Michael Hayden

Michael Hayden began writing in 2001. In late 2002, he co-founded Toronto based ChefThomas Productions with Sean Thomas. While with ChefThomas, Michael was instrumental in acquiring FALL DOWN DEAD (released in 2007), finding the director, Jon Keeyes, and partnering with HighlandMyst Entertainment.

After that venture, Michael decided to refocus his energies into story telling. In 2005, he co-founded the Omaha Screenwriting Workshops. Two years later, Teresa and Michael founded Smoke and Shadow Productions. Michael's script, THE LAST CAR, placed in the semi-finals of the 2008 Nicholl's Fellowship in Screenwriting. It finished in the top 100 of nearly 6,500 scripts. The following year, THE LAST CAR finished again in the top 2% of Nicholl's entrants. In 2010, THE LAST CAR placed in the top 10% of the Austin Film Festival screenplay competition.

Teresa Affleck

Teresa Affleck began screenwriting in 1997. Her first script, “Vicious Heart” advanced to the Quarterfinals of the Scriptapalooza competition and advanced to the second round of Project Greenlight.

Teresa began working in film production in 1999. She worked in film and television production in many different capacities for such companies as TBS and Animal Planet. Teresa served as a casting intern and production assistant for director Alexander Payne’s “About Schmidt”. She has worked on numerous occasions as a casting assistant for award winning casting director, John Jackson.

Teresa co-founded the Omaha Screenwriting Workshops with Michael Hayden in 2005 with the goal of meeting and supporting other screenwriters in the Omaha area. The following year, she also became the Conference Coordinator and jurist for the Omaha Film Festival and continues to work in that capacity.