As an undergraduate at Barnard College, Columbia University, Kieren van den Blink received a Ford Foundation Grant to write her first book, Mighty Forces Are Gathering On Your Behalf, as well as a poetry award from Ireland's Poet Laureate, Seamus Heaney. She landed her Broadway debut within a year, co-starring with Natalie Portman in the Tony-nominated revival of The Diary of Anne Frank. She then moved to Los Angeles where she landed the role of Rogue in the highly-anticipated animated series, Wolverine & The X-Men. Next she founded her own theater company, The Little Beast, which culminated in NBC flying her to New York City to test for Saturday Night Live! She had a beloved column in The Los Angles Times Magazine called Sounds of the City. Last year, she published SNIFF, the first in a five book series of children's books based on the senses. She's been touring the country reading SNIFF in bookstores, museums, and schools. She is currently preparing to star in her self-scripted movie, MINE, a coming of age story about a woman in her 30's, which was a finalist for the Sundance Screenwriter's Lab. Kieren lives in Los Angeles with her beloved doggie, Gatsby.

Sophie Levine has been singing almost since she could talk. Growing up in Studio City CA, she studied multiple genres, especially musical theatre. In her growth as a musician, Sophie discovered a passion for songwriting and playing piano. She realized and developed her pop/classic rock style after studying at Berklee College of Music. After Berklee, Sophie returned to California to explore her musical aspirations. In attending the Songwriting School of Los Angeles, she found a place where she could truly grow as an artist. Recently, she has written toplines for other artists, done session work as a singer, and collaborated with various songwriters. Her new EP was co-produced by Canadian writer/producer Ben Wilkins. Sophie lives once again in Studio City with her beloved dogs, Marcel and Luigi, who sometimes provide background vocals. She will soon be starting her own YouTube channel and playing original songs around the Los Angeles area.

Raised a proud Razorback in Little Rock, Arkansas, Matt Besser attended Amherst College where he learned how to collect CDs. After graduating, Matt toured the Midwest doing stand-up, while taking improvisation direction from Del Close at Chicago’s Improv Olympic Theater. In Chicago in 1991, he was a founding member of the sketch group Upright Citizens Brigade, and with them he has performed and written such stage shows as “Saigon Suicide Squad” winner of Best Sketch at 1996 U.S. Comedy Arts Festival in Aspen. Besser’s stand up albums include: “May I Help You Dumbass?” , and “Woo Pig Sooie!”, and “The 6 Most Important Sets in the History of Standup”. As an improviser he was a member of Chicago’s “The Family” and is forever a member of “Asssscat” the UCB Theater’s long-running flagship improv show.

In 1996 the UCB moved to NYC and produced their sketch show “Upright Citizens Brigade” for three seasons (’98 – 2000) on Comedy Central. In fall of 2005 the UCB premiered their improv show “Asssscat: Improv” on Bravo.

With the success of their tv shows, the UCB opened their own comedy theater and improv school which operates two theaters in NYC, and starting this summer, two in LA.

After the UCB tv show , Matt teamed up with Method Man & Redman to create and perform in a hidden camera show on MTV called “Stung”. He was creator and star of “Crossballs” which ran 23 episodes on Comedy Central; “This Show Will Get You High” on Comedy Central; and also created and starred in “The Very Funny Show” for TBS.com. Besser has guest starred is such sitcoms as “Parks & Recreation”, “Modern Family”, “New Girl”, “Children’s Hospital”; “Bernie Mac Show”, “Frasier”, “The Millers”; “Drunk History”, “Comedy Bang Bang”, and featured in the movies: “Freak Dance”, “Year One”, “Walk Hard: the Dewey Cox Story”, “Drill Bit Taylor”; “The TV Set”, “Bad Teacher”, “Wild Girls Gone”, Sundance Film Festival favorite “Junebug”; and co-star of zombie western “Wanted: Undead or Alive”.

Along with Ian Roberts and Matt Walsh, he is the author of “The Upright Citizens Brigade Comedy Improvisation Manual”. He wrote & co-directed the film musical “Freak Dance”.

Matt Besser has most recently worked on…

- producing The UCB Show – comedy variety show shot at the UCB Theater in LA debuting on Seeso.com

improv4humans – weekly improvised comedy podcast on Earwolf

Besser Breaks the Record standup special debuting on Seeso.com January 7!!!

