Craig Prater Productions, Inc Company Profile

Craig Prater Productions was formed in 1999 with a group of professional consultants of special events with an emphasis on the events associated with international film festivals. The accumulative years of experience of CPP are over 100 years. Craig Prater began his special events career as the Program Coordinator & Producer / Director of seminars and educational programs for Redken Laboratories in 1977. From the early beginnings of seminars, CPP became associated with non-profit organizations to help raise funds through creative special events. In 1990, CPP became involved with entertainer, Sonny Bono, in the development of the Palm Springs International Film Festival where for an 8-year period served as the organization's Executive Director.
In 1999, CPP produced a series of fundraising events in the international film arena. With a group of international programmers, CPP solicited and secured hundreds of new films for film festivals and fundraising events. Associations with city governments and non-profits became a specialty of CPP and played a part in leading the way to one of their largest projects, The Bangkok International Film Festival where CPP worked as the management consultants for Film Festival Management to produce and direct the event. Projects continue to run the range of smaller fund-raising events for non-profit organizations to larger, government organizations by producing and directing international events with budgets ranging from 10 to 15 million dollars (USD).
Craig Prater Productions, Inc. continues with a group of professional associates who specialize in special events, publicity and promotion, corporate sponsorship, international film selection, theater management for film festivals, programs and newsletters for major events, web sites and the general administration of events with the creation of policies and procedures, business plans and budgeting for the events.
Craig Prater Productions, Inc helps existing organizations go to that next level of growth and prefers to work "behind the scenes" to keep the existing staff and personnel in their current positions. If requested, CPP will also fill any position or areas of responsibilities for the client to help them better manage and supervise their event. Corporate headquarters are based in Palm Springs, California, USA with offices in Los Angeles, California and Bangkok, Thailand.

Staff & Associate Profiles

Craig Prater, President / Co-Founder: "The Film Forecast"
Prater began his career in special events for a hair and cosmetic manufacturer. His department was responsible for producing and directing international seminars and promotional educational events throughout the world. He continued his career in the field of promotional events to raise funds for non-profit organizations. His film festival focus began when he started work with entertainer Sonny Bono at the Palm Springs International Film Festival where he served for 10 years, 8 years as their Executive Director. He co-founded with Palm Springs Film Noir Festival and Palm Springs International Festival of Short Films. He spent 2 years serving as a director of the International Festival of Festivals and the Children's Discovery Film Festival. For the past 4 years, he has served as the Executive Director of the Bangkok International Film Festival in Bangkok, Thailand. More about Craig..

Robert H. Kipper, Vice President / Corporate Affairs
Kipper started his association with Prater when he served as a program coordinator in the special events and education departments at a hair and cosmetic manufacturer in Southern California. He then served as Vice President of a manufacturing company where his focus was special events and promotions. For 8 years, Kipper served as an Operations Officer with a leading bank in Southern California. His concentration and focus now is acting as Associate Director responsible for operations of a major special event, non-profit organization.

Fred Linch, Director of Operations / Co-Founder: "The Film Forecast"
(Europe & United States of American territories)
Linch has served as a jury member at numerous international film festivals. He continues to serve on many boards of directors and is the former Executive Director of the Jewish Film Festival in Phoenix. He served for 2 years as the President of the Palm Springs International Film Festival and served as President of the jury at the Vladistok Film Festival in Russia. He continues to serve as advisor and programmer for central European Film organizations and festivals. He is responsible for the strategic planning and business plans for clients of Craig Prater Productions, Inc.

Nicholas Snow, International Publicity Director
Snow as been associated with CPP for 10 years in the capacity of international media. As the publisher of Notes From Hollywood.com, Snow continues to develop the promotional stories and events happening at international film festivals around the world. As the festival’s media spokesperson, Snow is responsible for the international media messages form the various events associated with CPP.

Kim Baldwin, Director of Administration & Publicity Material Editor
Baldwin began her film festival career with entertainer Sonny Bono at the Palm Springs International Film Festival as their Director of Operations. Immediately following Palm Springs, Baldwin served as the Director of Operations for The Israel Film Festival in 5 different locations for 8 years. She also serves as Director of Administration in some of the international events locations for CPP and directs the production of film guides and programs for the events.

Dr. David Kaminsky, Director of Cinematographer's Day / Int'l Programmer
Having worked with Craig Prater since 1993, Kaminsky continues to wear 2 distinctive hats as he develops film program events for CPP. He not only secures top Italian and Brazilian films, but he is the co-founder with Luciano Tovoli of the internationally-acclaimed Cinematographer's Day which showcases the talents of international cinematographers. Cinematographer's Day made it's premiere at the Palm Springs International Film Festival, but move it's location when CPP managed the Bangkok International Film Festival. Cinematographer's Day is a stand alone event that is now available world-wide.

Charles Clay, Director of Operations / Asia
Clay has spent the last 20 years in the international entertainment arena and the publicity of film talent. Just when he decided to take early retirement in Bangkok, Thailand, CPP coaxed Clay to join forces and take over the operations of the Asian market for CPP. He served as the Director of Operations for the Bangkok Int'l Film Festival for 4 years.

Hannah Fisher, International Programmer
Fisher has spent the past 20 years in the international film festival business. She has worked as Executive Directors of various film festivals to the programmer of many others. She was a film programmer for CPP at the Bangkok Int'l Film Festival and serves as Director of International Programming for major film events for CPP. She is also a film programmer for the Dubai Film Festival in the United Emerius and is an international programmer for The Floating Film Festival which departs Long Beach, California each year for exotic ports of call.

Rebecca Redshaw, International Programmer
Rebecca has worked in the film industry for more than 25 years. She worked on the restoration and preservation of more than a hundred movie titles while at Sony Pictures Entertainment. She coordinated the preservation of the vast library of Movietone News on nitrate footage for 20th Century Fox, and restored classics from the Columbia Pictures film library. Redshaw also managed the film scoring division of The Record Plant on the Paramount Studios lot coordinating the scoring sessions for Terms Of Endearment, Breathless, A Streetcar Named Desire, Winds Of War (mini-series), To Be Or Not To Be, and the bestselling breakthrough video Thriller by Michael Jackson. She currently serves as a film programmer and coordinates seminars for various film festivals for CPP.