The Actors Lounge

Before returning to UMC to helm the subscription service of UMC, , Brett Dismuke maintained his own entertainment outfit, So Chi Entertainment as well as served as President/COO of The Swirl Group, President of Moguldom Entertainment, and previously as the Senior Vice President of Acquisitions and Urban Programming for RLJ Entertainment's One Village studio. Brett has over 25 years of marketing, production, sales and branding experience.

Through partnership with Swirl Films in 2014, Dismuke formed The Swirl Group. Through the power of their collaboration, the company established itself as the leading urban independent production company in North America, with over 80 productions in their catalog. This multi- hyphenate outfit was devoted to offering high-quality production value at lower costs, including production of independent features and multi-camera content, casting, budget creation, scheduling, post-production, talent relations and distribution. With the solid foundation, So Chi Entertainment continued the legacy, priding itself on developing the highest quality productions, developing the most interesting content and acquiring the best product available within its genre.

In addition to locating and securing new content, Dismuke oversaw strategic planning, financial management, brand-building and product lines for So Chi Entertainment. Over the last few years, he has acquired and/or produced several films; including notables such as 35 & Ticking, a theatrical comedy starring Kevin Hart, Meagan Good, Wendy Raquel Robinson and Nicole Ari Parker; What My Husband Doesn't Know, a musical stage play written and directed by David E. Talbert and starring Morris Chestnut, Michelle Williams and Tiffany Haddish; and Back to the Goode Life, a critically-acclaimed, comedy, starring Kyla Pratt, London Brown, Lahmard Tate and Kelly Jenrette.

After graduating from the University of Southern California, Brett Dismuke worked for Motown, PolyGram Group Distribution, Universal Music and Video Distribution, Hollywood Records, UrbanWorks Entertainment, First Look Studios and Image Entertainment. His list of projects supervised includes Jay-Z, Brian McKnight, Mary J. Blige, Mike Epps, The Cosby Show and Ultimate Fighting Championship; as well as numerous award-winning independent films.

Brett is a Chicago native and currently lives in Los Angeles where he enjoys time as an empty- nester, while his son is attending college on the East Coast.

CARA CHUTE ROSENBAUM, CSA is a Casting Director based in Los Angeles, CA. Notable feature credits include JUMANJI: THE NEXT LEVEL and STUBER, and television credits include THE MINDY PROJECT, THE PEOPLE VS OJ SIMPSON, THE CARMICHAEL SHOW, and THE LEAGUE. She and Erica Bream are the Casting Directors for the main stage productions at THE BLANK THEATRE in Hollywood, including The Blank’s prestigious Annual Young Playwrights Festival for which they were awarded the 2018 Artios Award for Outstanding Casting for Los Angeles Theatre. Cara is a proud member of the Casting Society of America, a mama, and an aquarium lover.

Follow her on Twitter and Instagram @ccrcasting

Website: ccrcasting.com

KRON MOORE is known for bringing dynamic female characters to life, showcasing her ability to illuminate their strong inner compass, unshakeable drive and sheer determination.  She has proven to be a juggernaut performer who dominates any stage and captures the hearts of her audiences. It is this dedication that makes Kron one the industry's newest well respected and revered actors by fans and peers alike.

Each Wednesday night, she brings to life the First Lady of the United States Victoria Franklin (one of primetime most talked about villains who trends social media for days) in the hit Tyler Perry/BET’s #1 rated series THE OVAL. The dramatic series captures the volatile relationship between the President, First lady, and First children, as they navigate their new life in the White House.

Touted as the show’s “breakout star,” the unapologetic FLOTUS continues gaining national prominence for her devilish ways and being a strong-willed ambitious woman with a master plan. Her character has been compared to Kerry Washington’s Olivia Pope, and Viola Davis’ Annalise Keating and others.   The Oval returns on BET May 6th.

Next, Moore will recur as Dr. Chapel in STARGIRL based on the DC Comics superhero Stargirl created by Geoff Johns and Lee Moder, that is set to premiere in May 2020 on DC Universe and The CW.

No stranger to performing, Moore has been entertaining since her youth.  As a vocalist, her voice can be heard on several albums and has been part of various singing groups.  The Detroit native boasts a host of television credits including  OWN’s David Makes Man as Grace, Amazon Prime’s THEM as Nadine Sims, as well as OWN’s The Haves and the Have Nots,  TLC’s Too Close to Home, ID TV’s Swamp Murders, Detroit 1-8-7, among others.

