Advisory Board /

James Caan / Chairman

Actor and director, James Caan, is the Chairman of Openfilm. Caan joined Openfilm with the belief that succeeding in the film business requires talent, an unshakeable belief in oneself and being in the “right place at the right time.” He feels Openfilm creates that “right place” for burgeoning filmmakers, harnessing the power of the Internet to provide a forum for films to be seen by industry insiders. As an Advisory Board Member, Caan mentors the next generation of talent who share his passion to entertain and inspire.

Caan studied acting in New York and soon began to work in numerous TV roles, making his big screen debut with the starring role in Lady in a Cage (1964) with Olivia de Havilland. He quickly garnered the attention of audiences and critics with his work in Red Line 7000 (1965), El Dorado (1966), Journey to Shiloh (1968) and The Rain People (1969). In one of his most acclaimed roles, Caan was cast as the hot-tempered gangster Santino "Sonny" Corleone in Francis Ford Coppola’s The Godfather (1972). The film earned Caan a Best Supporting Actor Oscar nomination. That same year, he received a Best Actor Emmy nomination for the award-winning Brian’s Song. He later reprised the role of Sonny Corleone in The Godfather: Part II (1974).

Caan moved on to act in a diverse number of films, including a cop-buddy crime partnership with Alan Arkin in Freebie and the Bean (1974), a man playing for his life in the critically acclaimed The Gambler (1974) and pairing with Barbara Streisand in Funny Lady (1975). Two further strong starring roles came in the 1975 films Rollerball and The Killer Elite. He starred in fellow Advisory Board Member Mark Rydell’s films Cinderella Liberty (1973), Harry and Walter Go to New York (1976) and For the Boys (1991).

Caan acted in a variety of films throughout the 1980’s and 1990’s, including the critically acclaimed heist movie Thief (1981), the supernatural romantic comedy Kiss Me Goodbye (1982), Francis Ford Coppola’s Gardens of Stone (1987), and the sci-fi hit Alien Nation (1988). He surprised audiences with his portrayal of a meek romance novelist held captive after a car accident by a deranged fan in Misery (1990). Other films include Honeymoon in Vegas (1992), The Program (1993) and Flesh and Bone (1993). Caan made his directorial debut in 1981 with the film Hide in Plain Sight (1981), which won him accolades from every known film critic.

Over recent years, Caan has influenced a new generation of fans. He has consistently created intriguing characters in such films as The Yards (2000), The Way of the Gun (2000) and City of Ghosts (2002). In 2003, Caan starred alongside Nicole Kidman in Lars von Trier’s provocative tale Dogville and later caught the attention of both child and adult audiences starring alongside Will Ferrell in the now holiday classic, Elf. For many years, Caan was also seen as the casino security chief in the television series Las Vegas.

In some of his latest projects, Caan lent his voice for the animated film Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs and starred in features New York, I Love You, Middle Men and Mercy, written by and co-starring his son Scott. He is currently working on several projects slated for future release including Henry’s Crime with Keanu Reeves, Sweetwater and the crime drama with Shirley MacLaine Anyone’s Son.

As one of the industry’s most renowned actors, Caan is also a veteran, having starred in well over 80 films during his career. He is widely known and celebrated in the entertainment community by industry workers of all ages and professions. As the Chairman and part of the Openfilm Advisory Board, Caan offers his wisdom to the Openfilm community as he evaluates submissions, serves as a judge for the online competitions and interacts with emerging talent.

Robert Duvall / Advisory Board Member

Renowned actor, director, writer and producer Robert Duvall joins Openfilm as a member of the Advisory Board. Duvall evaluates film submissions, serves as a judge for Openfilm’s online competitions and interacts with the Openfilm community via the Openfilm Live webcam chat series.

Duvall made his screen debut in the now classic motion picture, To Kill A Mockingbird. He has been nominated for an Academy Award six times beginning with his first nomination as Best Supporting Actor for his role in The Godfather. In 1979, Duvall earned a second Oscar nomination as Best Supporting Actor for his role as Kilgore in Apocalypse Now. He was nominated for the 1981 Academy Award for Best Actor as the Marine pilot Bull Meechum in The Great Santini. He was honored to receive the Academy Award as Best Actor for his work in the 1983 release Tender Mercies. He was later nominated for his acting in The Apostle, a project which he also wrote and directed. Duvall received his most recent Oscar nomination in 1999 for his work in A Civil Action.

