Face2Face with David Peck

Filmmaker Ann Shin and Face2Face host David Peck do a, Part 2, follow up conversation and talk about inclusion, approaching others, what it means to be a neighbor, healing all wounds and how to be a supportive listener.

Ann is a multiple award-winning Director, Producer and principal of Fathom Film Group. Her latest film, My Enemy, My Brother the short version was shortlisted for a 2016 Academy Award and nominated for an Emmy and was an 8-time winner of Best Short Documentary at international film festivals including Traverse City Film Festival, Grand Prize Winner of the Best Shorts Humanitarian Awards, the Sepanta Award for Best Short Film.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=42YFUwCnWzE

Her cross-platform project The Defector film and interactive was selected into 27 international film festivals, and was nominated for 6 awards, winning Best Documentary and Best Documentary Director at the 2014 Canadian Screen Awards. The Defector Interactive won the FITC Award, the Canadian Digi Award, and at the SXSW Interactive Festival.

With 20 years of experience, she has produced independent feature films, feature documentaries and delivered hundreds of hours of programming that have aired on CBC, TVO, HBO, ABC, CBC The Documentary Channel, Discovery Channel, HGTV, History Channel, SLICE.

She is currently working on several feature documentaries and cross-platform projects: Smart Drugs, The Superfood Effect and The Terrorist Hunter.

My Enemy, My Brother' is a feature length documentary about the real-life story of two former enemies from the Iran-Iraq war who become blood brothers for life. Meeting in Vancouver 30 years after Zahed, an Iranian child soldier saves Najah, a wounded Iraqi soldier's life, they are now about to embark on an emotional journey back to Iran and Iraq for the first time in 20 years.

Their journey takes them into the heart of present-day conflicts in a region ravaged by war and ISIS. Their quest is a surprising affirmation of redemption and humanity. 

IMDB

Find out more about the film here.

And learn more about Ann Shin here.

Image Copyright: Ann Shin. Fathom Film Group. Used with permission.

For more information about my podcasting, writing and public speaking please visit my site.

With thanks to producer Josh Snethlage and Mixed Media Sound.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Sally and I talked about her new film Midnight Return, irony, racism, the power of story through film and why truth is indeed stranger than fiction.

Watch the Trailer here.

Synopsis

After his ingenious escape from a Turkish prison in 1975, Billy Hayes arrived home to a hero’s welcome, instant celebrity and within a week had a book and movie deal for his story. From the moment it stunned the world at the Cannes Film Festival in 1978, 'Midnight Express' cemented its place in film history as an artistic and financial success, before becoming an indelible part of pop culture. But its lasting impact has been on Turkish people worldwide who still condemn the film as racist and blame Billy Hayes for defaming them and their country.  Despite warnings from family and friends, Billy returns to Turkey and faces a nation still haunted by the film and his own demons.

Biography

Sally Sussman Morina was born in Toronto, Canada. She attended the University of Southern California and received a Bachelor’s Degree in Broadcast Journalism. Less than two years after her graduation, Sally was hired as writer on the NBC series, “Facts of Life.” She wrote several episodes of that series while serving as a staff writer.

After leaving the sitcom business, Sally decided to pursue her lifelong passion for daytime soap operas where she was hired by William J. Bell, creator and head writer of “The Young and The Restless” as a story consultant and writer, two jobs she held for five years. During her years at Y&R, the series went from number six to number one in the Nielsen ratings, a position it has held ever since. Sally was responsible for many memorable storylines, including Dina’s return to the Abbott family, Jack and Jill’s affair, Katherine’s face lift and Lauren being stalked and ultimately, buried alive. During her tenure, she was nominated for two Emmy Awards.

In 1989 Sally was approached by Brandon Tartikoff, the President of NBC to create her own show and after submitting a bible for the series, “Generations” was born. “Generations” immediately earned accolades from the press for creating the first fully integrated daytime serial. The series launched the careers of Vivica A. Fox, Kristoff St. John and Kelly Rutherford and featured veteran performers like Richard Roundtree, Taurean Blacque, Joan Pringle and Robert Hooks. During its two year run, “Generations” received numerous awards and attention including being written into the Congressional Record. The series was sold all over the world where it still retains a huge following. After its cancellation by NBC, the series was picked up by BET which ran it again. The show may be gone but it is definitely not forgotten.

