GCFC at FAN EXPO Cleveland, Formerly Wizard World (05/01/2022)

We want to thank everyone who visited our booth and attended our two panels at FAN EXPO Cleveland!

It was great to see so many familiar faces and make some new friends too. Check out some of our best red carpet moments from the weekend, and a look at our panels!

GCFC PANELS:

THE MOVIE BIZ IN THE CLE: MOVIE JOBS & MOVIE MONEY
Panelists:
Lillian Pyles, CSA  •  Lillian Pyles Casting
Angela Boehm, CSA  •  Angela Boehm Casting
Allison Smith Newsome  •  Moderator
Bill Garvey  •  GCFC President

Just before you watched the latest Marvel post-credit scene, hundreds of names scrolled by while you patiently waited. Each of those names is a real person who makes their living working in the film industry. Join the Greater Cleveland Film Commission and guests Lillian Pyles, Angela Boehm, and moderator Allison Smith Newsome for an inside look at how the nonprofit organization’s mission to bring film and TV production to Northeast Ohio is creating thousands of jobs and generating millions of dollars of economic impact right here.

 

Lillian Pyles, CSA  • Casting Director

Her long career of casting contributions to the film and television industry include many Blockbuster movies and even an Oscar-nominated film. She has worked with an array of reputable actors like Meg Ryan, John Travolta, and Daniel Kaluuya to name a few. Directors she has worked with include the likes of Denzel Washington and Malcolm D. Lee. Major motion picture studios on her resume list Paramount Pictures Columbia, Sony, Fox Searchlight, and other top production companies with whom she’s worked. NBC, HBO, Showtime, Lifetime, and Netflix (just to name a few) are broadcast networks, cable networks, and streaming services in her repertoire. Included in her professional career are also many shorts, independents, industrials, and commercials. Lillian has been voted a member of CSA (Casting Society of America), the premier organization for casting directors in film, television, theater and new media. Casting Directors affiliated with the Casting Society of America are committed to maintaining the highest levels of professionalism & ethical responsibility.

Angela Boehm, CSA • Casting Director 

Angela Boehm, owner of Angela Boehm Casting, began her career by founding and fostering the growth of Olmsted Performing Arts, one of Northeast Ohio’s premier arts centers. Over the years, Angela Boehm branched into the film industry, taking the best and brightest from the stage to the silver screen. Angela has worked on feature films such as Fast & Furious 8, Judas & The Black Messiah, White Noise, Cherry and Whiteboy Rick. As a trusted name in the entertainment community, Angela Boehm Casting has connections with agents in major cities throughout Ohio, Pennsylvania, Kentucky, Michigan, and beyond. With a database of over 15,000 SAG and non-union actors and a strong team of individuals working from Angela Boehm Casting’s own casting studio, Angela Boehm Casting is able to ensure every project receives the perfect cast.

Allison Smith Newsome • Moderator

Allison is a health, employment, and IP associate attorney at Taft Stettinius & Hollister LLP and a Greater Cleveland Film Commission Board member. She has also been the host of the Solution: Community Conversation Series since 2020. A graduate of Vanderbilt University and Case Western Reserve University School of Law, Allison is a proud transplant to the Cleveland community and now warmly calls it home.

 

Bill Garvey • GCFC President

Bill Garvey, President of the Greater Cleveland Film Commission, is a former motion picture & television location manager and scout with 26 years of experience. He recently won the Location Managers Guild International Award for best period location management for his work on the academy award winning Judas & the Black Messiah (Warner Bros, starring Daniel Kaluuya). His credits include White Noise (Netflix, starring Adam Driver), Hillbilly Elegy (Netflix, starring Amy Adams & Glenn Close), Fast & Furious 8: Fate of the Furious (Universal Pictures, starring Vin Diesel & The Rock), Captain America: Winter Soldier (Marvel Studios, starring Chris Evans), The Avengers (Marvel Studios, starring Robert Downey Jr), and over 30 other feature films, over a dozen TV Shows, and dozens of national & local TV Commercials.

 

MOVIES: CLEVELAND TAKES THE LEADING ROLE
Panelists:
Bill Garvey  •  GCFC President
Mike Wendt  •  GCFC Production Coordinator

Why does Hollywood love to film in Northeast Ohio? Locations, locations, locations! From skyscrapers to small towns, beachfront to backwoods, Cleveland has the unique ability to transform itself into almost any location filmmakers need it to be. Join Greater Cleveland Film Commission President Bill Garvey and GCFC Production Coordinator Mike Wendt as they take you behind the scenes of some of your favorite movie locations that are right in your backyard.

Bill Garvey • GCFC President

Bill Garvey, President of the Greater Cleveland Film Commission, is a former motion picture & television location manager and scout with 26 years of experience. He recently won the Location Managers Guild International Award for best period location management for his work on the academy award winning Judas & the Black Messiah (Warner Bros, starring Daniel Kaluuya). His credits include White Noise (Netflix, starring Adam Driver), Hillbilly Elegy (Netflix, starring Amy Adams & Glenn Close), Fast & Furious 8: Fate of the Furious (Universal Pictures, starring Vin Diesel & The Rock), Captain America: Winter Soldier (Marvel Studios, starring Chris Evans), The Avengers (Marvel Studios, starring Robert Downey Jr), and over 30 other feature films, over a dozen TV Shows, and dozens of national & local TV Commercials.


Mike Wendt • GCFC Production Coordinator

Mike Wendt is an award-winning director, producer, and location manager/scout. He currently is the Production Coordinator for the GCFC. He has worked on films such as Captain America: Winter Soldier, Fate of the Furious, My Friend Dahmer, and White Boy Rick. His first feature length documentary The End Of The World As We Knew It was a selection of the 33rd Cleveland International Film Festival and his short film Goodbye, Ohio played numerous film festivals.