• Twittering at twitter.com/MattBesser

• posting nude photos at MattBesser.com

Cory Phillips is a singer, musician, lyricist, poet, scientist, & souljazzeroticgroovefunk leader from all over the damn place. While falling in love with classic soul, funk, disco, and r/b, he moved to Los Angeles in pursuit of higher tides. His self-titled/self-produced debut came in 2009 followed by extensive performing in Southern California & the Midwest. He & his large band of savvy, funkjazz musicians can be found on the club circuit dishing out the swampy dance grooves more than 100 nights a year. SEXTHIRSTYLOVEHUNGER, his second and most anticipated album documentation of sexual/romantic nature, is due to be released in Summer 2016...

http://www.sexthirstylovehunger.com/

Melissa Rojas is an actor, writer, director, and producer, who is currently in production on her YouTube Channel, JustBoobs Sketch. Their content has been featured on media outlets such as The TODAY Show, The Meredith Vieira Show, and Funny Or Die. Melissa is a classically trained actor who studied at the American Academy of Dramatic Arts Los Angeles and with Tom Todoroff in Santa Monica. More importantly, she is obsessed with Shakespeare and her favorite mode of transportation is the TARDIS. Check out her sketches at justboobssketch.com

Slavik IA is a Los Angeles based film, commercial and music video director. originally from Odessa, USSR. Slavik moved to Los Angeles 10 years ago to help create some of the biggest blockbuster films of the past decade. Transformers 3, Tron, GI JOE and Rise of the Apes to Flags of our Fathers, The Mummy 3 and Letter from Iwo Jima are on the list as well as a large list of commercial work.

Slavik wrote and directed a 2010 short film "Synthetic_World" for a Philips/Ridley Scott contest which gathered international attention and gave start to a Directorial career with the latest project "Mind Choke Hold" Music Film for Generation Maze. "This was the most difficult project for me yet, three years of my life, trials, tribulations, mistakes and successes, blood, sweat but never tears are all packed into 5 and a half minutes of conceptual and visual madness..."

His influence includes a wide range of artists, both visual and audial. From the visual works of Jonathan Glazer, Chris Cunningham, Mark Romanek, David Fincher, Michel Gondry, F.F. Coppola , Ridley Scott, Kathryn Bigelow, Stanley Kubrick and Vittorio Storaro to the experimental sounds of Meshuggah, Radiohead, NIN and a variety of DnB and Neurofunk Artists.

"Sometimes people ask me what I would be doing if I wasn't directing and I joke that if I wasn't in film, I would be robbing banks. And I have zero interest in robbing banks"

slavmonster.com

Matt Haze is a rising young talent in the music world, having performed with Lady Gaga, Stanley Clarke, Kimbra, Solange Knowles, Doug E Fresh, Jesse McCartney, SoMo and others. After winning numerous awards in music competitions, Matt attended the University of Southern California where he studied under jazz great, Joe Diorio. His endeavors as a songwriter, bandleader, and versatility in multiple genres have gained exceptional notoriety.

In 2008 Matt began touring with Solange Knowles, the sister of Beyoncè Knowles. In support of Solange he has made numerous television appearances including the Late Show with David Letterman, Jimmy Kimmel Live, Tyra Banks, the Today Show, the Early Show, The View, MTV’s TRL, CBS Fashion Rocks, the World Music Awards, Dick Clark New Year’s Eve Party, the Jools Holland Show, and more.

He appeared in three of Solange’s music videos including the singles “Sandcastle Disco” and “I Decided” (2008 Geffen/Interscope) which reached #1 on the R&B Billboard Charts. In October of 2008 Solange and the Hadley Street Dreams joined Alicia Keys in support of her European tour, and in the Spring of 09 joined Estelle in a U.S. tour.

Matt steadily grew his credits as he backed up Lady Gaga on the Tonight Show and American Idol, showcasing the hits “Just Dance” and "Poker Face". He also appeared on academy award nominee Terrence Howard’s debut CD, “Shine Through It” (Sony, 2008). Most recently Matt has been touring with Platinum selling Pop/R&B artist, SoMo.

As a band leader (singer and guitarist) Matt has released 3 records as a modern jazz artist and just released his first rock album with his new group- GENERATION MAZE. GM just released a 3 year Music Film project called “Mind Choke Hold” in collaboration with Director/VFX supervisor, Slavik Anishchenko.