Film credits include starring as Linney in the Sundance Film Festival official selection and Alec Baldwin executive produced BEAST BEAST, The SpongeBob Movie: Sponge Out of Water, Into the Storm, Mosquito-Man to name a few.  Moore also boasts a storied career in theatre with credits including "Ain't Misbehavin', "Triumph and Tragedy- The Life of Sam," "Little Shop of Horrors" and has a number of television commercials, industrial projects and voice-overs under her belt.

Committed to using her visibility and influence in positive ways, Moore remains an advocate for wellness, mental health, anti-bullying, women empowerment and education.

Moore is a graduate of The University of Alabama with a degree in Psychology. She also studied Film, Television and Radio Broadcasting at Specs Howard School of Media Arts ranking second in her graduating class.

Kron currently lives in Atlanta, Georgia.

David Alan Madrick is an award winning American actor, model and writer from Queens, New York City. He attended SUNY Oneonta to pursue a career in Social work, but fell in love with the many facets of the creative world. While professionally modeling, he studied under Geoffrey Owens and James Franco. David later on work with Franco on two projects; Pretenders and High School Lovers. He is best known for his role as Dr. Collins on Blackish (2019). David currently plays Jay in Tyler Perry's new show Ruthless on BET+ and has recently signed with  NEXT Models LA.

Memphis native Brandee Evans is a former high-school English teacher who wrote her resignation letter to the school board while on vacation in Los Angeles. Determined to live her dream, she has graced the stage all over the world as a professional dancer and choreographer. In 2010, Evans created a series of dance classes for women focusing on improving confidence, building strength, finding "sexy" and having fun. She encouraged dancers of all experience and ability levels to take the class in a fierce pair of pumps. Her classes grew quickly in popularity, and she has gone on to teach sessions in Los Angeles, Memphis, Georgia, Vegas, Japan and the U.K. She was featured in the Oprah Winfrey Network television special "Dance Crash," which focuses on bringing together a group of girls through tough love and sisterhood.

Kristian Diaz, released his debut feature film, Retrocausality, on June 26th on Amazon Prime. Retrocausality by definition is the idea that the future can influence the present and the present can influence the past. The quirky and cleverly narrated indie takes place at the beginning of a global pandemic and follows Scott, a 22-year-old blockbuster actor as he navigates dealing with his mom who is infected with a strange new virus, and finding a mystery woman, Max, who he has a strange, powerful connection with-- before it's too late.

Diaz wrote, directed and stars in the film, which has been a passion project of his for many years as it was the first screenplay he wrote, many years ago. The story was inspired by a real life event, when the Canadian native was walking around Toronto with his headphones on and stopped dead in his tracks to listen to a young woman perform on the street. He felt so drawn to her, almost like he had known her before, and that was the first spark of an idea that lead to the film.

Retrocausality will premiere and be available for streaming on Amazon June 26th. 

Carl Seaton, born in Chicago, grew up with a strong affinity for movies and television shows. The meteoric rise of the VCR turned his affinity for movies in to a full-blown addiction.

Carl’s addiction led him to Columbia College Film School where he studied the crafts of Directing and Screenwriting. The creative environment at Columbia allowed Carl to flourish where he graduated with Honors.

Carl’s first feature film, One Week, was a drama about a heterosexual man that has to wait a week for the results of an HIV test as he prepares for his wedding. The ultra-low budget filmscreened all over the world in prestigious festivals like the Toronto International Film Festival, and Fespaco. One Week also garnered awards at several film festivals including the American Black Film Festival, Urbanworld, and the Chicago International Film Festival. Following the success of One Week, Carl co-wrote a screenplay, Step In The Name Of Love, that was acquired by MGM.

In 2016, Carl premiered his latest film, a Movie of the Week for the TvOne Network, Bad Dad Rehab, starring Malik Yoba, the film is about four men that go to a rehab program that helps them become better fathers. The film garnered Carl a NAACP Image Award nomination.

Carl’s career in episodic directing began when he was hired by John Singleton to direct two episodes of the TV show Rebel.

Since then, Carl has gone on to direct a wide range of shows like The CW’s, The Originals, Batowman, Dynasty, and Supergirl, Dick Wolf’s Chicago PD, Fire, Med, and FBI, the CBS drama Bull, and Showtime’s The Chi. In February, Carl was nominated for a NAACP Image award for his work on directing the show , Snowfall, created by his mentor, the late John Singleton.

