BIOS...
Austin Schatz - From his humble roots as a farm boy in Saskatchewan to his humble life as an actor in
Marium Carvell has acted on stage and in film and television for many years
Don Carmody has been producing films for close to 30 years. He was vice-president of production for Canada’s Cinepix (now Lions Gate Films), where he co-
David Gale has made a career perfecting his unique gift of cheeky homour with heart. Nowhere is this more apparent than on Loving Spoonfuls: the television
JOHN BUCHAN is a casting director of many film and television projects in Canada. Notably, he has done the casting on Atom Egoyan’s Where the Truth Lies, Rhombus Media’s Slings & Arrows and Sofia Coppola’s The Virgin Suicides. He served as head of casting at Alliance for 10 years before becoming a freelance casting director and producer.
CHRIS OWENS is a Canadian-born actor who has appeared in more than 40 television series and movies. He was nominated for a Genie Award for his performance in the film The Uncles, and appeared as Special Agent Jeffrey Spender on the popular Fox series, The X-Files. Recent credits include: Street Time, Blue Murder, The Interrogation of Michael Crowe, the CBS mini-series Hanssen, and the Touchstone release, The Recruit. Chris earned a Dora Award nomination in John Patrick Shanley’s Italian American Reconciliation and was seen in a revival of George F. Walker’s Beautiful City. He lives and plays hockey in Toronto.
DOM FIORE works as an actor in English, French and Italian. He can be seen in Looking for Angelina which premiered at the 2005 Festival de Film du Monde in Montreal. He has a regular role in Virginie on Radio Canada (television), and has just completed the role of Antonio in The Merchant of Venice for the Comedy Network, which will air this fall. He also teaches with the Toronto District School Board and is an instructor for ACTRA Toronto’s Apprenticeship Program. He is married to naturopathic doctor Judith Fiore and has two children.
THERESA TOVA is an award-winning actor, singer, and writer. Nominated for a Best Supporting Actress
KATE TROTTER was born in Toronto, but grew up on Lake Simcoe, north of Toronto. She earned her B.A. in film and psychology from Brock University dabbled in theatre arts during her college years, and went on to
 study at the National Theatre School under Douglas Rain. Since then, Kate has performed in more than 30 stage productions, earning Dora Mavor Moore Award nominations for her roles as Miss Alma in Summer and Smoke, Laura in The Father, and Marlene in Top Girls, before winning a Dora Award for her performance as Sarah in Stratford’s production of Translations. Kate’s television roles began with a role in Ralph Thomas’s CBC-TV movie Tyler. Selected screen credits include her Gemini Award-winning guest-starring performances on Global Television’s dramatic series Blue Murder, a Gemini-nominated performance on Traders, guest turns in Puppets Who Kill, Missing, Soul Food, Nikita, Psi Factor, Earth: Final Conflict, Spoken Art, TekWar, Due South and Alfred Hitchcock Presents, which earned her a U.S. CableACE nomination. She currently plays a recurring role on Sue Thomas: F.B. Eye, and was Captain Simms in the long-running series Kung Fu: The Legend Continues. Kate’s TV movie credits include Plain Truth opposite Law and Order’s Mariska Hargitay, Samantha: An American Girl Holiday, Jasper Texas, Shaftesbury’s Murdoch Mystery Under The Dragon’s Tail, Fallen Angel, Golden Will: The Silken Lauman Story and the mini-series The Lives Of The Saints starring Sophia Loren. She was Jane Trimble in Joshua Then And Now, based on Mordecai Richler’s book and starring James Woods, Lady Capulet in the CBC-TV movie Romeo And Juliet, Strauss: The King Of ¾ Time and the title role in Marie Curie: More Than Meets The Eye. Among her big screen credits, Kate most recently appeared in Beyond Borders, starring Angelina Jolie and Clive Owen.