In his impressive roster of additional feature films, some of his credits include The Chase, The Rain People, True Grit, M*A*S*H, THX 1138, The Godfather Part I & II, The Killer Elite, Network, Days of Thunder, Falling Down, The Sixth Day, John Q, Gone in 60 Seconds, Gods and Generals, Open Range, Secondhand Lions, Lucky You and We Own the Night. His recent work includes strong performances in 2009’s Get Low and the critically acclaimed Crazy Heart, and Duvall is currently working on his latest project The Man Who Killed Don Quixote.

Duvall formed Butchers Run Films so that he could become more actively involved in all aspects of film and television development and production. In 2006, its miniseries, Broken Trail, aired on AMC and garnered16 Emmy nominations, three Golden Globe nominations, and a Directors Guild Award. The company’s first co-production, A Family Thing, in which Duvall co-stars, earned a Humanitas Award. He executive produced the TNT Original The Man Who Captured Eichmann in which Duvall portrayed the Nazi bureaucrat, Adolph Eichmann. In 2001, he went to Argentina to direct, write, produce and star in Assassination Tango.

Mark Rydell / Advisory Board Member

Director, producer and classically trained actor Mark Rydell joins Openfilm as a member of the Advisory Board. Rydell evaluates film submissions, serves as a judge for Openfilm’s Get it Made competition and speaks directly to community members via the Openfilm Live webcam chat series. With over 40 years of experience in the entertainment industry, Rydell has seen filmmaking progress through technology advances and believes Openfilm will help new emerging talent get recognized, discovered and financed in ways never before thought possible.

Rydell began his career as an actor and became known for his role on the television show The Edge of Night. He later received critical acclaim for his role as the violent Jewish mob kingpin, Marty Augustine, in The Long Goodbye (1973).

Rydell has directed numerous actors to stunning performances garnering recognition, coveted nominations and awards for his actors and his films. His film directing credits include The Reivers (1969), The Cowboys (1972), Cinderella Liberty (1973), The Rose (1979), On Golden Pond (1981), for which he received an Oscar nomination for Best Director, The River (1984), For the Boys (1991) and Intersection (1994). Most recently, he directed the 2006 film Even Money. In addition, Rydell’s a prolific television presence directing numerous television episodes, the TV bio-pic James Dean (2001) where he had dual duty playing head of Warner Studios Jack Warner and working most recently on a 2007 episode of Masters of Science Fiction.

In addition to his work with Openfilm, Rydell is dedicated to educating aspiring artists. He has worked for several decades at The Actors Studio, a non-profit theatre workshop for professional actors, directors and writers, and currently serves as the Artistic Director and Executive Director in West Hollywood. Rydell is also the head of Concourse Prodcutions, a Los Angeles-based production company behind many of his projects. In 2009, Rydell, actor Martin Landau and screenwriter/playwright Lyle Kessler teamed up to produce a unique two-day event covering the disciplines of acting, directing and writing called “The Total Picture Seminar.”

Scott Caan / Advisory Board Member

Actor, writer and director Scott Caan serves as the Chief Creative Officer of Openfilm and is a member of the Advisory Board. The son of actor and director James Caan, he grew up around actors and other industry professionals and benefited from having an insider’s look at what it takes to be successful in the film world. He is committed to sharing his knowledge with a new crop of talent. In this role, Caan evaluates film submissions, provides insight and works with the rest of the Advisory Board team to help jump-start the careers of aspiring filmmakers.

Caan began acting in the 1990s and has appeared in numerous independent and studio films. After studying acting at the Playhouse West in Los Angeles, Caan quickly gained recognition for his roles in such films as Enemy of the State (1998) and Varsity Blues (1999). Caan subsequently appeared in the films Ready to Rumble (2000), American Outlaws (2001) and Into the Blue (2005) as well as the box office successes Ocean's Eleven, Ocean's Twelve and Ocean's Thirteen. Caan has also been seen as a Hollywood talent manager on the HBO series Entourage.

Caan began creating his own material, making his screenwriting and directorial debut in 2003 with the film Dallas 362, which won the Critics Award at the 2003 CineVegas International Film Festival. He also wrote and directed the 2006 comedy The Dog Problem, in which he plays one of the supporting characters. Caan followed this up these efforts by writing, producing and starring in his next self created project Mercy.

His book of photography, Scott Caan Photography Vol.1, was published in 2009. He is currently working on several film and television projects including A Beginner’s Guide to Endings, Code of Silence and the series Hawaii Five-O.