Brilliant musician! He will make it to the top” -Phil Upchurch (legendary jazz guitarist)

A killer musician with great instincts” -Matthew Selby (Music Director/Producer- Disney)

"Funkiest white boy I know!” -Kim Burse (Creative Music Director- Beyoncè)

Jesse Stern

Music saved my life.

My parents taught me guitar and piano at age 4. As a teenager, I was in trouble a lot, and became self-destructive. In desperate

need of a creative outlet, I got my first bass when I was 13, and that’s when I chose music as my life’s work. The bass has kept me alive and mostly out of trouble ever since.

As an adult, I have been blessed to work with a lot of great artists, including some of my heroes.

Recent Credits (Touring and/or recording):

? Jordin Sparks (American Idol winner)

? Sly Stone (Grammy winner)

? George Clinton (Grammy winner)

? Chad Smith (of the Red Hot Chili Peppers)

? Kenny Aronoff (#1 touring and session drummer)

? Guy Sebastian (4x Platinum Australian Idol winner)

? Andy Vargas (of Santana)

? Pee Wee Salinas (Latin Grammy winner)

? Natalia Lesz (stadium-level EMI Europe pop artist)

? Hanson (Grammy nominee)

? Jon Abel (Grammy nominated Christian artist)

I have also performed and/or recorded with: Weezer, Airto Moreira, Della Reese, Coolio, Mario Reyes (of the Gipsy Kings), JoJo, Michael Johns, Jovino Santos Neto,

Ricardo Lemvo & Makina Loca, Carlos Malta, and many more.

As a bassist, I play electric and upright, fretted and fretless, four- and five-string basses, as well as synth Keybass and background vocals.

I am also a multi-instrumental songwriter and producer. My writing has appeared in TV, Film and video games around the world.

JesseStern.com

soundcloud.com/jessestern

Betsy Salkind is an actress, comedian, writer and former drummer for the PHENOBARBIDOLLS. She was a founding member of the TERRORIST BRIDESMAIDS (4 comediennes determined to get a second use out of those dresses), and alumna of the improv troupe GUILTY CHILDREN and the sketch comedy group THE OTHER WHITE MEAT. She was also a staffwriter for "SATURDAY NIGHT SPECIAL" and "ROSEANNE" (the sitcom), and a jokewriter for Anthony Robbins.

Her stand up career includes an early banning in Boston, where she performed "The Emperor's Getting Fucked," a short piece about misogyny, racism, and viciousness in the comedy clubs. Performed only twice, it caused a stir in the comedy community and took her for several years into the world of performance art. Several years later she reemerged in New York and LA comedy clubs and is a regular at NY's Comic Strip and LA's Comedy Store, and has appeared on "Girls Night Out," "Stand-Up, Stand-Up," "ARLI$$," "Pet Shop with Andy Kindler," the "TONIGHT SHOW WITH JAY LENO," and most recently in the SHOWTIME special "Fierce Funny Women."

She has written and performed 3 one woman shows to date, including "ALL MY LIFE" (the darkest comedy this side of hope), "MASTER OF SCIENCE" (an irreverent look at science and scientists), and most recently "ANNE FRANK SUPERSTAR: THE ETHEL SPILIOTES STORY" (a satire of Anne Franxploitation).

Born in Troy, New York and razed in Connecticut and Virginia, she was not the funny one in her family. As a child she put on plays with her brothers in which she was always cast as the wicked witch or cruel stepsister. She graduated from MIT with a BS and a Master's degree from the Sloan School of Management. Her master's thesis was titled: "Can't You Take A Joke? A Study of Sexual Harassment Among Peers." Preferring the security of the arts, she left her career as a Federal Reserve Bank Examiner to become a comedian.

She is perhaps best know for her squirrel impression, but refuses to be pigeonholed as a squirrel. She is currently developing an animated series based on Ethel, the lead character from Anne Frank Superstar, as well as a comedic play about depression.

She is also producing a feature documentary with Amy Kofman of Jane Doe Films ("Derrida"), and writes for "ETHEL'S LAW"(a blog by a 5th grade activist who has turned her girl scout troop into a revolutionary cell.)

She is the author of "More Than Once Upon A Time" (2006), a short, illustrated children's-style book that tells the story of a child who is raped by her father and his friends, but manages to overcome it and then ruin his life, as well as the hilarious "Betsy's Sunday School Bible Classics" (2008).

