Kalman Apple is an artist who has been mounting a career in filmmaking since his graduation from the Art Center College of Design in 1986. It's been a long road to his debut film, the featurette SPEED FOR THESPIANS (2001), which he wrote for the screen and directed. Along the way, he has made a few stops: Day jobs working in advertising and directing commercials. He co-created some of the more memorable moments in television ads like Rosie O'Donnell and Penny Marshall bantering for K-MART. He's even won the prestigious Clio® award for the animated Disney Babies for Pampers. All the way through it, however, Apple's artistic inclinations leaned towards filmmaking and SPEED FOR THESPIANS marked the culmination of years of experience and desire. A lover of literature, Appel's debut work is based on Chekhov's little known one-act play The Bear, a story of love and betrayal that takes place in one room. Appel's adaptation takes place on a New York City bus. With the success of SPEED FOR THESPIANS, Apple and his producer, Shameela Bakhsh, are now developing several projects as a writing team. They are currently working on what will hopefully be his feature directorial debut.  Nominated for Achievement in Live Action Short Films 2001: SPEED FOR THESPIANS - Producer (w. Shameela Bakhsh) 1 nomination