Issue link: https://digital.copcomm.com/i/1494244
CINEMA AUDIO SOCIETY 59TH CAS AWARDS | 7 THE 59TH ANNUAL CAS AWARDS A L E T T E R F R O M T H E P R E S I D E N T | 2 0 2 3 Greeting Friends, W E L C O M E T O T H E 5 9 T H C A S A W A R D S Tonight, we celebrate your outstanding achievements in sound mixing for 2022, the incredible force of nature that is our Career Achievement recipient, Peter J. Devlin CAS, and our Filmmaker of the Year, Alejandro González Iñárritu. But, most importantly, we gather tonight to re-kindle meaningful relationships and fan the flames of new ones. For me, tonight's festivities will signify a bittersweet moment as I will conclude my second term and pass the gavel to a new CAS president. There are no words to draw on to express my gratitude for the trust you have bestowed upon me in this critical role. Since receiving the gavel from Mark Ulano CAS, your CAS Board of Directors, Committee Chairs, volunteers, team of dedicated vendors, and I have worked tirelessly to continue guiding CAS in a positive direction. Tonight, we stand larger in numbers with a greater diversity of experience covering a wider geographical footprint. We have increased educational and networking events, our contributions to charities, and expanded co-productions and partnerships with other nonprofits. Beyond our flourishing CAS Quarterly and podcast series, In Conversation, we now offer a YouTube channel, as well as CAS Mixer Merch, that includes all manner of gear for members to display their pride in membership. There is magic in this organization created by sound mixers for sound mixers. Together, we thrive through our volunteerism efforts while ensuring a legacy for the future of our craft. As president, I have had a front-row seat to the boundless offerings a community such as the CAS can provide. Enduring a pandemic made clear that to rise above challenges, we must be passionate about life, respond to scarcity with generosity, fear with gratitude, and seek to instill fellowship when we feel isolated and estranged. Mentorship, community, and kindness are critical keystones to success. There is no challenge we cannot overcome if we remain determined to lift each other up. We must ever endeavor to ask questions, welcome queries, and seek solutions collaboratively to garner success. Being your president will undoubtedly be one of the greatest honors I will experience. I hope that I have succeeded in increasing the value and relevancy of Cinema Audio Society to you during my tenure. Our new Board will usher in the next generation of ideas building upon what we have created together thus far. When we align our collective intentions with action, we hold power to manifest greatness. It is an excited time in our society's history. "Individually, we are one drop. Together, we are an ocean." –Ryunosuke Satoro In Gratitude, Karol Urban CAS/MPSE President I Cinema Audio Society