TECCA CROBY is the Director of Dramatic Programming for CTV Inc. In addition to supervising CTV’s development slate, she works closely with Canada’s top writers, producers and directors, ensuring the quality of the company's dramatic productions, which include movies-of-the-week and television series. Under Tecca’s supervision, many of the network’s most popular, award-winning productions (Power Play, Degrassi: The Next Generation, The Eleventh Hour, Milgaard, Lucky Girl, Torso, Tagged: The Jonathan Wamback Story, The Life and Lives of the Saints) have been produced. Prior to her appointment in 2000, Tecca was Creative Head for the department and Manager of Dramatic Programming. Before joining CTV, she worked in a variety of positions in independent production, including a stint at the Canadian Film Centre, where she helped design and facilitate the Professional Screenwriting Program. Prior to that, Tecca was Executive Co-ordinator, Production and Development, for the Ontario Film Development Corporation, where she oversaw investments in a variety of film and television productions including La Florida, Soul Survivor, Million Dollar Babies, When Night is Falling, Lilies, and Exotica. She joined the OFDC at its inception in 1986 as Senior Development Officer. Before beginning her career in film and television, Tecca worked as an editor at Saturday Night.
SHERRY MILLER Even if Sherry Miller hadn’t been the Spumante Bambino Girl, she probably still would have gone on to become one of Canada’s most watchable actresses. Currently Sherry plays the recurring role as Jennifer on Showtime’s Queer As Folk. She is however probably best known for her role as Jane Oliver, which she performed for five seasons on the acclaimed series E.N.G. and that earned her two Gemini Award nominations for Best Supporting Actress. Since then, she has performed on many Canadian television series including recurring roles on Due South, F/X: The Series and guest-starring roles on The Famous Jett Jackson, The Relic Hunter, Twitch City, The Newsroom and Traders. South of the border, Ms. Miller has had a recurring role in the NBC series Prince Street and guest starring roles in Sabrina, The Teenage Witch and Early Edition. On the big screen some of her credits include The Lisbon Sisters, directed by Francis Ford Coppola, The Stupids, starring Tom Arnold and Getting Away With Murder with Dan Aykroyd, Lily Tomlin and Jack Lemon. Sherry has also been in numerous MOWs, most prominently The Jacqueline Susann Story, Strange Justice and Harry’s Case.
ALBERTA WATSON
GREG ELLWAND got his ACTRA card 24 years ago straight out of the National Theatre School. His first
DAVID HUBAND was a member of the comedy troupe Illustrated Men from 1984-1995. Prior to that, he was a member of The Second City Mainstage Company appearing in two revues there. David also appeared as Estragon in Illustrated Men’s acclaimed production of Waiting For Godot at CanStage. He has performed at regional theatres across Canada, including The Manitoba Theatre Centre, Prairie Theatre Exchange, Theatre New Brunswick, The Arbor Theatre and The Stratford Festival where he played Demetrius in A Midsummer Night’s Dream. Film credits include The Ladies Man, Tommy Boy, The Diamond Fleece, Police Academy 3 and That Same Old Feeling, directed by Carl Reiner. TV credits include Traders, and The Red Green Show, as well as several TV movies such as Dirty Pictures, The Jesse Ventura Story, Ultimate Deception, Lessons In Love and Holiday Affair. David was a series regular on The Newsroom appeared in Ken Finkleman’s Foolish Heart and in Mr. Finkleman’s Foreign Objects. David had a lead role in the television movie Return to The Newsroom and can be seen in the feature films Wrong Turn, Cube Zero and Cinderella Man starring Russell Crowe.