After “Generations” Sally returned to daytime again as the Head Writer of “Days of Our Lives”. During her tenure, she earned the show its first and only Writers Guild of America award for her storyline involving Sami’s execution. Along with that story, she penned the Kristen/Susan murder mystery and the Mike/Carrie love story. She was also nominated for two Emmy awards, won the People’s Choice and the TV Guide awards.

From “Days of Our Lives”, Sally went to work for MTV where she was Executive Producer and Head Writer of the network’s first evening serial called “Spyder Games”. The series ran for 65 episodes and she was nominated for another Emmy Award.

Currently, Sally has many active projects in development including a documentary entitled “Midnight Return” which chronicles the turbulent relationship between Billy Hayes, the real life character in “Midnight Express” and the republic of Turkey. Sally and her husband returned with Billy to Turkey in 2007 thirty years after Billy Hayes escaped from prison.

Sally lives with her husband, Anthony Morina who is currently the Supervising Producer of “The Young & The Restless” and their 16 year old son, Adam.

To learn more about her work visit her site here.

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Image Copyright: Sally Sussman Morina. Used with permission.

For more information about my podcasting, writing and public speaking please visit my site here.

With thanks to producer Josh Snethlage and Mixed Media Sound.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Susan and I talked about her new film Living in The Future’s Past, the environment, desire and making better choices, hope, agency and about why life is really an invitation.

Watch the Trailer and find out ore about the film here.

Synopsis

Living in the Future’s Past is a beautifully creative and unique film that weaves evolution, emergence, energy, dark ecology and what some are calling the end of nature into a story that explains our place among the species of the Earth’s household. Presented and narrated by Academy Award-winning actor Jeff Bridges and directed by Susan Kucera (Breath of Life, For the Love of Tango, Trading on Thin Air) will have its World Premiere at Santa Barbara International Film on Thursday February 1st 2018.

Jeff Bridges presents this beautifully photographed tour de force of original thinking on who we are and the environmental challenges we face. The film upends our way of thinking and provides original insights into our subconscious motivations, the unintended consequences, what to do about our fossil slaves, and how our fundamental animal nature influences our future as Humankind. Living in the Future’s Past feels like a bolt of lightning from both the future and the past and aims to put the viewer in the drivers’ seat. It is a strikingly original take on who we are, where we came from and why our thoughts and actions are the way they are.

Bridges, alongside expert scientists and authors featured in the film include climate scientist and astronaut Piers Sellers, Being Ecological author Timothy Morton,conservationist and ethnobotanist Mark Plotkin, physicist Leonard Mlodinow, former NATO Supreme Allied Commander General Wesley Clark, and author Daniel Golemanamong others as well as a stunning original music score by Bridges collaborator Keefus Ciancia (Lady Killers, Thunderbird, Sleeping Tapes) and  additional music by composer Bob Holroyd and award-winning sound designer Ken Polk.

Biography

Susan Kucera has been working in film since she was nine years old, first as a camera assistant creating science films with her father for Britannica films, then as a screenwriter and commercial director.

One of the first owner/operators of the groundbreaking Red OneCamera she produced, wrote, directed and filmed Trading on Thin Air (2009), wrote, filmed, directed and co-produced For the Love of Tango (2014), directed, filmed and produced Breath of Life (2015).

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Image Copyright: Susan Kucera. Used with permission.

For more information about my podcasting, writing and public speaking please visit my site here.

With thanks to producer Josh Snethlage and Mixed Media Sound.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Michelle and I talked about her new film The Way Out and Islamophobia, the love of a Mother for her daughter, trauma, fear, religious ideology and why sometimes it’s easier to know less.

In The Way Out, co-directors Michelle Shephard and David York, take an intimate journey with the mother (given the pseudonym Saeeda for her own protection), from Canada to Europe and Turkey and back again, as they work various channels seeking what a CSIS officer calls the “exfiltration” of Amina from inside the so-called Islamic State and into the custody of Canadian officials.

Michelle Shephard stood among the crumbling remains of New York City’s World Trade Center on the night of 9/11 and asked, “Why?” So began her journalistic journey as the Toronto Star’s National Security reporter, looking for answers in the streets of Mogadishu, Sanaa, to the mountains of Waziristan, refugee camps in Dadaab and Peshawar, the corridors of power in Washington and Ottawa, 200 km north of the Arctic Circle and flying to the world’s most famous jail in Guantanamo Bay more than two dozen times.

