TEAM
GARY LANG - DIRECTOR
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Gary Lang is an accomplished writer and director specializing in unscripted storytelling for international television. In the past quarter-century Lang has directed, written, or produced over three hundred award-winning and high-rating programs seen by billions worldwide. Top broadcasters include Discovery Channel, History Channel, PBS, CBC, National Geographic, Vice, Canal+, BBC, and Channel Four.
Lang’s areas of interest and expertise cover a vast number of subjects, including science, technology, natural history, archaeology, disasters, war, military intelligence, exploration, and crime. All of these programs are distinguished by their attention to story, access, and high production values.
With over two decades of field experience as a director, Lang’s high-profile work has ranged from deep ocean exploration (Titanic, Raising the Kursk) to risky expeditions (The Crystal Cave), programs which are among the top-rated and most heavily repeated on cable. He has directed documentaries with James Cameron, Stephen Hawking, and countless other respected scientists and explorers. His collaborations have led to ongoing relationships with NASA, FBI, CIA, Homeland, US Navy, and other venerable agencies around the world.
Storyline Entertainment CEO and Emmy Award-winning producer Ed Barreveld is one of Canada’s top independent documentary-film professionals. A hands-on producer with 35 years of experience in both financing and the field, Barreveld brings together Canadian and international storytellers, investors, and partners on documentaries that explore underexposed places and perspectives in society and culture.
Barreveld has partnered with producers and investors in Germany, Belgium, Australia, Greece, France, Chile, and the U.S.A. He regularly attends many of the top documentary market events.
Storyline titles have sold internationally, screened at Tribeca, Hot Docs, IDFA, and TIFF, and garnered numerous festival accolades, as well as Emmy, Gemini, and Canadian Screen awards and nominations.
Barreveld is a member of the Documentary Organization of Canada, the International Documentary Association and the Academy of Canadian Cinema and Television’s Documentary Film Committee.
ED BARREVELD - PRODUCER
IAN THORNTON - CO-PRODUCER
Prior to becoming a novelist, Ian Thornton worked for Broadcast, TV World and Variety magazines, covered the Royal wedding in London for CTV, Canada's premier independent broadcaster, and has written for Wisden Cricketer, The Guardian, The Hindu and the Soho House magazine, House. He also wrote on the football World Cup in South Africa for the Canadian sports channel, The Score, and has worked for Queen’s University in Ontario, where his project was presented at the White House as part of President Obama's new media initiative.
Ian is the official biographer of the Compton cricket club in California, and has been a judge on Latin America’s largest film festival, Expresion en Corto. He also edited and wrote for the leading San Miguel de Allende tourist guide and website, Portal San Miguel. He is a co-founder of the global television industry publisher and market-leader, C21 Media.
Ian’s first novel, The Great and Calamitous Tale of Johan Thoms was published by Simon & Schuster in Canada in 2013, and, a year later, by HarperCollins in the U.K., U.S. and the Commonwealth. It was translated across Europe, taught at the Sorbonne, and nominated for the Man Booker, and received a Kirkus Star. https://www.ian-thornton.com/johan-thoms
His second novel, The Deaths and Afterlife of Aleister Crowley was published to a fanfare in late 2019, and had a second edition reprint in the U.K. as well as a launch in the U.S. and Canada. www.ian-thornton.com/aleister-crowley
His third book, My Year of Living Anonymously, a non-fiction account of his relationship with Anonymous’ Commander X, will be published in 2020.
Ian Thornton received a First Class B.A. (Hons) from Sheffield University. Ian has lived in a number of places including California, Costa Rica, Australia, Mexico, London, and his native and beloved Yorkshire before moving to Toronto in 2009 where he lives with his wife, Heather Gordon, and their two children, Laszlo and Clementine.
Patrick McGowan is a cinematographer who, oddly, has not won a single award in his twenty-five years behind the lens even though he has shot commercials for some of the top brands around today including Nike, Microsoft, McDonalds, Honda and Nissan to name a few. Additionally, Pat is pretty versatile - he is equally comfortable shooting feature films, series television, commercials, and documentaries having traveled the world doing so.
One would have thought such diversity would have increased his chances at grabbing at least one award somewhere along the path. Not so. None the less, P.B.S., History Channel, Discovery Channel, CBS, ABC, and his cousin Sue (her wedding) have all enjoyed the benefits of overlooking this slight.