Lauren Collins is best known to television audiences in Canada and the US as alpha girl Paige Michalchuk on 'Degrassi The Next Generation", the latest incarnation of the highly successful Degrassi franchise now celebrating it's 25th anniversary. Recently she finished filming Newline Cinema's "Take the Lead" which stars Antonio Banderas and is slated for theatrical release in 2006. At the age of 10 Lauren made her professional acting debut in a supporting role in an ABC movie of the week. She followed that up with regular roles on two children's series, "I Was A Sixth Grade Alien" produced by Alliance Atlantis, and Disney's "In A Heartbeat". Lauren had the lead role in the Canadian feature "Virtual Mom" and has appeared in numerous telefilms including HBO's "Protector" and MGM's "Marciano". She has made guest appearances on several US and Canadian series including John Woo's "Once a Thief"," Mutant X", "The Eleventh Hour" and "Blue Murder". Lauren has also been featured in recurring and guest roles on many youth oriented productions including "Radio Free Roscoe", "Noddy", "Happy Christmas Miss King" and "Dead Aviators". Her guest starring role on "renegadepress.com" garnered her a 2004 Gemini Award nomination. Lauren's theatre credits include "The Children's Hour", "Annie" and "Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat". She has done voice work for several animated series as well as the CBC radio drama "Unless". A member of ACTRA's Youth Committee, Lauren is a strong supporter of children's causes. She is a spokesperson for the "Have a Heart" program organized by The Canadian Foundation for Aids Research (CANFAR), and has made guest appearances for such organizations as the Children's Aid Society of Toronto, Kids with a Cause, stupid.ca, HipTIX and Angel Hair for Kids. Lauren has also volunteered her time to speak about her experiences as a young actor at several Toronto area schools and theatres.
NEIL WINEMAKER has been an Assistant Director for the last seven years working in television and film. He graduated from The University of Western Ontario with a B.A. in geography, and started out working as an office PA. From there, he worked on set, enjoyed it and has been doing it ever since. He has just finished as third AD on Jeff Limited with Jeff Seymour. He is currently working on Shades of Black, the Conrad Black story. Other credits include Slings & Arrows season 2 and both seasons of The Associates.
Henry has three sons, two of whom are actors: Mark (17) has been acting for six years; and David (19) has been acting for three years (recurring role on both Dark Oracle and Radio Free Roscoe) and is an award-winning film-maker, playwright and artist. Henry and his wife Cathy have been managing Mark's career since he began acting in late 1999, and were briefly involved in David's career until he turned 18.
ELIZABETH McCALLUM has worked in film, television and stage, as an actor and more. She has written
NIAL LANCASTER is a graduate of the Drama in Education programme at Concordia University in Montreal, Quebec. An associate instructor for several years with the “Kids in Action” training programme, Nial ventured out on his own after receiving his Bachelor of Fine Arts to start the The REEL Acting Studio, a film/television acting course for children and young actors. Nial is currently venturing out with his parent company IAAN Entertainment producing independent theatre and film in Toronto.
SUDZ SUTHERLAND was born a small black child named David in the old Mt. Sinai Hospital in Toronto. He quickly moved with his family to Scarborough, a suburb of Toronto where he spent his formative years. After graduating high school, Sudz went to York University where he majored in film and met his future wife and mother of his two daughters, Jen Holness. Starting a production company called hungry eyes/film food inc. they commenced doing music videos and short films. They also make documentaries, notably Speakers for the Dead for the National Film Board of Canada. My Father’s Hands is their short drama that won acclaim and awards and brought them closer to shooting their feature script, Love, Sex & Eating the Bones. Following theatrical release, Love, Sex & Eating the Bones was nominated for three 2005 Genie awards: Best Achievement in Direction, Best Original Screenplay and Best Picture. Love, Sex & Eating the Bones is now available on DVD. Sudz just wrapped principal photography on Doomstown, an exciting MOW for CTV.
