Van was born in Vientiane, Laos and immigrated to the US when he was 4-years-old. He began his career as an award-winning still photographer before transitioning to filmmaking. ALL ROADS TO PEARLA (starring Alex MacNicoll, Addison Timlin, Nick Chinlund, and Dash Mihok) and produced by Red Entertainment and goPOP FILMS is his feature directing debut. It world premiered in competition at the 26th Austin Film Festival and was nominated for the 2020 Texas Independent Film Award by the Houston Film Critics Society. Van is also the founding partner and executive producer of goPOP FILMS – a creative content studio and production company representing some of the most exciting directors working today. He has taught at the New York Film Academy (Los Angeles) and UCLA Extension – where he received the 2015 Outstanding Instructor of the Year honor for the Visual Arts Department.

Hugues is a producer/production manager who is a long time genre films lover that grew up watching Giallos, American Grindhouse and other exploitation flicks. He’s been involved for over 10 years in the organization and programming of the Strasbourg European Fantastic Film Festival and is the head of international program at Cinepocalypse for the last year. He also Co-Founded the North Bend Film Festival, a vanguard focused film festival hosted in the town where David Lynch shot Twin Peaks. Hugues is also the Co-Founder of Yellow Veil Pictures, a New York City and Los Angeles-based international film sales company that focuses exclusively on boundary pushing genre cinema and emergent filmmakers. When he’s not on set you’ll find him attending festivals such as Berlinale, SxSW, Tribeca, Cannes, BiFan, Fantasia, Fantastic Fest, or Sitges – talking films and science.

Most people believe that Johnny Thunder’s 1999 hit song, “Born to lose,” describes a man who loses in everything he attempts. Samir Desai is not most people. Samir Desai knows that Johnny Thunder was not born to lose, but born too loose. This misunderstood lyric is known to the people who do everything with a free spirit and a purpose to have fun. The mantra, “Born Too Loose,” so deeply resonates with Samir that it is tattooed on his right arm in his niece’s handwriting. Since a young age, Samir has been interested in film and technology. Having one of the first film recorders in history (as far as the 80’s go), he was obsessed with creating home films and movies. Now as an executive producer, he has taken his interest into the creative field by producing independent films. His love of photography, cult films, and world travel has influenced his vision and allowed him to bring a mix of classic literature and modern culture to the screen.

John lived most of his life in Chicago and went on to Boston University where he graduated with a Bachelor’s Degree in Economics. Soon after he moved back to Chicago and started working at the Chicago Mercantile Exchange. He then started trading on his own in 2001 and retired 16 years later with a successful career. While trading, he also managed to acquire a real estate license and practiced real estate for 7 years in Illinois. He moved to sunny Arizona with his wife and two boys in the fall of 2017 and is enjoying the desert air & life.