About The Filmmakers

THE WACHOWSKI BROTHERS (Writers / Directors / Producers) were born and raised in Chicago and have been working together for more than 30 years. Prior to writing, directing and producing "Speed Racer," they wrote and produced "V for Vendetta," directed by James McTeigue and starring Natalie Portman and Hugo Weaving. The Wachowskis also wrote, directed and executive produced "The Matrix" trilogy, starring Keanu Reeves and Laurence Fishburne. In 1996, they wrote and directed their first feature film, "Bound," a thriller starring Gina Gershon, Jennifer Tilly and Joe Pantoliano.

JOEL SILVER (Producer), one of the most prolific and successful producers in the history of motion pictures, has produced over 50 films, including the groundbreaking "The Matrix" trilogy, the blockbuster four-part "Lethal Weapon" franchise, and the seminal action films "Die Hard" and "Predator." To date, Silver's catalog of films have earned more than $10 billion in worldwide revenue from all sources.

He recently produced the holiday comedy "Fred Claus," starring Vince Vaughn and Paul Giamatti, and the critically acclaimed psychological thriller "The Brave One," starring Jodie Foster and Terrence Howard under the direction of Neil Jordan.

Silver recently structured a deal for his Dark Castle Entertainment production company, which gives him green-lighting power and creative control of all films produced under the banner. The next Dark Castle film to be released will be "RocknRolla," directed by Guy Ritchie and starring Gerard Butler, Tom Wilkinson, Thandie Newton, Chris "Ludacris" Bridges and Jeremy Piven. The film is slated to open on October 31, 2008. Upcoming Dark Castle films also include "Whiteout," a thriller directed by Dominic Sena and starring Kate Beckinsale; the horror film "The Factory," starring John Cusack; the horror thriller "Orphan"; and James McTeigue's actioner "Ninja Assassin," which Silver is producing with the Wachowski brothers.

Formed by Silver and Robert Zemeckis, in the spirit of the late horror impresario William Castle, Dark Castle previously produced a string of hit films beginning with the record-breaking 1999 release of "House on Haunted Hill," followed by "Thir13en Ghosts" in 2001, "Ghost Ship" in 2002, "Gothika" in 2003 and "House of Wax" in 2005. In 2007, Dark Castle released "The Reaping," starring Hilary Swank.

Silver's 1999 production "The Matrix" grossed over $456 million globally, earning more than any other Warner Bros. Pictures film in the studio's history at the time of its release. Universally acclaimed for its innovative storytelling and visuals, "The Matrix" won four Academy Awards, including Best Visual Effects. The first DVD release to sell one million units, "The Matrix" DVD was instrumental in powering the initial sale of consumer DVD machines.

The second installment of the epic "Matrix" trilogy, "The Matrix Reloaded," earned over $739 million at the worldwide box office, making it the highest-grossing R-rated film of all time. The opening weekend box office receipts for "The Matrix Revolutions," the final explosive chapter in the trilogy, totaled a staggering $203 million worldwide. To date, "The Matrix" franchise has grossed $3 billion from all sources worldwide.

While overseeing production on "The Matrix Reloaded" and "The Matrix Revolutions," Silver produced the integral video game "Enter the Matrix," which features one hour of additional film footage written and directed by the Wachowski brothers and starring Jada Pinkett Smith and Anthony Wong, who reprised their roles from the films. He also executive produced "The Animatrix," a groundbreaking collection of nine short anime films inspired by the visionary action and storytelling that power "The Matrix."

Silver later produced the action thriller "V for Vendetta," starring Natalie Portman, and the action comedy thriller "Kiss Kiss, Bang Bang," written and directed by "Lethal Weapon" screenwriter Shane Black and starring Robert Downey Jr., Val Kilmer and Michelle Monaghan. He also produced the hit films "Romeo Must Die," starring Jet Li and Aaliyah; "Exit Wounds," starring Steven Seagal and DMX; and "Swordfish," starring John Travolta, Hugh Jackman and Halle Berry.

