Mike Rembis
Executive Director
Mike Rembis is an actor, screenwriter, director and Executive Producer at Best Productions in Clearwater Florida.
- Trained in Strasberg method acting at Venue Actors Studio
- Created Best, a TV sitcom about a car rental on an island where nobody needs a car
- Won Grand Prize at the 2008 Cannes 24 Hour Film Challenge for Perfect Pitch, a short film about a singer who can’t sing
- Recognized for competitive screenwriting as a writer who impressed the judges, but not quite as well as the winners did at
- Scriptapalooza, semifinalist and quarterfinalist (3 times)
- The Nicholl Fellowships in Screenwriting, runner up
- The Boston International Film Festival, top ten finalist
- The Las Vegas Short Script Awards, judges selection
- The American Gem Short Script Competition, top 326
Last year, Mike joined forces with director Din Altit and co-wrote the feature
Unpunished, a fact based drama about the femicides of Ciudad Juarez, now in development with Streetwise Productions.Then he found a script he just couldn’t put down;
Sometimes Called Falling In Love by Ray Rosales, a dark romantic comedy about a case of love on the rocks, with a twist. Mike took it straight to pre-production and will soon be directing his first feature film.
The Clearwater Film Festival is his biggest challenge to date and he is excited to see it take shape. He is represented for acting by Sue Miller at The Miller Agency in Tampa and for writing by George Doulamis at ADA Management in Palm Beach Gardens.
Ellen Rembis
Quality Assurance Manager and Festival Liaison
Ellen is Mike's wife of 23 years. Originally from New York City, she and Mike first met in Montana, when she was a ranger in Yellowstone National Park. She completed a biology degree in Fish and Wildlife Management at Montana State University in Bozeman and soon went into the pharmaceutical industry to become a Quality Assurance Auditor.
She has over 15 years experience qualifying prescription drugs for human consumption based on USDA standards. Poor batches would never make the cut, not on her watch.
Now, Ellen's passion for film and those years of quality assurance experience gives us a tremendous advantage and an uncompromising edge in choosing our films. Ellen makes sure our screeners are well aware of what they should be watching for and grading films in compliance with a standards process that creates a uniform scorecard and places all entries on equal footing before they are viewed. Once screened, results are tabulated and recorded to see which films may end up being included as The Clearwater Film Festival Official Selections.
Justin Marr
Festival Sponsorship Liaison
Justin Marr excelled as a student at Central Michigan University, practicing all facets of film.
As a screenwriter, Justin co-wrote a weekly drama based on student-life for the award-winning student station, Moore Hall Television.To practice concise, efficient writing, Justin simultaneously was a senior entertainment and sports reporter for the award-winning student newspaper, CM-Life.
As a habitual writer, Justin has written several shorts and features and hopes to someday direct and produce his work.
Justin increased his familiarity of film diversity during his tenure as member of the Central Michigan Film Society Selection Committee. He organized, screened potential films, and promoted the International Film Festival. To supplement his passion for film, Justin took several film courses under the acclaimed CMU staff, including sound/video editing, screenwriting, film analysis/critique, and entertainment law.
The proactive student derived his early experience through Tribeca Productions in New York City during two summer internships. He learned the crucial principles of film development under a wealth of knowledge, including Jane Rosenthal and Robert DeNiro.
Upon graduation, Justin joined filmmaker Mike Rembis with Best Productions to continue learning the art of film and bring film recognition to Pinellas and beyond Florida with The Clearwater Film Festival.
H.Cherdon Bedford
Marketing & Design
Since birth, H.Cherdon has demonstrated an exceptional aptitude for creative arts. Her art, stories, poems, plays have won her numerous awards and gained her national attention, especially her children’s picture books she both writes and illustrates. Also a talented actress, she has appeared in 40+ plays & musicals, 2 performing arts troupes, several short films & some PSAs.
Her producer powers include organization, presentation, big-picture perspective, detailed memory & a pinch of OCD. Driven & self-motivated, Cherdon excels as as artist, film director, photographer, web designer, writer, actress, illustrator, dollmaker, movie producer, marketer, bookmaker, entrepreneur… and superhero. As the organizer of Austin Film Meet, Cherdon reaches out to fellow filmmakers & artists. She thrives as a “handyman” for creative challenges, a real-life Creative Superhero for hire, using love & creativity to touch lives and save projects. You can usually find Cherdon in East Austin where she lives & works with her four cats, fourteen fish & her partner in love, life & crime, Brandon Boggs. www.hcherdon.com
Join Our Team
We are always looking for enthusiastic, skilled individuals who would like to join our team. If you think you've got what it take and would like to help, please contact us as soon as possible.
