The Introduction

I've been working for over 15 years in the film and television industry. I majored in Film Studies at Carleton University and returned to school a few years later for a diploma from Algonquin College's Radio and Television Broadcasting program. I started in Ottawa on corporate videos, commercials, television series and films including Le Dortoir, which won an International EMMY Award. As Production Manager and Segment Producer for Knowledge Network and at SOMA Productions, I contributed to series such as A History of Science in Canada, Frontiers of Discovery, Journeys, Women's Wellness and Nature Walk. As Executive Director of the Vancouver Jewish Film Festival from 1997 until 2004, I'm particularly proud that I took the Festival from an audience of 1700 to over 6000, and through an emphasis on quality premiers and unique programming made VJFF a benchmark for other festivals.

For the past few years, my time has been divided between two equally challenging and rewarding livelihoods: writing and consulting in the film industry. I've been working as a freelance writer, off and on, for many years. Although I was contributing scripts for many of the series I worked on, I've been able to branch out into other areas including researching and writing manuals, handbooks, articles, proposals and other sorts of business and educational material. I actually enjoy this quite a bit as each job offers opportunities to learn.

Since leaving my position with the Vancouver Jewish Film Festival I'm frequently asked to conduct workshops, for adults and teens, on various aspects of 'Jewish film.' I cover a range of topics, from 'The Holocaust on Film' to 'Jewish Super-heroes.' Teaching teens, which I've been doing through the TAG program, is a great challenge. Kids today seem so much more worldly than we were at their age. I hope through my workshops to provide context to the flood of images and sounds they're bombarded with every day. All of my workshops and training sessions can be customized to fit the needs of any organization or group.

So that's me. I'll be updating the blog with information on my activities, film reviews, articles on clients, and the occassional rant. If you have any thoughts on anything you read here, please post a comment. Thanks.