Pat lives in Toronto with his wife, son and daughter.
PAT MCGOWAN - DIRECTOR OF PHOTOGRAPHY
JOSE MANUEL GALVEZ ARAIZA - DIRECTOR OF PHOTOGRAPHY
Graduating in 1990 from The University of Universidad Valle de México (UVM) with a Bachelor's degree of Business Administration, Manuel started work in a small audiovisual production company, where he really discovered his vocation for the administration of projects and audiovisual production.
In 1993 he taught Audiovisual Production workshops at the Tecnológico de Monterrey Mexico City Campus in Xochimilco. In 1998 Manuel worked with director Carlos Carrera on the film Un Embrujo. In 2000, Manuel moved to Cancun to work with production house, C/Productions, which allowed him to work with filmmaker Gonzalo Infante (Bajo California, Al Límite de Tiempo, Ciudades del México Antiguo, among others). There he worked also on projects for Xcaret Park.
From 2009 Manuel worked four years for the Naica Project as a producer and DOP of several TV shows for different major companies such as National Geographic, Discovery Channel, Discovery UK, History Channel, Usuaia, Disney Channel Latin America.
ROB RUZIC - EDITOR
For over 15 years Rob Ruzic has been editing documentaries encompassing a wide range of subjects including social issues, nature, crime, visual arts, sports, performing arts, and biography.
His previous work with Storyline Entertainment includes Prison Pump (2018) and The Real Sherlock Holmes (2012), both directed by Gary Lang and League of Exotique Dancers (2015), directed by Rama Rau, which was the opening night selection at Hot Docs.
His previous work for TVO includes Mugshot (2014), Disfarmer: A Portrait of America (2010), and Remembering Arthur (2006), which was named one of the best films of the year by Artforum Magazine.
KEN MYHR - COMPOSER
Ken Myhr has spent the last 25 years writing music for more than 100 award winning documentary dramatic, series and feature films.
Ken began his professional life as a session guitar player, arranger, and producer contributing to numerous Cowboy Junkie and Jane Siberry recordings.
Since migrating to film in the early 90’s he has won a Canadian Screen Award, an Emmy, a Golden Sheaf and has garnered eight Gemini/CSA nominations for best score.
Recently Sembene! garnered wide critical acclaim, went to Cannes and was shortlisted for an Oscar. Herman’s House won an Emmy for best documentary and League of Exotique Dancers opened Hot Docs to sold-out houses and rave reviews. The Accountant of Auschwitz has garnered wide critical acclaim and is a Netflix top 10 streaming doc. She Walks with Apes opened the Nature of Things’ 2019 season.
Film excerpts and audio samples available here.
Daniel Pellerin has worked in sound and music post production for film and television for the past 40 years, as recording and re-recording mixer / engineer, sound design and music supervisor / editor, for digital 5.1 & 7.1 audio formats, utilizing the most current digital technology, specializing in HD productions that heavily rely on CGI content for large screen projection, HD broadcast, internet and mobile content.
Throughout his career, he has mixed all of Atom Egoyan’s 16 feature films, including the upcoming special presentation gala at this year’s Toronto International Film Festival, his new feature drama “GUEST OF HONOUR” (2019), “REMEMBER” (2016), starring Christopher Plummer and his recent feature dramas “THE DEVIL’S KNOT” (2014) with Reese Witherspoon and Colin Firth and also “THE CAPTIVE” (2015) with Ryan Reynolds and of course the Oscar nominated “THE SWEET HEREAFTER” (1996), all with Mychael Danna’s music compositions (2014’s Oscar and Golden Globe winner in the best score category for “Life of Pi”).
DANIEL PELLERIN - SOUND MIXER
TOM HILLMAN - VISUAL EFFECTS
Tom Hillman is a self-taught multifaceted artist who serves as Director of Ghost FX.
For over 30 years his innovative cutting-edge designs have given over 750 productions their unique style. Hillman has directed visual effects, corporate communication programming and animation for clients that include Disney and James Cameron, Coca-Cola, Microsoft, MTV, and EA Games, as well as a variety of feature films and documentaries. His work has been broadcast in 129 countries.
Ghost’s experienced team has over 30 years’ experience creating claymation, stop-motion and high-end CGI and have provided on set compositing, 3Dmotion tracking & capture, digital set extensions, props & miniatures and VFX supervision.