Shephard has won Canada’s top journalism’s prizes – a three-time recipient of the National Newspaper Award (2002, 2009, 2011) and she was part of a Toronto Star team that won the Governor General’s Michener Award for Public Service Journalism. She has collaborated on various films and was the co-director of Guantanamo’s Child, which premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival and was voted as TIFF’s Top Ten Films. She was awarded the Atkinson Fellowship in 2015 for a series called Generation 9/11, which will look at the recruitment of foreign members for Daesh, the group also known as the Islamic State.

Shephard speaks frequently on issues of national security and civil rights and lives in Toronto with her photojournalist husband Jim Rankin, traveling frequently for both work and pleasure.

Watch the Trailer here.

To learn more about her work visit her site here.

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Image Copyright: Michelle Shephard. Used with permission.

For more information about my podcasting, writing and public speaking please visit my site here.

With thanks to producer Josh Snethlage and Mixed Media Sound.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Viveka Melki talks about her art exhibition War Flowers, our human tendency toward war, and the importance of telling the story.

War Flowers is a multi-platform exhibition that will provide visitors with a unique immersive experience. It draws on letters written during World War I. Each letter home included a flower, poppies from Flanders and daisies from the Somme, picked from a battlefield and pressed between the pages. The letters written by Lt Col. Cant lie to his wife and children in Montréal, link to nine other key figures and provide perspectives on the Canadian contribution to the war effort. It is the story of humanity’s unfailing ability to find beauty in war.

War Flowers: A Touring Art Exhibition curator Viveka Melki  is a Canadian filmmaker and screenwriter. She has lived, worked and traveled in cultures where repressive regimes are dominant. From these experiences are born her projects around conflict - and the capacity of the human spirit for resilience. Reflecting on the subject of war, she says: “I dislike war because it runs in our blood and then our blood runs. My goal as an artist is to tell history in our time, with our voice as artists in this era. I bring my film experience into all my work so, in the end, I am a storyteller. I always ask one question when looking at Canadian history - what did it feel like? And if we can capture a fraction of that and bring you into that experience, then we have succeeded.”

Born in The Gambia, West Africa of Brazilian/Lebanese descent, and educated in the UK before immigrating to Canada, Melki sees the world through a multi-cultural lens. In 2014, she directed the two-part series War Correspondence (Radio-Canada, RDI). Her feature-length documentary After Circus (2015) received acclaim after screenings at several North American film festivals, including Hot Docs in Toronto and the Rencontres Internationales du Documentaire de Montréal, as well as at the prestigious Sunny Side of the Doc Festival in La Rochelle, France. It was broadcast across Canada on CBC’s documentary Channel in June 2016.

In April 2017, Viveka’s new documentary, Carricks: In the Wake of the Irish, aired on Radio-Canada & RDI. It is the tragic story of the Carricks shipwreck in 1847 and one family’s quest to find the truth – a quest that becomes the journey of the Francophone-Irish in Quebec. Viveka is currently working with the New Chapters Canada Council for the Arts on her new film, Alouette, about the Japanese POW camps during the Second World War.

http://vivekamelki.com/

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For more information about David Peck's podcasting, writing and public speaking please visit his site here or check out the site of his podcast on film, social change and much more.

With thanks to producer Josh Snethlage and Mixed Media Sound.

Image Copyright: Viveka Melki. Used with permission.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

James Day

James Day and I talk about Charles Manson, crime, criminals and psychopaths, prison as a state of mind, history, alternate facts, his new film and why the truth can sometimes be really ugly.

Trailer

Synopsis

Narrated by musician and director Rob Zombie, the documentary focuses on the Manson family murders told from Manson’s perspective using never-before-seen case files, pictures and exclusive interviews with Manson himself from inside California State Prison.

Charles Manson: The Final Words includes Manson’s eerie and disturbing conversations about modern society, justice, his decades behind bars, the Bernard Crowe shooting and the murders along with digitally restored audio recordings from the original investigations to reconstruct a path of events that led to the brutal slayings of movie star Sharon Tate and four of her friends on August 8, 1969 in addition to the murders of Gary Hinman and Donald “Shorty” Shea.

The documentary also includes compelling new interviews with members of the Manson family which reveal never-before-heard details that help uncover the real story and motives behind the grisly murder spree.