JOANNA BENNETT left the comforts of a full-time job in 1988, and this Ontario farm girl crossed the
MARK RENDALL A few years ago, Mark asked his parents if he could try his hand at acting. Coincidentally, the Cameron MacIntosh London Touring Company production of the hit stage musical Oliver was holding open auditions for children. Mark's parents took him to the auditions, all the while preparing him for disappointment, as he had no acting or singing training. Mark not only won the role of Spider, one of Fagin's pickpockets, but also ended up regularly performing the lead role of Oliver. Mark's first-time experience on the musical stage has led to movie and TV roles, including leads in the film The Impossible Elephant, Tales From the Neverending Story (2002 Gemini nomination), the multi-award-winning Touching Wild Horses opposite Jane Seymour (2003 Young Artists Award nomination), Disney's The Scream Team, Court TV's Peabody award-winning true story The Interrogation of Michael Crowe, for which Mark, playing Michael Crowe, received a 2004 ACTRA Award nomination, Don McKellar's dark comedy Childstar, opposite Jennifer Jason Leigh, Eric Stoltz and Gil Bellows, Spirit Bear: The Simon Jackson Story; and NBC's mini-series Revelations with Bill Pullman and Natascha MacElhone. Voiceover work includes his role as Arthur for three seasons in the PBS animated series, a lead voice in animated series King, The Save-Ums, Time Warp Trio and Jane and the Dragon.
DERBY CREWE is graduated from Ryerson in Film Production and has been working as an Assistant Director since 1993. Derby has worked on all types and sizes of projects. His past feature films include To
STACEY STEWART CURTIS is one of Canada’s busiest and most sought after directors. She has
Neil Crone - Actor/Improviser/Writer/All-round good guy...Neil is an actor and writer who lives with his wonderful wife, two little boys and one neurotic dog in a town so small everybody knows where everyone else’s birthmarks
 North of 60 in 1993 and became the show's Executive Producer for 22 episodes in 1997-98 serving as Creative Producer and Co-Executive Producer along the way. Other selected credits include writing three North of 60 TV movies, Rules of Engagement (creator/writer/producer), Mental (creator/writer/producer), The G-Spot (supervising producer/showrunner), Tom Stone, The Aladdin Project (executive producer/creator/writer), Beastmaster (2 episodes), ENG (writer/executive story editor) and Street Legal. Awards include four Gemini Award nominations, a Genie Award for Best Feature Documentary for Raoul Wallenberg: Buried Alive which also won Best Documentary prizes at the American Film Festival and the Chicago Film Festival. Exposure earned Peter a Yorkton International Film Festival Award and was a finalist at the American Film Festival.
David Smukler, one of the senior voice teachers in the Canadian theatre, is Director of the National Voice Intensive held each May in Vancouver, is on the faculty of York University's Department of Theatre, and teaches professional classes at Equity Showcase Theatre. As a voice coach in Canada, England, the Netherlands, and the United States, he has worked in the entire range of theatre from classical theatre, opera, musical theatre, film, television, radio, to contemporary and experimental theatre and music with such companies as Stratford Ontario Shakespeare Festival (nine seasons), Alberta Theatre Projects, Canadian Stage, The Royal Alex, The National Arts Centre (Canada), the Tyrone Guthrie and the Open Theatre (United States), the Royal Court and the English Opera Group (England), as well as the Apple, Centrum and Globe theatre companies in the Netherlands. He has taught at NYU’s Tisch School of the Arts, Carnegie-Mellon University, LAMDA, the Toneelschool (Amsterdam), the National Theatre School, the Native Theatre School, Simon Fraser University, The University of Calgary and other actor training institutions across Canada. Mr. Smukler is in demand as a dialogue coach for film and television productions.
SHARI QUALLENBERG is a partner in one of the city’s top talent agencies, AMI Artist Management Inc. Shari graduated with an Honours BFA from York University where she studied theatre, film and television.