A successful television producer as well, Silver is currently executive producing the CBS Friday night series "Moonlight," a romantic thriller with a twist on the vampire legend, which emerged as a hit last season, winning the People's Choice Award for Favorite New TV Drama. He previously executive produced the critically acclaimed UPN television series "Veronica Mars," starring Kristen Bell. Silver also executive produced, with Richard Donner, David Giler, Walter Hill and Robert Zemeckis, eight seasons of the award-winning HBO series "Tales from the Crypt," as well as two "Tales from the Crypt" films.

Silver began his career at Lawrence Gordon Productions, where he ultimately ascended to President of Motion Pictures. During his tenure, he also served as associate producer on "The Warriors" and, with Gordon, produced "48 HRS.," "Streets of Fire" and "Brewster's Millions."

In 1985, Silver launched his Silver Pictures production banner with the breakout hit "Commando," followed by "Jumpin' Jack Flash" and "Predator." Silver Pictures solidified its status as one of the industry's leading production companies with the release of the "Lethal Weapon" series and the action blockbusters "Die Hard" and "Die Hard 2: Die Harder." Silver also went on to produce "The Last Boy Scout," "Demolition Man," "Richie Rich," "Executive Decision" and "Conspiracy Theory."

Long before starting his producing career, as a student at Columbia High School in Maplewood, New Jersey, in 1967, Silver and a group of his friends developed a game called Ultimate Frisbee. The fast-moving team sport has since become a global phenomenon supported by tournaments in 50 countries.

GRANT HILL (Producer) recently served as producer on "V for Vendetta," and executive producer and unit production manager on "The Matrix Reloaded" and "The Matrix Revolutions." Previously, he produced Terrence Malick's "The Thin Red Line" and was co-producer on James Cameron's "Titanic." He is currently producing Terrence Malick's "Tree of Life" and "Ninja Assasin" with Joel Silver, Andy Wachowski and Larry Wachowski.

DAVID LANE SELTZER (Executive Producer) is a founding partner of Management 360, one of Hollywood's leading management/production companies. He began working on bringing "Speed Racer" to the big screen in 1986 when, at the age of 21, he optioned the motion picture rights to the original animated TV series. Seltzer has been actively involved in the development of the project over the past 20 years.

Seltzer began his career in talent management at Industry Entertainment, where, over the course of a decade, he began to represent numerous film and television clients, many of whom he continues to work with today. In addition, Seltzer also represented the late screen legend Jack Lemmon, for whom he executive produced the award-winning Showtime film "Inherit the Wind."

Seltzer studied history and literature at Harvard University, graduating in 1987. After a stint a Columbia Pictures, he earned an MBA from the Wharton School of Business in 1991.

MICHAEL LAMBERT (Executive Producer) has been working with filmed entertainment since 1974, when he began his career at Viacom in New York City. He was involved in the start-up of Showtime and Lifetime cable networks, and was responsible for the acquisition and sale of motion pictures for theatrical distribution, broadcast and cable television, eventually rising to the helm of the television division at age 27. He then joined HBO, where he was responsible for the international co¬production of HBO filmed entertainment, including HBO Premiere Films and Original Television Series. Lambert is credited with establishing HBO Video and numerous production and distribution joint ventures worldwide.

In 1985, Lambert moved to Los Angeles and joined 20th Century Fox Film Corporation as President of Domestic Television. He oversaw the company's television production and distribution activities, including such scripted shows as "21 Jump Street," "In Living Color," "L.A. Law," "M.A.S.H.," "Mr. Belvedere," "Mr. President," "The Simpsons" and "The Tracey Ullman Show," along with some of television's first reality series, including "A Current Affair," "Studs," "America's Most Wanted" and "COPS." Lambert was also responsible for the distribution of all 20th Century Fox motion picture product to cable and broadcast television. He was instrumental in the acquisition of the Metromedia Television Station Group, which became the foundation of the Fox Broadcast Network.

In 1992, Lambert Television, Inc. was formed as a media investment, holding and management company with interests in broadcasting, technology, programming and distribution. The company owns and operates television stations in the U.S. and produces and distributes first-run syndicated television programs. Lambert joined with his longtime friends and business partners Hal Gaba and Norman Lear in the formation of Crescent Entertainment, which, through its relationship with Village Roadshow Pictures, has been involved in the production of such motion pictures as "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory," "Ocean's Thirteen," the Academy Award-winning "Happy Feet," "Unaccompanied Minors" and "I am Legend."

