. Peter has published numerous articles in law reviews and journals and industry publications. He is a frequent lecturer and media commentator on legal and business issues. He currently represents a variety of clients for litigation and transactional matters, including clients in television and cable, new media, location-based entertainment, hospitality, real estate and franchising.

Secretary- Carla Sanders, Festival Consultant

Ms. Sanders has an extensive background in the film and film festival industry, beginning in 1974 with her involvement with the Los Angeles International Film Exhibition (Filmex) until its demise in 1985. In 1987, she joined the newly formed AFI Los Angeles International Film Festival. In 1999, Ms. Sanders became the Project Manager for the American Cinema Foundation. She joined the inaugural Indian Film Festival of Los Angeles in 2003 and became a Board member in 2005. During the past 20 years, Ms. Sanders has also worked with various other festivals including American Cinematheque, Women in Film Festival and AFI Fest.

Treasurer- Rana Joy Glickman, CEO, Shakrah Films

Ms. Glickman rode into the film industry on horseback starting out as an equestrian stuntwoman. Raised in New York, Ms. Glickman was immersed in theater, film, photography, ballet, and music. She ultimately started producing, writing and directing. Her films have premiered at many festivals including Sundance, SXSW, Cannes, Berlin, Venice, Toronto and New York. Some of her films include: GOD SAID, HA!, KICKING AND SCREAMING, FULL TILT BOOGIE, FEMALE PERVERSIONS,  and SLEEP WITH ME, and she currently has a slate of captivating independent films in various stages of production.

Officer- Noel de Souza, Studio Liaison, Hollywood Foreign Press Association

Mr. de Souza has been a member of the Hollywood Foreign Press since 1957 and has worked on the production end of the Golden Globes as a studio liaison for over a decade. He has contributed articles to numerous international media outlets including Cine Blitz, Mid Day, AMICA, and currently writes for I Diva. He has enjoyed a very successful acting career in television, film, radio and stage and has written several feature length scripts with his writing partner actress Nancy Kwan (WORLD OF SUSIE WONG, FLOWER DRUM SONG). In 2009 de Souza was named by Korn/Ferry International as one of the 25 most influential South Asians in US Entertainment and Media.

Officer- Rupak Ginn, Actor

Mr. Ginn's love for acting started at a young age and followed him to college at Harvard University where, during his senior year, director Mira Nair offered him a supporting role in THE NAMESAKE. After graduating, he ventured into the world of New York City theatre before moving to Los Angeles. Mr. Ginn played a romantic lead role in Disneys THE CHEETAH GIRLS: ONE WORLD, has a recurring role in the hit series Royal Pains, and is also in the upcoming JUST WRIGHT, starring Queen Latifah. In 2009, he served on the IFFLA Shorts Jury, and his short screenplay Permeable was the winner of a grant from the Sloan Foundation.

Officer- Shreedhar Kothari, CPA, Partner, Gumbiner Savett Inc.

Mr. Kothari has been a certified public accountant for almost 19 years, practicing in New York City and Los Angeles. He is also a cost and chartered accountant in India. He has worked with numerous growth-oriented companies and has assisted their businesses in getting to the next level with proper tax and finance planning and structuring. Mr. Kothari holds a Bachelor of Commerce from Gujarat University in India and is a member of American Institute of Certified Public Accountants and California Society of Certified Public Accountants. Mr. Kothari and Gumbiner Savett work with various clients in the entertainment industry including independent production entities, film and television studios, foreign entertainment companies, post production houses, independent record labels, distributors as well as agents, lawyers, artists, musicians, actors, producers, directors, screenwriters and authors.

Officer- Catherine Park, CFO/COO, Giant Robot

Ms. Park is the COO of Giant Robot, which is comprised of Giant Robot magazine, retail stores and art galleries in Los Angeles, San Francisco, and New York City, and a cafe in West Los Angeles. She began her entertainment career in film and TV development at TriStar Pictures. Ms. Park has participated in Film Independents Producers Lab, Berlin Talent Campus, Sundance Producers Conference and Rotterdam Lab, as well as Los Angeles Film Festival/Filmmaker Magazine Fast Track, Tribeca All Access, and IFP/NYs No Borders International Co-Production Market. She is on the board of Asia Society Southern California and the Community Advisory Board of KCET-TV, the west coast flagship station of PBS. Her current venture, Hyphenate Films has produced their first film, CONVENTIONEERS, which won the 2006 Independent Spirit Awards' John Cassavetes Award as well as the Grand Jury Prize at the 2006 Florida Film Festival.

IFFLAs Advisory Board comprises of:

Syed Ahmed, Vice President, Deluxe Laboratories Andy Bird, President, Walt Disney International Mark Burton, President of Production, IndieVest Pictures Uma Da Cunha, Festival Curator/Journalist, Film India Worldwide Priya Jaikumar, Professor, University of Southern California Andy Kaplan, President, International Networks, Sony Joseph Nagy, Professor Humanities, University of California, Los Angeles Naman Ramachandran, Reporter/Writer, Sight & Sound/Cineuropa/Total Film Shyam Shroff, Founder, Shringar Films Deborah Tellis, Senior Vice President, International Distribution, Summit Entertainment

About IFFLA

The Indian Film Festival of Los Angeles (IFFLA) is a nonprofit organization devoted to a greater appreciation of Indian cinema and culture by showcasing films, honoring entertainment industry performers and business executives, and promoting the diverse perspectives of the Indian diaspora. The eighth annual festival will take place April 20-25, 2010, at ArcLight Hollywood in Los Angeles, California. For more information, visit http://www.indianfilmfestival.org/.

The blog on fest21.com