JANET-LAINE GREEN has been a working Actor/Directer/Producer and teacher for more than 25 years. She has nine Gemini and Genie nominations and is currently starring in George F. Walker's This Is Wonderland. Janet-Laine holds an M.F.A. in directing from York University. Her prolific work in television and film includes, Niagara Motel, Sex Traffic, Mutant X, The Limit, Blue Murder, Doc, Playmakers, Anne of Green Gables: The Continuing Story, Road to Avonlea, Seeing Things, E.N.G., Psi Factor, Kung Fu: The Legend Continues, Tagged: The Jonathan Wamback Story, The Girl Next Door, Cowboys Don’t Cry, All American Girl: The Mary Kay Letourneau Story. Directing credits include a production of Medea and the hit show Menopositive! The Musical. She also starred in A Streetcar Named Desire both in Canada and the U.S., and was nominated for a Dora Mavor Moore award for her outstanding performance in Transit of Venus at CanStage. She is currently producing and starring in the controversial stage play Pillow Talk by Booth Savage. Janet-Laine has been teaching actors the subtleties of acting for the camera through Equity Showcase for five years. She has taught at Universities and Colleges, ACTRA Works, The Summer Institute of Film and Television, and The University of Debrecen, Debrecen Hungary, and is highly regarded as a private coach for film productions. Janet-Laine brings a wealth of practical knowledge to her classes, earned through years of dedication to the craft of acting and teaching. It is not uncommon for actors to return again and again to her classes, not simply because she knows the business of acting both for film and stage, but because she has a deep understanding of how to assist actors to access their own potential.
KIRSTEN BISHOPRIC has been involved in this crazy business in one capacity or other since 1968. As a child, Kirsten started out in modeling and quickly got into commercials. Then at about 10 years old she discovered radio and dubbing and appeared in her first feature film, David Cronenberg's Shivers. Kirsten went to theatre school in Montreal and in her second year was accepted to the Young Company at Stratford under Michael Langham's direction. After Startford, Kirsten couldn't go back to school, so moved to Toronto and continued in the business ever since, having a couple of wonderful children along the way. She has been fortunate to have worked with many great people over the years in theatre, films, television, commercials, animation and radio. At one point in the early ‘90s, she had five national commercials airing at the same time. Some highlights of her film and TV career include: Burt Lancaster's young bride Nancy in P.T. Barnum, The Wars, two series regulars - The Edison Twins and B.B. and Jennifer, Papa's Angels, America's Prince:JFK Jr. Story, Rudy's Wars, The West Wing and most recently This is Wonderland.
LAUREN COLLINS is best known to television audiences in Canada and the U.S. as alpha girl Paige Michalchuk on Degrassi The Next Generation. Recently she finished filming Newline Cinema's Take the Lead starring Antonio Banderas. At the age of 10, Lauren made her professional acting debut in a supporting role in an ABC movie of the week. She followed that with regular roles on two children's series, I Was A Sixth Grade Alien and Disney's In A Heartbeat. Other credits include the lead role in the Canadian feature Virtual Mom, HBO's Protector, MGM's Marciano, guest appearances in Once a Thief, Mutant X, The Eleventh Hour and Blue Murder. Lauren has also been featured in recurring and guest roles on many youth oriented productions including Radio Free Roscoe, Noddy, Happy Christmas Miss King and Dead Aviators. Her guest-starring role on renegadepress.com garnered her a 2004 Gemini Award nomination. Theatre credits include The Children's Hour, Annie and Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat. She has done voice work for several animated series as well as the CBC radio drama Unless. A member of ACTRA's Youth Committee, Lauren is a strong supporter of children's causes. She is a spokesperson for The Canadian Foundation for AIDS Research’s (CANFAR) Have a Heart program, and has made guest appearances for the Children's Aid Society of Toronto, Kids with a Cause, stupid.ca, HipTIX and Angel Hair for Kids. Lauren also speaks about her experiences as a young actor at Toronto area schools and theatres.
NIAL LANCASTER is a graduate of the Drama in Education programme at Concordia University in Montreal, Quebec. An associate instructor for several years with the “Kids in Action” training programme, Nial ventured out on his own after receiving his Bachelor of Fine Arts to start the The REEL Acting Studio, a film/television acting course for children and young actors. Nial is currently venturing out with his parent company IAAN Entertainment producing independent theatre and film in Toronto.
ANNA DONATO has two children who are actors: Marc is 16 and Tanya is 21. Marc has been acting since age four and Tanya has been acting for a number of years now. Both are ACTRA members and Marc is also a member of SAG.
