NEWSMAKERS

East West Banker Tends to Valley Growth

James C. Cline hopes to raise East West Bank’s profile in Los Angeles by targeting small and medium-sized businesses in the Valley.

As the first vice president and regional vice president of the San Marino-based bank’s new San Fernando Valley Commercial Banking Center, Cline has been assigned to develop relationships with commercial customers and high-net-worth individuals through East West’s credit, cash management, investment and insurance services.

The Tarzana center, which opened in August, is East West’s first branch in the San Fernando Valley, Cline said. East West is the third-largest bank headquartered in Los Angeles County.

“The most challenging task is getting the word out that East West is in the Valley and has the strength that it does,” said Cline. “There is a perception that it is a Chinese oriented bank. Although this will always be a part of the bank, it is a full service bank dedicated to California.”

Cline will direct all commercial banking activities in the San Fernando Valley and manage the Tarzana branch, which is part of the center.

Cline said he would help local businesses expand by guiding their credit decisions and helping them avoid mistakes.

“Many small business don’t have people dedicated to developing business plans,” Cline said. “As their banker, I can help businesses think about where they are going to be in five years and have their business account set up in a way to meet those demands. I help them anticipate and avoid a crisis.”

Cline has more than 20 years of experience in customer service management. He began his career in 1980 with United California Bank shortly before it became part of First Interstate Bank. He has worked in the government lending department of City National Bank and with the Industrial Bank of Japan and Australia and New Zealand Banking Group Ltd. (ANZ Bank).

He holds a law degree from the University of San Francisco and an undergraduate degree in business from the University of California, Berkeley. He lives in La Canada Flintridge with his wife and three children.

Laurie Kaye

Advertising and Marketing

Carmen Dorr has joined Colby & Partners as associate creative director where she will primarily manage the Suzuki Automotive account for the Santa Monica agency. Dorr comes from Bates USA West where she was associate creative director and senior vice president.

Westlake Village-based Mustang Marketing & Advertising, which specializes in the hi-tech, health care, financial and manufacturing industries, has hired Amanda Becker as a business development specialist. Becker comes from Tangram Enterprise Solutions in Cary, N.C.

Banking and Finance

Wayne K. Shimohara has been promoted to senior vice president of Union Bank of California where he is also manager of the bank’s Los Angeles main office. Shimohara has been with Union Bank since 1988.

Roxbury Capital Management LLC has announced the addition of Steve Marshman, Robert Marvin and Brian Smoluch to lead the firm’s new small cap growth strategy. The three previously managed both small- and mid-cap investment portfolios for Columbia Management Group in Portland, Ore., a division of Fleet Boston Financial Inc.

Countrywide Home Loans Inc. has named Preston R. James as the new executive vice president and chief operating officer of the Wholesale Lending Division. James, who will oversee the division’s operations, technology, strategic planning and finance areas, previously served as executive vice president of the consumer direct lending division at HomeSide Lending in Florida.

Consulting

Rachel Bresnick has joined Aquent as an agent at its Los Angeles office where she will be responsible for day-to-day client services and talent management. Aquent provides staffing and consulting for print and Web design and production, database development and project management. Bresnick was a campus recruiting manager for Cap Gemini Ernst & Young.

Education

Arnel Pascua is the new dean of instructional and information technology at Los Angeles City College. He has been acting dean since 2000. Before that, he was the college’s coordinator of college information systems and senior computer and network support specialist.

Entertainment

Michael T. Nicolaou has been named general manager at Blur Studios, a Venice-based visual effects, animation and design house. He will oversee daily operations and long-term planning. Nicolaou previously was regional director for Intergraph Corp.

Gunilla Molund has been named managing director of Gurin Co., a production company based in Studio City. Molund had previously served as head of international affairs and business development at Jarowskij Sverige AB, in Stockholm.

Dina Chang has been named an executive producer at broadcast design and animation company Humunculus. Chang had been executive producer for Spank Music + Sound Design.