BRUCE BERMAN (Executive Producer) is Chairman and CEO of Village Roadshow Pictures. The company will co-produce 65 theatrical features in a joint partnership with Warner Bros. through 2008, with all films distributed worldwide by Warner Bros. Pictures and in select territories by Village Roadshow Pictures.

The initial slate of films produced under the pact included such hits as "Practical Magic," starring Sandra Bullock and Nicole Kidman; "Analyze This," teaming Robert De Niro and Billy Crystal; "The Matrix," starring Keanu Reeves and Laurence Fishburne; "Three Kings," starring George Clooney; "Space Cowboys," directed by and starring Clint Eastwood; and "Miss Congeniality," starring Sandra Bullock and Benjamin Bratt.

Under the Village Roadshow Pictures banner, Berman has subsequently executive produced such wide-ranging successes as "Training Day," for which Denzel Washington won an Academy Award; "Ocean's Eleven," starring George Clooney, Brad Pitt and Julia Roberts; its sequels "Ocean's Twelve" and "Ocean's Thirteen"; "Two Weeks' Notice," pairing Sandra Bullock and Hugh Grant; "Mystic River," starring Sean Penn and Tim Robbins in Oscar-winning performances; the second and third installments of "The Matrix" trilogy, "The Matrix Reloaded" and "The Matrix Revolutions"; Tim Burton's "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory," starring Johnny Depp; the Oscar-winning animated comedy adventure "Happy Feet"; Neil Jordan's "The Brave One," starring Jodie Foster; and, most recently, the blockbuster "I Am Legend," starring Will Smith.

Village Roadshow's next release is the action comedy "Get Smart," teaming Steve Carell and Anne Hathaway. The company's upcoming projects also include the romantic drama "Nights in Rodanthe," reuniting Richard Gere and Diane Lane; the comedy "Yes Man," starring Jim Carrey; and "Gran Torino," directed by and starring Clint Eastwood.

Berman got his start in the motion picture business working with Jack Valenti at the MPAA while attending Georgetown Law School in Washington, DC. After earning his law degree, he landed a job at Casablanca Films in 1978. Moving to Universal, he worked his way up to a production Vice President in 1982.

In 1984, Berman joined Warner Bros. as a production Vice President, and was promoted to Senior Vice President of Production four years later. He was appointed President of Theatrical Production in September 1989 and, in 1991, was named President of Worldwide Theatrical Production, where he served through May 1996. Under his aegis, Warner Bros. Pictures produced and distributed such films as "Presumed Innocent," "GoodFellas," "Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves," the Oscar-winning Best Picture "Driving Miss Daisy," "Batman Forever," "Under Siege," "Malcolm X," "The Bodyguard," "JFK," "The Fugitive," "Dave," "Disclosure," "The Pelican Brief," "Outbreak," "The Client," "A Time to Kill" and "Twister."

In May of 1996, Berman started Plan B Entertainment, an independent motion picture company at Warner Bros. Pictures. He was named Chairman and CEO of Village Roadshow Pictures in February 1998.

DAVID TATTERSALL (Director of Photography) was born and raised in the beautiful Lake District of northern England. He later attended Goldsmith's University of London, where he graduated with a first class (Honors) Fine Arts Degree. He then studied at Britain's National Film and Television School, where he specialized in camera and lighting.

Tattersall's highly regarded student films include "King's Christmas," which received a 1987 BAFTA nomination for Best Short; "Caprice," which was selected for the Edinburgh and Milan Film Festivals; and "Metropolis Apocalypse," which screened at Cannes in 1988.

Tattersall is adept at switching between film and the very latest in digital photography, including big budget, large scale, effects-laden, action-packed adrenalin rides, as well as smaller films which require a "fine art" touch. He has enjoyed employing both talents in movies such as "Radioland Murders," "Con Air," "The Majestic," "The Green Mile," "The Vertical Limit," "Die Another Day," "Lara Croft Tomb Raider: The Cradle of Life," "Star Wars: Episodes I, II, III," "XXX2," "Next," "Matador" and "The Hunting Party." Tattersall's television credits include "Yellowthread Street" and "The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles," for which he won an Emmy Award and received

A.S.C. nominations for Best Cinematography. He is currently working on the remake of "The Day the Earth Stood Still."

