WATCHING WALTER EARNS A TOTAL OF NINE AWARDS! next up HEALDSBURG Film Festival, BURBANK INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL AND SAN DIEGO SHORT FILM FESTIVAL

Mark is an award-winning writer for film, television and theater. Originally from Philadelphia, PA, Mark’s character- driven, socially-relevant scripts and plays have placed in numerous competitions and festivals, including the Austin Film Festival, Pasadena International Film Festival, ScreenCraft and the Sundance Institute. He attended UCLA’s School of Theater, Film & Television, Ensemble Studio Theatre NYC, and studied Improv and Sketch Writing with alumni of The Groundlings. He is a current member of the VS. Theater Company and the Station House Poets in Los Angeles.Mark was so inspired by Walter and his story of survival he felt it necessary to write about it.

Roberto "Itchy" Ioannucci and writer Mark Brown have been best friends since their youth. Roberto played a significant role in introducing Walter, the watchmaker, to Mark. Walter shared his haunting, dehumanizing memories of the Stutthof concentration camp with Roberto, but Roberto also witnessed Walter's triumphs. After Walter passed away, Roberto inherited his collection of watch repair tools and bench. He sought out a watch museum in Upstate NY to preserve Walter's prized possessions in a permanent exhibition as a tribute to his dear friend. Before Walter passed away, he asked Roberto to share his story, and Roberto turned to Mark to write it. It's a privilege to share Walter's extraordinary life and to honor his courage and accomplishments.

Mitch Yapko is a multi-award-winning writer/director/producer, known for his comedic and unique character work, focusing often on surreal characters in real-life situations. He looks for the heart of the story, and strives to make all of his films relatable. He loves to pull people out of their day-to-day lives and into his imagined worlds. His films have shown in over 150 festivals over the years, including the Sundance Film Festival (“Smilf” winner, short film jury prize), Dances With Films, Newport Beach Film Festival (“Always Worthy” achievement in filmmaking award), and many more.

Mitch has just completed post production on “Watching Walter,” a short film inspired by the true story of a Holocaust survivor, starring Stephen Tobolowsky. The film is set to premiere at the Oscar-Qualifying LA Shorts International Film Festival. He is also working on completing the screenplay adaptation of a sci-fi adventure novel, development of a horror-comedy feature screenplay, and several other exciting narrative projects.

After attending the Philadelphia College of Performing Arts, Cynthia made her way to New York City, where she studied at The American Academy of Dramatic Arts, and upon graduation, she began working in Off-Broadway and regional theatres.

As a writer, executive producer, and actress, her love for dance inspired her to develop “Meet Me at the Barre”, an award-winning streaming web series. The series earned the Best Web Series award from the Glendale International Film Festival, NYC International Film Festival, and the LA International Film Festival and appeared in the Film Collective Best of Series and the Phoenix Film Festival.

Cynthia co-stars in the recently released Something’s More Than One Thing, produced by the Russo Brothers and directed by Jay Alvarez, and on the film circuit in the psychological thriller Protos. 

As an Executive Producer, she partnered with her husband, writer Mark Dylan Brown, to produce Watching Walter. A true story about Holocaust survivor Walter Wojnas. The short film is currently on the festival circuit and has won four awards for Best Short Film - Narrative. She recently produced Baby Blues, a horror comedy about dentistry gone bad. Currently playing at festivals across the country. 

Mark wrote his first script in 2007 and since then has written over twenty – off all genres for both television and features. His short film, BREATHE (2018) was directed by Mitch Yapko and went to twenty-five film festivals, winning many awards. Mark read Mark Dylan Brown's script WATCHING WALTER, and was immediately taken not only by the importance of the story, but also of the humanity of its main character. Since it is based on a real person and true events, Mark B. wanted to see this film made. Mark A. had such a great experience with Mitch, so it made perfect sense for this collaboration to happen, and this film to be made with this team.