Culver City-based Sony Pictures Television International has appointed Andy Kaplan senior executive vice president, international networks. He will be responsible for distribution and advertising sales for more than 30 channels in Asia, Europe and Latin America, as well as managing ventures with partners such as HBO, Showtime and Cinemax. Kaplan, who replaces Jon Petrovich, most recently has been an entertainment and media consultant in Los Angeles. He is the former chairman and chief executive of Hollywood Stock Exchange.

The Screen Actors Guild has hired Tom LaGrua for the new position of national director of contract strategy where he will be involved with long-term strategic planning on bargaining positions for contract negotiations. Before being hired for the staff position, LaGrua was a SAG vice president and has appeared on “Caroline in the City,” “NYPD Blue,” “The Practice” and “ER.”

Sandi Pandos is the new vice president for communications at Fine Living, the Los Angeles-based cable network owned by Scripps Howard. Before joining the network, Pandos had owned a public relations firm.

Ron Herman has been promoted to senior vice president and general manager for Universal CityWalk operations, responsible for all leasing, marketing and operations. He had previously served as vice president for sales and marketing.

Health Care

Dr. Linh Chen is the new medical director of Women’s Imaging at Glendale Adventist Medical Center. Chen, who recently joined the hospital’s radiology department after completing residency training at University of California, San Francisco, will be involved in expanding mammography and other women’s services.

Daniel Leon is the new chief financial officer of the Encino campus of Encino-Tarzana Regional Medical Center, a 387-bed acute care Tenet California hospital on two campuses in the San Fernando Valley. Leon was executive director of financial operations at Good Samaritan Hospital in Los Angeles.

Hospitality

Susanne Mosmann has been named sales manager of Hotel Casa Del Mar in Santa Monica. She will be responsible for new account development at the beachfront hotel. Mosmann was most recently sales manager at the Beverly Hilton.

Law

The Association of Business Trial Lawyers has named several new members to its board of governors. Joining the board are: Robert S. Span, president of Paul Hastings Janofsky & Walker LLP; Alan E. Friedman, vice president of Jones Day Reavis & Pogue LLP; Jeff W. Westerman, secretary of Milberg Weiss Bershad Hynes & Lerach LLP; and Patrick A Cathcart treasurer of Hancock Rothert & Bunshoft.

Michael Bradbury, District Attorney of Ventura County, will join Weston Benshoof Rochefort Rubalcava & MacCuish LLP as a partner in its Westlake Village office Nov. 1. Bradbury is retiring after 24 years as DA and 33 years as a prosecutor.

Carol Contes has been named head of the entertainment practice at Valensi Rose & Magaram PLC. Contes, who had previously worked with entertainment companies as legal counsel and in planning and development, will focus on transactions in television, film and new media.

Non-Profit

The Los Angeles Mission has named James Santiago Lewis as its new executive director. Rev. Lewis will be responsible for developing the mission’s urban training institute, a program for the rehabilitation of the homeless. Rev. Lewis joined the mission in 1989 as chaplain.

Public Relations

Leah Mitchell, Barry Schoenfeld and Paul Brunskill have been been hired by Fraser Communications in Santa Monica. Mitchell is the new vice president and media director, Schoenfeld is vice president for strategic planning and Brunskill is senior art diector.

Real Estate

James Camp has been hired as senior vice president of development and acquisitions for Woodland Hills-based Voit Development Co. Camp will be responsible for new business development, project feasibility analysis, underwriting and acquisitions for southeast Los Angeles, South Bay, Inland Empire and Orange County. He previously was a vice president for Lowe Enterprises.

Patricia Gilbert, former marketing manager for Hines, has joined Arden Realty Inc. as a senior portfolio leasing manager of West Los Angeles. Gilbert will be part of a team overseeing the leasing of approximately 1.4 million square feet of office space at Howard Hughes Center as well as an additional 600,000 square feet in 3 Westside buildings in Arden’s portfolio.

Tourism

Kathryn Smits is the new director of the Beverly Hills Conference & Visitors Bureau. Smits will be involved in promoting the city’s hotels, restaurants, shops and spas. She had been marketing manager of the Hong Kong Tourism Board since 1996.