Carl is currently gearing up to direct more shows  in this next era of filmmaking - post pandemic, while developing a miniseries that will be based in Chicago.

Todd Anthony is an artist with purpose. This actor, writer, producer and singer is one of the brightest rising artists in entertainment. The light that shines within him transcends into his art on screen and stage. He truly believes the Nelson Mandela quote that “when you let your light shine, you unconsciously give others the right to do so” in life as well as his work.

Carrie Bernans was born in Richmond, VA with the magical enthusiasm and talents she is known for. Change became an early yet conquerable constant for her as a little girl. She grew up with a single-parent mother and an early nomadic lifestyle. From her birthplace to Panama, Central America, back to Richmond to Memphis, TN, and to the townships along the Eastern and Southern U.S. coast. These childhood experiences reflexively prepared Carrie for extensive independent traveling and coaching abroad in Shanghai, China, Paris, France, London, England, and Berlin, Germany.

Carrie always loved performing from plays at church and school to dance competitions to putting on a living room show for her family to impersonating people she watched on, entertaining was her thing.

Maximizing the ABCs of Life at Full Flame, Carrie Bernans is “D” EFG. To clarify, Defining Emmy-Excellence as a Futuristic-Global force, a captivating role model, and philanthropist!

Having thought of herself as the black girl, James Bond, and after years of studying Theater, Economics, and International dealings in college, Carrie performed in plays, dance recitals, Fortune 500 internships, and competed in track and field.

Even as a high school student, Carrie networked and trained with real investment bankers and accountants. Her mentors do Merger & Acquisition simulations on the Vanderbilt, Emory, and Columbia University campuses. She went on to run track at her Alma Mater, the University of Memphis in Tennessee. Home away from home for her. She is the featured alumnae in the May 2018 University of Memphis Magazine. However, once facing a serious running injury, Carrie decided to leave the plans for the Olympics behind.

She left the track and took off studying and coaching around the world for about one and a half years. Her focus was/is the passion for solving youth homelessness, reading and financial literacy, and communication/self-esteem building among youth. Carrie’s works including her as a model have been published in magazines. In over 40+ publications, including FastCompany, and Marvel Universe, featured her in their articles.

Trey Haley is President and Partner at Tri Destined Studios where he is responsible for the implementation of productions and events. He is also tasked with overseeing the company’s in-house production service division, Tri Destined VIP, as well as developing diverse venture collaborations and strategic alliances based on shared vision, values and goals. With its motto of “Destined to Change the Perception of the World,” Tri Destined Studios continues to create a successful blueprint for independent studios in realizing its mission to be the number one brand in urban entertainment, production and distribution. Trey was born and raised in Arlington, Texas. He attended the University of North Texas and majored in Radio, Television and Film. After relocating to Los Angeles to pursue a career in film and television, Trey was mentored by some of the top music video directors in the industry. He was also fortunate to have further honed his production skills at several leading television and film production companies including Morgan Freeman’s Revelations Entertainment. A passionate filmmaker with a diverse breadth and sensibility, Trey has directed a variety of genres and has multiple projects scheduled for release. He is a Producer of the compelling documentary “Black Gold,” which examines the economic, political and ecological implications of the worldwide gold, precious stone market and its effects on Sierra Leone. The “Preacher’s Son,” starring Christian Keyes, Drew Sidora, Valarie Pettiford, Clifton Powell, Kellita Smith and Vanessa Bell Calloway, premiered on Netflix and made its television world debut on BET in 2017. Other projects released in the fall of 2018 included the mystery/thriller “Woman on the Edge,” starring Rumer Willis and “A Mother’s Sacrifice,” starring Kristy Swanson which has already aired on the top networks in France, Spain, and South America and Mexico. His drama/thriller “The Man in 3B,” starring Lamman Rucker, Christian Keyes, DB Woodside, Robert Ri’chard, Brely Evans, and Billy Dee Williams, had a limited theatrical release in 2015 and is still experiencing a successful run on BET and Netflix. It ranked as one of the top films aired on BET in 2016. Trey was also behind the lens for the indie action/thriller “No More Mr. Nice Guy,” starring and “The Choir Director,” (sequel to “The Preacher’s Son). “The Man in 3B,” “The Preacher’s Son,” “The Choir Director,” and “No More Mr. Nice Guy,” are also based on novels by New York Times best-selling author Carl Weber and produced by Tri Destined Studios.