Viewers will hear from accused Manson family members Bobby Beausoleil, Barbara Hoyt and Catherine “Cappi” Gillies along with prosecutor Stephen Kay, defense attorney Gary Fleischman, music producer Phil Kaufman as well as other investigators and authors.

Biography

James Buddy Day is the writer and director of Manson: The Voice Of Madness narrated by Rob Zombie.

Manson: The Voice Of Madness is an official selection of the Red Rock Film Festival, Cuff Docs, and the winner of Best Dramatic Documentary at the Atlanta International Film Festival.

As a writer/director James’ other feature credits include the character driven documentaries Goalie: Life And Death In The Crease (2015) and The Salvation Of Todd Bentley (2014).

James is the Showrunner of true crime series The Shocking Truth (2017-2018) featuring the shocking true stories behind some of the most famous movies of all times. The Shocking Truth can be seen on REELZ throughout the US, and other platforms throughout the world.

James’ extensive production experience includes travelling throughout the world as a writer/director/producer for the series Expedition Earth (Nat Geo Wild), as well as travelling throughout North America as the Showrunner and director of the food adventure series Best In Chow for CMT Canada and Cooking Channel (USA). He was served as Showrunner and director for Wild Obsession (Animal Planet), World Of Hurt With Rowdy Roddy Piper, The Big Pitch (CBC), Cultureville (CBC), Culture Secrets (CBC), and the The Screaming Room (SCREAM TV) among many other projects.

James holds a Bachelor of Nursing and Health Studies (BN) from Mount Royal University, and a Post-Baccalaureate Diploma of Counselling Psychology from the Graduate Centre for Applied Psychology at Athabasca University.

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For more information about my podcasting, writing and public speaking please visit my site here.

Image Copyright: Pyramid Productions. Used with permission.

With thanks to producer Josh Snethlage and Mixed Media Sound.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Peter, Carla and Face2Face host David Peck talk about their new book The Giveback Economy, social enterprise, innovation and entrepreneurship, community bonds, and why fulfillment has to be about more than money.

Biography

Peter Miller was a banker; started six businesses; taught college entrepreneurship, social enterprise, and marketing; and has facilitated workshops and coaching for unemployed/underemployed and summer company students. He now is a strategic advisor and social enterprise coach, and has helped more than 720 start-ups and 20 social enterprises.

Carla Langhorst firmly believes that doing good business includes doing good. After receiving an MBA from the University of British Columbia she launched a social enterprise in 2009, hiring marginalized people, and is the co-founder of an e-learning organization that has helped over 100,000 small-business owners. She currently works as a consultant for both social enterprises and non-profits.

For more information about the book head here.

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For more information about David Peck's podcasting, writing and public speaking please visit his site here or check out the site of his podcast on film, social change and much more.

With thanks to producer Josh Snethlage and Mixed Media Sound.

Image Copyright: Carla Langhorst and Self-Counsel Press. Used with permission.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Tarique Qayumi and Face2Face host David Peck talk about his new film Black Kite, Afghanistan, the Taliban, anarchism and freedom, hope and how kite flying is a lot like playing a video game.

Biography

Tarique Qayumi was born in Afghanistan and came to Canada as a refugee in 1983.

He attended the Creative Writing Program at the University of British Columbia and graduate school at UCLA, where he completed his Screenwriting MFA and developed a strong interest in directing.

 After graduating in 2010, Qayumi was approached by TOLO TV, the largest television station in Afghanistan, to direct a docudrama series. Driven by two objectives-- to get in touch with his roots and to create Afghan-centered stories--Qayumi made the difficult decision to return to Afghanistan.

 While in Afghanistan from 2011 to 2015 he wrote, directed and produced Truth Unveiled, a sixteen part half-hour docudrama series; The Defenders, a six-hour drama miniseries; as well as Afghan Sesame Street, fifty half-hour episodes. During

this time, he also directed his first feature film, Targeting in Los Angeles, a psychological-thriller about a female American soldier who returns home from war. Upon returning to Vancouver, Tarique was one of five chosen from across Canada for the NSI Corus Diverse TV Directing Program.

Synopsis

Most Westerners’ knowledge of Afghanistan begins and ends with the Taliban. Tarique Qayumi’s Black Kite masterfully and succinctly recognizes a far richer and vastly more complicated history. Far from focusing on men on horseback or the privileged, Black Kite examines the impact of history on one family: how they quietly defy it and get swept up in it.