In her spare time, Betsy lobbies and organizes for the National Association to Protect Children, and was instrumental in changing CA law to offer equal protection to children sexually abused by family members.

Betsy was Andy Kindler's Tae Kwon Do sparring partner, and hangs her own drywall.

She has 28 teeth.

One of the most versatile exponents of the latest cadre of young jazz musicians to emerge in the post-“Young Lions” era, saxophonist, Ray Zepeda, differentiates himself not only by his diverse musical background but also by his life story – a sojourn that began in the shadows of oil wells and derricks in Taft, California, followed by his formative musical development in the beach cities of Los Angeles’s South Bay which led to a 5-year stint in the Boston area where he greatly broadened his musical perspective and started composing, only to return to the South Bay to establish himself in the Los Angeles jazz scene – a life that has not only encompassed alternating periods of focus on “classical” composition, jazz, and popular music, but also various professional pursuits which have included jobs such s a music educator and a successful project management career in the oil & gas industry. The economics of jazz notwithstanding, rest assured that Ray Zepeda has lived the jazz way, improvising a life, as it were, - exploiting every opening, pulling on every thread no matter how tenuous or impossibly thin, and approaching life with a humility that has allowed others to shine and benefit from his gifts – and, undeterred by numerous vicissitudes, has achieved his highest level of success during this, the most severe economic turndown in memory. This is not as much an artist’s story as it is a uniquely American one.

His debut CD, “Step By Step”, features Bill Evans Trio drummer, Joe La Barbera; first-call bassist, Darek Oles; and legendary L.A. pianist/composer, Rich Eames. With eight smoking, thought-provoking tracks beautifully mastered by Bernie Grundman, it was the top seller at the Bakersfield Jazz Festival which featured a lineup of internationally-known artists and enjoyed substantial radio airplay in major markets nationwide and abroad and marked movement on the jazz charts. He recently founded the Bakersfield New Music Collective which will perform two pieces on his second CD, “America”, to be released in 2016.

A veteran of the Los Angeles jazz, reggae, punk, pop, and house DJ scene, Zepeda has performed/recorded with Lou Rawls, Russ Ferrante (Yellowjackets), John Patitucci (Chick Corea), Joe La Barbera (Bill Evans Trio), Barbara Morrison, Thelma Jones, Carl Saunders (Stan Kenton/ Bill Holman), Dave Tull (Chuck Mangione/ Michael Buble), Lanny Morgan (Supersax/ Natalie Cole), Johnny Blas (CuBop Records), and many others. Since beginning his professional career playing lead alto in various big bands at the age of 15, his musical palette has expanded to include everything from serious composition to avant-garde jazz to contemporary pop to punk rock. Mr. Zepeda holds the Master of Music in Jazz Studies from the University of Southern California where he studied with saxophonist, Bob Sheppard (Steely Dan, Chick Corea, Mike Stern), and the Bachelor of Science from Massachusetts Institute of Technology where he studied Composition with Pulitzer Prize and MacArthur Grant-winning composer, John Harbison.

http://rayzepeda.com/

Jon Huck is an Illinois born actor and comedian whose humor can best be described as honest, observational and self-deprecating. Jon Huck performs stand up all over the country and has appeared on Comedy Central's Live At Gotham, Showtime's Comedy From SXSW, AXS Gotham Comedy Live and This Is Not Happening for CC Studios. Jon Huck co-hosts the Hollywood Anonymous Podcast on the All Things Comedy Network. Jon Huck's first CD Fantasticular Hilaritation (available on iTunes & Amazon.com) was called "raving mad with a tinge of brilliance" by Americascomedy.com. As an actor Jon Huck can be seen in countless commercials along with television shows such as MTV's Punk'd, TBS's Frank TV, NatGeo's Now We Know and CBS's Angel From Hell. Jon Huck has also appeared in the films Bellflower, Garbage & Dumbbells which are currently available at Amazon.com. Most recently Jon Huck can be seen in the comedy And Punching The Clown. In addition to stand up & acting Jon Huck has made an impact as a Producer and Writer as well, working on shows like Proving Ground for the G4 Network, MTV's Punk'd, MTV's Room 401, The Untitled Steve Jones & Jenny McCarthy Pilot and Disney's Code: 9.

jonhuck.me