FILMMAKERS
Scott Kirschenbaum - Writer, Director, Producer
Scott Kirschenbaum directed and produced the documentary Jumor: A Journey through Jewish Humor, concerning Jewish humor in Jewish nursing homes. His short films include Three Bagel Sunday, Uphill, Beached Surfer, and Good Times Goodbye.
Kirschenbaum has served as a literary mentor for kindergarteners and 4th graders through the Knowledge Project in the Bronx, New York, taught English to middle school students in Shaoxing, China, and instructed New Haven students through the Peace by Peace program. He was raised in Phoenix, Arizona, and graduated from Yale University.
Stosh Mintek - Producer
A graduate of Yale University with a degree in Film Studies and English, Stosh Mintek currently serves as Development Coordinator for the Ghetto Film School (GFS), a non-profit dedicated to training young filmmakers in the South Bronx. During his tenure, the Ghetto Film School has garnered numerous accolades (including the prestigious Mayor's Award for Arts and Culture in 2006), and GFS student films have won jury prizes and scholarships at film festivals across the country. Stosh's recent film projects include: writing and directing "Little Fish," a short film shot in Michigan which was a 2008 Official Selection at the Los Angeles International Shorts Film Festival; directing "Uphill," a short film shot in New York City; and producing "Elementary Cool," a short film directed by Scott Kirschenbaum in Phoenix, Arizona. This past December, he assistant-directed "The Fun House," a forthcoming short film directed by Thomas Higgins and produced by Jack Sachs, shot on-location in Biddeford Pool, Maine. This summer, he will assistant-direct "The Line," a dramatic short directed by Joe Petrilla in New York City.
John Givens - Associate Producer, Graphic Designer
John is an artist, filmmaker, and art director, working in San Francisco. He recently directed "Working Title", a documentary about career, identity and the American artist. His work has been shown at The San Francisco Museum of Modern Art, Intersection for the Arts, and the San Francisco Arts Commission Gallery. In addition to "Three Bagel Sunday," he is in production on "You Remind Me of Me," a thirty minute documentary on Alzheimer's Disease. By day, John is a Senior Art Director at Underground Advertising, where he creates television, print, and outdoor campaigns for non-profit organizations. By night, he pretends to sleep while listening for his nine month old son, Boone.
Richard Byrd - Sound Design
Spanning nearly 15 years, Richard's love of everything audio is boundless. Beginning with recording his high school band in a garage and a barn, Richard took his creative love of sound and over the subsequent years married it with his obsession of film to kick start a career sound designing film and video projects. Richard attended San Francisco State University, where in his adventures in the vaunted halls and subterranean studios he crossed paths with another audio stalwart, Kevin Crawford, and form a personal friendship, as well as a professional partnership that has led to the creation of Sound Of Sight Productions. Previously Richard worked as a sound recordist on the web serial Adventures with Seth. He was also a sound recordist as well as sound designer for the award winning short documentary Activist State. Besides having recently worked on Peripheral Productions' Elementary Cool and Three Bagel Sunday, Richard is currently producing a documentary titled Seeing Sound which expounds the world of sound artists living and working in the San Francisco Bay Area.
Kevin Crawford - Sound Design
The road to sound design for this wide-eyed audiophile was carved out of a creative past as a drummer and self-taught audio engineer. Kevin decided to turn his passion for audio into a career in sound design, graduating from San Francisco State University's nationally-recognized Broadcasting and Electronic Communication Arts (BECA) program. Through BECA, he worked on two award-winning projects: the historical documentary "Activist State" and the animated short "Muto Remixed." His growing reputation brought him opportunities as lead sound designer on a promotional video for The Smile Foundation and in creating an original soundscape for Lares Feliciano's "Push On." Most recently, he is serving as sound designer on Peripheral Productions' "Elementary Cool" and "Three Bagel Sunday," and the NBC Bay Area pilot "XYZ TV."
Vincent Pascoe - Director of Photography
Jeremy Solterbeck, Associate Producer/Editor
Jeremy Solterbeck is a music video director and filmmaker who specializes in hand drawn animation and CG visual effects. His clients include everyone from Dan the Automator to Converse to the legendary Foetus. His controversial animated short on the subject of God and cloning screened all over the world and received a number of awards. He recently finished ¡El Presidente!, a comedy starring the punk rock luchador outfit, Incredibly Strange Wrestling.