Hillman has been the recipient of an array of awards including Gold and Silver International BDA's (Broadcast Design Awards), Graphic Design Exchange, and the Best Canadian Station ID spot in 2000.
ERIN CHISHOLM - RESEARCHER
Erin Chisholm is a visual researcher with 19 years of experience collecting and clearing archive footage and still imagery for film, television and new media projects. Her work has earned her five Canadian Screen Award nominations and one win for Storyline Entertainment’s League of Exotique Dancers.
The archive achievements of Storyline Entertainment’s Dolphin Man led to a nomination for Best Use of Footage in a Natural World Production at FOCAL International.
A founding member of the Visual Researchers’ Society of Canada, Chisholm spearheaded its non-profit incorporation in 2008 and served on its Board of Directors as both Secretary and Treasurer.
SHASHA NAKHAI - ASSOCIATE PRODUCER
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Shasha Nakhai is a filmmaker based out of Toronto with Compy Films. Her award-winning films have screened at festivals and aired on TV worldwide, been released on iTunes, gone viral and been awarded Vimeo Staff Pick and Short of the Week.
Her film with partner Rich Williamson, Frame 394, was shortlisted for the 2017 Academy Award for Best Documentary Short. It had its world premiere at the Hot Docs Film Festival, and went on to win Best Film prizes at the NorthwestFest, Rhode Island, Sidewalk, New Orleans and Charleston Film Festivals. It was named one of TIFF’s Top 10 Films of 2016, and nominated for 2 Canadian Screen Awards.
Shasha has participated in several talent incubators and labs and was awarded Telefilm Canada’s Pay It Forward Prize at Hot Docs in 2016.
Shasha’s first feature documentary, Take Light, premiered at Hot Docs, Cleveland, Atlanta, Durban, AFRIFF, and Cinefest Sudbury and was selected for the Museum of Modern Art (MoMA)’s Doc Fortnight. It also aired worldwide on the CBC, BBC, ZDF and Arte.
Having graduated from Ryerson University's Broadcast Journalism program, Shasha was born in the Philippines, grew up in Nigeria and came to Canada in 2003.
She is currently adapting Catherine Hernandez’s award-winning novel, Scarborough, from page to screen as part of Telefilm Canada’s Talent to Watch Program.
Stephanie de Bem recently graduated from the Image Arts: Film Studies program at Ryerson University in Toronto, Canada. She specializes in producing, production coordinating, and assistant directing. Her short films include Your Mileage May Vary, which was aired on the CBC in August 2018, won Stephanie a Gracie Award presented by the Alliance for Women in Media, and has thus far gotten into seven film festivals; Fish Out of Water, which has screened at eight festivals to date and won several awards; and The Next Right, a film screened at the Ryerson University Film Festival to great audience review and will be beginning its festival circuit run shortly.
Steph recently became a member of the Academy Of Canadian Cinema & Television after being awarded a membership through Ryerson University and Boat Rocker Media's partnership program which awards promising film students opportunities in the entertainment industry. She won the Woman in Film Award sponsored by WIFT-T at RUFF 2019 for her work during her thesis year. She has also won four film-related scholarships while attending Ryerson.
Steph is currently freelancing as a production coordinator for both Storyline Entertainment and Compy Films and considers herself extremely lucky to be working with such amazing teams!
STEPHANIE DE BEM -PRODUCTION COORDINATOR
SHAYNE HONTIVEROS -ASSISTANT EDITOR
Shayne Hontiveros is a recent graduate of the film program at Ryerson University. She is a Toronto-based freelance picture editor and assistant editor. She recently received a Canadian Cinema Editors (CCE) Student Merit Nominee for her editing work on Jevi, a student short.
She has worked on projects commissioned and supported by Netflix, CBC, TVO and Youtube Originals. Most of them screened at domestic and international film festivals including TIFF, RIIFF, ImagineNATIVE Festival, and Toronto Reel Asian International Film Festival.
Her clients include Storyline Entertainment, Compy Films, Golden Nugget Productions Inc., Sinking Ship Entertainment, and Sandbox - La Boite a films Inc.
Born and raised in the Philippines and now living in Canada; upon moving Shayne didn’t see herself on the screen and later found out neither behind the camera. Since then, her goal has been to change that through her work with the help and guidance of other BIPOC artists and their allies.
FINANCIERS