Steve Gravestock, TIFF Programmer

Trailer

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For more information about David Peck's podcasting, writing and public speaking please visit his site here or check out the site of his podcast on film, social change and much more.

With thanks to producer Josh Snethlage and Mixed Media Sound.

Image Copyright: . Used with permission.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Michèle Hozer and Carlyn Moulton and Face2Face host David Peck talk about their new film Sponsorland, Syria, new Canadians, the power of community, banding together, having a can do attitude and why a family should be able to fit into a mini-van. 

Biography

With two films on the Oscar shortlist (Genius Within: The Inner Life of Glenn Gould, Promise to The Dead: The Exile Journey of Ariel Dorfman), Emmy-nominated (Promise to The Dead: The Exile Journey of Ariel Dorfman) and Gemini-winning (Genius Within) Michèle Hozer has been working as a filmmaker and editor in Canada since 1987. 

To date, she has worked on more than 50 documentaries that have received accolades from the world’s most prestigious film festivals, including the Sundance Film festival (Shake Hands with the Devil: The Journey of Romeo Dallaire) and IDFA (West Wind The Vision of Tom Thompson) in Amsterdam. 

In 2015 Michele completed Sugar Coated, her first solo feature length documentary as director, editor, and producer. 

The doc was honoured with The Donald Brittain Award for Best Social and Political Documentary at the 2016 CSA’s and is presently available on Netflix.

Synopsis

Directed by award-winning filmmaker Michèle Hozer (Sugar Coated), SponsorLand follows the day to day lives of a Syrian refugee family brought to Canada in the fall of 2015 by PEC Syria, a private sponsor group in Prince Edward County.

SponsorLand is a thoughtful, intimate take on the dynamic between newcomers to Canada and their sponsors who commit money, emotional and sweat equity to support resettlement and the family who while grateful, wonder what they have to sacrifice to fit in.

Trailer

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For more information about David Peck's podcasting, writing and public speaking please visit his site here or check out the site of his podcast on film, social change and much more.

With thanks to producer Josh Snethlage and Mixed Media Sound.

Image Copyright: TVO and The Cutting Factory. Used with permission.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Ann Shin and Face2Face host David Peck talk about her new film My Enemy, My Brother, context, crossing all cultures, friendship, serendipitous life changing events and the “…invisible letters of the heart.”

IMDB

Trailer

Find out more about the film here.

And learn more about Ann Shin here.

Synopsis

My Enemy, My Brother' is a feature length documentary about the real-life story of two former enemies from the Iran-Iraq war who become blood brothers for life.

Meeting in Vancouver 30 years after Zahed, an Iranian child soldier saves Najah, a wounded Iraqi soldier's life, they are now about to embark on an emotional journey back to Iran and Iraq for the first time in 20 years.  

Their journey takes them into the heart of present-day conflicts in a region ravaged by war and ISIS. Their quest is a surprising affirmation of redemption and humanity. 

Biography

Ann is a multiple award-winning Director, Producer and principal of Fathom Film Group. Her latest film, My Enemy, My Brother the short version was shortlisted for a 2016 Academy Award and nominated for an Emmy and was an 8-time winner of Best Short Documentary at international film festivals including Traverse City Film Festival, Grand Prize Winner of the Best Shorts Humanitarian Awards, the Sepanta Award for Best Short Film.

Her cross-platform project The Defector film and interactive was selected into 27 international film festivals, and was nominated for 6 awards, winning Best Documentary and Best Documentary Director at the 2014 Canadian Screen Awards. The Defector Interactive won the FITC Award, the Canadian Digi Award, and at the SXSW Interactive Festival.

With 20 years of experience, she has produced independent feature films, feature documentaries and delivered hundreds of hours of programming that have aired on CBC, TVO, HBO, ABC, CBC The Documentary Channel, Discovery Channel, HGTV, History Channel, SLICE.

She is currently working on several feature documentaries and cross-platform projects: Smart Drugs, The Superfood Effect and The Terrorist Hunter.

----------

For more information about my podcasting, writing and public speaking please visit my site.

With thanks to producer Josh Snethlage and Mixed Media Sound.

Image Copyright: Ann Shin. Fathom Film Group. Used with permission.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.