615 Music - Music Supervision
615 Music is a world leader in original music/sound design, news packages and production music. The 615 Music Library has over 500 Cds, across 11 libraries including Platinum Series, Scoring Stage Music, Promo Accelerator, 615 Song Catalog, AMP, Cosmind Production Music, Kingsize, Metro, Music Gallery, Music Shop, and Zen! Our music is used within shows such as "Today Show", "Regis and Kelly," CBS, ABC Sports, HGTV, Fox News Channel, and more. Over 200 local TV stations and Networks worldwide use 615 Music.
Ali Levie - Production Designer
A San Francisco Bay Area native, Ali Levie is a graphic designer for an international law firm. Having earned a degree in Visual Art from Bowdoin College in 2003, Ali went on to earn a Certificate in Fashion Studies from Parsons the New School for Design in New York City. While in New York, Ali worked as a skate mentor with STOKED, an action sports mentoring program working with at-risk youth in the Lower East Side. She did art direction for the short film "Breathe," filmed in Oakland in 2007, and she has fond memories of her last major acting role, in which she played a granny potato in her middle school's spring variety show.
Shane Boris - Associate Producer/Script Supervisor
Following an informal collaboration with a Hollywood/Bollywood production in Kerala, India, Shane Ostroff Boris served as associate producer for Concert Cinema's "Elementary Cool". He has also worked in public relations, marketing, strategy and organizational development for corporations and non-profits in the fields of indigenous land rights, disaster relief, social finance, and youth advocacy. He is currently producing a new work of theater in the San Francisco Bay Area.
Julia Febiger - Production Assistant
Julia currently works for GirlVentures, a nonprofit organization whose mission is to empower adolescent girls to develop and express their strengths through outdoor adventure programs, creative arts, and group experiences. An avid runner herself, Julia has also been a volunteer coach for Girls On The Run, a curriculum-based running program for girls ages 8-13. Next fall, Julia will pursue a master's degree in "Human Development and Psychology" at the Harvard Graduate School of Education. Julia loves playing outside and is excited to join the "Elementary Cool" project. She has a B.A. in Psychology with a minor in Italian from Bowdoin College.
Jordan Pearlstein - Production Consultant
Jordan Pearlstein has spent the last eight years studying and practicing conflict resolution and nonviolence locally and around the world, including in Israel, Northern Ireland, The Hague, and Syria. Ms. Pearlstein graduated Summa Cum Laude from Scripps College with a self-designed, dual major in Conflict Transformation and Middle Eastern Studies. She has worked at several non-profits focusing on conflict resolution and nonviolence, including as a community mediator with low-income communities in Pomona, California. In addition, Ms. Pearlstein worked with Tikkun where she served as a lead organizer in the inaugural 1,500-person Spiritual Activism Conference and as the National Organizer for the Tikkun Campus Network, which focused on peace, justice and reconciliation in Israel-Palestine. She also worked as a Program Associate at the Western Justice Center Foundation, where she focused on conflict resolution education and community dialogue programs. It was there that Ms. Pearlstein facilitated the committee for Los Angeles Mayor Villaraigosa's first annual Youth Mediation Summit, which included hundreds of students and teachers from Los Angeles Unified School District’s most violence-ridden schools. Most recently Ms. Pearlstein served as the Program Director at the Metta Center for Nonviolence Education. She has spoken and presented workshops on nonviolence and conflict resolution at numerous conferences and events around the country. She will begin a Masters Program at the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy beginning August 2008.
Jennifer McCuen – Assistant Producer
Jennifer recently graduated from Arizona State University with a degree in Film and Media Production. While studying at Arizona State, Jennifer nurtured her passion for storytelling as a producer and still photographer, which led to the creation of FotoJennik Productions. In the past year Ms. McCuen has produced several student shorts, and has also freelanced for television shows such as American Idol and UFO Hunters. She is currently in post-production for her own short film "Take My Hand," which she wrote, directed, and produced.
