Lance Acord

Destined to be: Director and

co-owner of Park Pictures, NY

Strongest subject: Being aesthetically pleasing

Work experience: Adidas Impossible is Nothing campaign and "Wake Up Call" through TBWA\Chiat\Day; Audi "Progressions" through McKinney & Silver; work for ESPN; Mitsubishi. DP'd Gold Clio-winning PS2 spots for TBWA

Friends say: "No director attitude. He's a great problem solver, painstakingly matching lighting and angles and performances" - Peter McHugh, CD, 180 Amsterdam. "Lance embodies remarkable technical capacity, artfulness, sensitivity - and he knows sports!" - Jennifer Golub, director of broadcast, TBWA\Chiat\Day, SF.

Voted most likely to: Get the Queer Eye vote for good taste

Kirk Baxter

Destined to be: Senior editor at Final Cut, NY

Strongest subject: The art of cutting film, and cutting comments

Work experience: Numerous jobs for Adidas, Fox Sports, HP, Axe and more

Friends say: "A fantastically intuitive editor, particularly about story and emotional thru line. He's the heir to Hank Corwin's mantle" - Steve Wax, EP, Chelsea Pictures, NY. "A great go-to guy - when I want a beer. Nah, he's actually bloody talented and brings a lot to the table. He's easy to work with - there's no bollocks - and if a client comes in wearing a crap shirt, Kirk is always the first to point it out" - Rupert Samuel, producer, Crispin Porter + Bogusky, Miami.

Voted most likely to: Demand a hotel room upgrade

Neill Blomkamp

Destined to be: Director, Embassy VFX/Spy Films, Toronto

Strongest subject: Fusing effects with strong statements

Work experience: Nike "Evolution", "Crab" (W+K); Tetley "Escape Kitchen" (John St.)

Friends say: "He has boundless energy and an enthusiasm for his work that is contagious. I hope five years from now when he is the phenomenal success he's destined to be, he'll still have the same level of excitement for his work and, um, that he will remember my name" - Shannon Worley, W+K, Portland. "I think Neill is one of the best new directors I've seen this year" - Emma Scott, producer, Saatchi & Saatchi, London.

Voted most likely to: Vault onto the A-list

Brian Carmody/ Patrick Milling Smith

Destined to be: Owner/founders of NY production company Smuggler

Strongest subject: Spotting new talent; sweet-talking agencies

Classmates: Brian Beletic, David Frankham, Neil Harris, StyleWar

Work experience: Ikea (CP+B); Adidas (TBWA); Bacardi & Cola (davidandgoliath); Netflix (GS&P)

Friends say: "Brian has impeccable insight, is a great problem solver and creates a positive magnetic field around him" - Jennifer Golub, head of broadcast, TBWA, SF. "Patrick has an excellent eye to screen directors at the right moment. He builds them up professionally and carefully" - Kai Stocker, Cobblestone, Germany.

Voted most likely to: Shoot for that oversized yacht or wine collection

Michelle Curran

What she does: Runs Amber Music, UK/LA/NY

Strongest subject: Simultaneously fazing and wowing everyone in the biz

Work experience: Amex for Ogilvy, NY; Beck's (Leo Burnett, London); PBS "Puppet", BMW "Angels" (Fallon)

Friends say: "Always right on track with interpreting stodgy agency briefs and bringing something interesting to the party" - Linda Rafoss, Version 2 Editing, NY. "Her only agenda is to do the right thing for the work, and if you're talking crap, she'll tell you" - Jennie Wadhams, head of broadcast, Publicis. "A delight to work with with a stable of talent to match" - Guy Seese, Cole Weber/Red Cell.

Voted most likely to: Win any raffle prize, not to mention any Betsy Johnson lookalike contest

Pablo Cruz/ Ana Laura Solis

Destined to be: Joint owners of The Lift, a two-year-old production company in Spain

Strongest subject: Staying on the ball - the pair opened a feature film department in February 2003 and a production services office in their native Mexico last year

Work experience: Heineken "Three Centuries" through Publicis, NY; Renault through Publicis Paris; and BMW "Crossroads" through *S,C,F,P... Barcelona, which was shot by Lift director José María de Orbe and won the Grand Prix at the San Sebastien festival in May

Friends say: "An amazing resource in Spain. Pablo knows everyone and can get anything done" - Josh Reynolds, Goodby & Silverstein, SF.

Voted most likely to: Build a Mediterranean summerhouse for their clients