OWEN PATERSON (Production Designer) recently designed "V for Vendetta" and both "The Matrix Revolutions" and "The Matrix Reloaded," having also served as production designer on Andy and Larry Wachowski's first installment of "The Matrix" trilogy. He is currently working in Australia on George Miller's "Justice League of America."

Paterson won an Australian Film Institute Award for Best Production Design for Stephan Elliot's "The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert." Among his other credits are "Red Planet," Stephan Elliot's "Welcome to Woop Woop," "Race the Sun," "Minnamurra," "The Place at the Coast" and "Travelling North." Paterson also served as art director on the Australian features "Bliss" and "The Coolangatta Gold."

Paterson's television credits include "Noriega: God's Favorite," "The Beast," "Shout! The Story of Johnny O'Keefe" and "The Riddle of the Stinson."

ZACH STAENBERG (Editor) is an Academy Award-winning editor best-known for his work on the groundbreaking "The Matrix" trilogy, the first of which brought him an Oscar in 2000. Staenberg's relationship with writer-directors the Wachowski brothers dates back to 1996, when he edited the neo-noir crime thriller "Bound," starring Gina Gershon and Jennifer Tilly. "Speed Racer" marks his fifth collaboration with the Wachowskis.

Staenberg, a University of Wisconsin graduate in Communications, started out as a production assistant on Brian De Palma's "The Fury" before jump-starting his editing career on "Damien: Omen II" as an apprentice editor. In 1996, Staenberg won the first of his two ACE Eddie Awards for his work on the HBO telefilm "Gotti," and also garnered his first Emmy nomination for Outstanding Editing.

Staenberg's other feature and television credits include the compelling "Lord of War" for Andrew Niccol; Peter Howitt's "Antitrust"; A&E's "The Crossing"; and the comedy classic "Police Academy." Most recently, he edited "Mongol," which received an Academy Award nomination for Best Foreign Language Film this year.

ROGER BARTON (Editor) served as editor and co-producer on the recent blockbuster "Eragon." Previously, he edited director Jim Sheridan's "Get Rich or Die Tryin'" and director Michael Bay's remake of "The Amityville Horror," and was an additional editor on Bay's "The Island."

In 2004, Barton relocated to Northern California to edit "Star Wars: Episode III -- Revenge of the Sith" for George Lucas. Prior to that, he cut four pictures for producer Jerry Bruckheimer: "Bad Boys 2," "Pearl Harbor," "Gone in Sixty Seconds" and, as associate editor, "Armageddon."

He served as associate editor on James Cameron's "Titanic," which won 11 Academy Awards, including Best Editing. Barton's other notable editing credits include "Ghost Ship" and the remake of the family comedy "That Darn Cat." He was an additional editor on the comedy "Detroit Rock City," and a first assistant on "Needful Things," "Rough Magic" and "Alaska."

Barton began his editing career as a first assistant in long-form television shows. His early credits include "Love, Honor & Obey" for CBS, "Not Without My Children" for ABC and HBO's "Indictment: The McMartin Trial," which won an Emmy Award for Best Achievement in Editing for a Miniseries or Special.

Barton graduated from Cal State Long Beach in 1989 after moving to Los Angeles from the Pacific Northwest. He currently lives in Pacific Palisades with his wife, child and Chocolate Lab, Buddy.

KYM BARRETT (Costume Designer) began her career in theater, where she gained eight years of experience as a costume designer. For her first film, Baz Luhrmann's "Romeo + Juliet," she received a Saturn Award nomination from the Academy of Science Fiction, Fantasy and Horror Films. Extensive work in commercials followed, and led to director Jake Kasdan's film "Zero Effect," on which her work specifically impressed cinematographer Bill Pope. When Pope insisted she meet with the directors of his next film, "The Matrix," Barrett's fruitful collaboration with the Wachowski brothers began.

After "The Matrix," which became a phenomenon and earned Barrett both a Costume Designers Guild Award nomination and her second Saturn Award nomination, she went on to design the Persian Gulf War film "Three Kings," the technically demanding sci-fi actioner "Red Planet" and the Victorian Era London-set thriller "From Hell," which earned her a Golden Satellite nomination as well as her third Saturn Award nomination. Her subsequent credits include "The Matrix Reloaded"; "The Matrix Revolutions," which brought her a fourth Saturn Award nomination; the horror thriller "Gothika," starring Halle Berry and Robert Downey Jr.; and the romantic comedies "Monster-in-Law," starring Jane Fonda, and "Rumor Has It...," with Jennifer Aniston. In 2007, Barrett received her second Costume Designers Guild Award nomination, for her work on the fantasy action film "Eragon."

Barrett's designs will next be seen in two upcoming films: the historical drama "The Children of Huang Shi," with Jonathan Rhys Meyers and Radha Mitchell, and the sci-fi remake "The Day the Earth Stood Still," on which she designed for principal cast members Keanu Reeves, Jennifer Connelly and Jaden Smith.

MICHAEL GIACCHINO (Composer) was nominated for an Academy Award this year for his score to the animated blockbuster "Ratatouille," which went on to win the Oscar for Best Animated Film. He made his feature film composing breakthrough with his acclaimed score for "The Incredibles," and went on to compose music for the live-action superhero film "Sky High," the comedy-drama "The Family Stone," Albert Brooks' "Looking for Comedy in the Muslim World" and the thriller "Mission: Impossible III."

His next feature score will be heard in "Star Trek," the highly anticipated sci-fi actioner from filmmaker J.J. Abrams.

In addition to his work in feature films, Giacchino has composed for many genres in other media, including television shows, animated shorts, video games, and stand¬alone symphonies, with themes running the gamut from driving to melancholic, suspenseful to serene. Fans of the hit ABC shows "Lost" and "Alias" have been enjoying his compositions for several seasons. Previously, Giacchino scored the PlayStation video game based on Steven Spielberg's summer box office hit "The Lost World," featuring the first original live orchestral score written for a PlayStation console game, which was recorded with the Seattle Symphony. He went on to compose many orchestral scores for interactive media, including the highly successful "Medal of Honor" series, a World War II simulation game created by Spielberg.

On May 13th, 2000, the Haddonfield Symphony premiered Giacchino's first Symphony, "Camden 2000." The concert took place at the Sony E-Center in Camden, New Jersey, with proceeds benefiting the Heart of Camden, an organization dedicated to rebuilding inner-city housing.

Giacchino studied film production at the School of Visual Arts in New York City, and subsequently pursued composition studies at the prestigious Juilliard School.

JOHN GAETA (Visual Effects Supervisor) won an Academy Award and a BAFTA Award for his work pioneering "Bullet Time" and other groundbreaking effects for "The Matrix." He then continued his collaboration with the Wachowski brothers overseeing effects on the second and third films in the cinematic trilogy. For "The Matrix Reloaded," he won two Visual Effects Society Awards: for Best Single Visual Effect and for Outstanding Visual Effects. For "The Matrix Revolutions," he again received a VES Award nomination for Outstanding Visual Effects.

Gaeta is active in advocating next-generation hybrid entertainment, fusing state-of-the-art film storytelling and interactive game design. Beyond his film role for "Speed Racer," he assisted the Wachowskis additionally by advising on the look and play objectives of the Wii game console and other video game counterparts.

DAN GLASS (Visual Effects Supervisor) won a Visual Effects Society Award for his groundbreaking work in the Wachowski brothers' "The Matrix Reloaded." Marking his fourth collaboration with the visionary filmmakers on "Speed Racer," Glass also served as visual effects supervisor on "The Matrix Revolutions" and "V for Vendetta," for which he received a Satellite Award nomination for Best Visual Effects. In 2006, he received BAFTA and Saturn Award nominations for Best Visual Effects for Christopher Nolan's "Batman Begins." He was also visual effects supervisor on the horror thriller "Thir13en Ghosts."

Glass began his career in visual effects in 1995 and went on to serve in various capacities as a designer, compositer and animator. Among his many credits are "Mission: Impossible," "Mission: Impossible II," "The Beach," "Sleepy Hollow," "The Bone Collector," "Notting Hill," "Tomorrow Never Dies" and "Muppet Treasure Island."

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