JOANNA BENNETT left the comforts of a full-time job in 1988, and this Ontario farm girl crossed the
MARCELLO CABEZAS is a performer and producer. He is the Artistic Producer and co-founder of macIDeas, recipient of the 2004 Bright Light Innovation Award from The Toronto Star for innovation in producing and marketing. Producing credits for macIDeas include Vladeck (Buddies in Bad Times), This is Our Youth directed by Woody Harrelson 2003, and 2004 remount (Berkeley St. Theatre), the extended engagement of the production of Matt & Ben (Poor Alex Theatre). On the film side, Marcello served as a consultant for choke. which went to various worldwide festivals including TIFF 2004 and was subsequently nominated for a 2005 Genie Award for best live action short film. He is currently shopping macIDeas’ latest film, Leo, which premiered at TIFF 2005 and has high hopes for it to be a calling card for a feature based on the same premise. Marcello’s acting credits include Blue Murder, Tracker, G-Spot, Homie Spumoni, Leo, choke., This is Our Youth, and Vladeck. He splits his time between Toronto and Los Angeles.
Priya Rao is an actor and independent producer, with varied experience in arts communities including heading up a multi-disciplinary arts festival to producing and
DENISE NEUHAUS has always been a performer and long-time member of ACTRA. She has worked in the entertainment field as an actor, promotional artist and singer and in the business arena as corporate personnel. Versatility is something she strongly believes in – and hard work. Denise has performed in The King and I, The Wizard of Oz and Follies with Scarborough Music Theatre and participated in several other productions as hairstylist and make-up artist. She was a part of the Wayne St. John Inner City Choir which was featured in live shows for Massey Hall and Mazda, The Rita MacNeil Show on television and several in-studio tracks for CBC, as well as Anne Murray in Disneyland variety show. Being featured as Pocahontas for Mattel in a live appearance was a definite high! She has also been a commentator at the One of a Kind Arts and Crafts show. She is currently working on a career in writing and recording a CD of favourite music.
Eric Murphy is an actor, writer, and producer. In the past 20 years he has appeared in numerous productions that include award-winning films, commercials
John Greyson is a Toronto film/video artist whose shorts, features and installations include: Fig Trees (2003, Oakville Art Galleries); Proteus (Best Actor, Sithenghi Julie Stewart received a Gemini nomination for Best Performance by an Actress in her Continuing
DAVID MACNIVEN was born in Dunfermline Scotland and raised in Kingston and Peterborough, Ontario. In 1990 he graduated with an Honours B.A. in modern western history from the University of Western Ontario. David went on to study
Michael Riley - Michael is undoubtedly one of Toronto’s Hallmark actors. Upon graduating from the prestigious National Theatre School of Canada in 1984, Michael worked constantly at most of the major For his work in the critically acclaimed Alliance/Atlantis series, POWER PLAY, Michael won the Gemini as Best Actor for two consecutive years in both 1999 & 2000. Michael’s film credits include Perfectly Normal, Mile Zero, Diplomatic Immunity (1992 Genie Nomination for Best Supporting Actor), Mustard Bath and DNA (premiered at TIFF/ earned a 2004 Actra Nomination for Outstanding Performance). For television, Michael was the lead in mini-series To Catch A Killer (won the 1993 American Television Award for Best Mini-Series and earned Michael a 1993 Gemini Award Nomination for Best Actor), in which Michael starred opposite Brian Dennehy. Among Michael's numerous films for television are The Perfect Husband, Saving Emily and The Interrogation of Michael Crowe, which earned Michael his fourth Gemini Award for Best Actor. The Helsinki Roccamatios won Michael the 1996 Gemini Award for Best Actor, while his work in Due South that same year, earned him a Gemini Award Nomination for Best Actor in a Supporting Role. Michael also starred opposite Gorton Pinsent in CBC's Win Again, earning him a Gemini Nomination for Best Supporting Actor. Following roles in Steven Spielberg’s Amistad, Lawrence Kasdan’s French Kiss with Meg Ryan and The Prince opposite Billy Dee Williams, Michael starred in the hilarious ‘mockumentary’ and cult favourite, And God Spoke, which premiered at The Sundance Film Festival in 1994. And his work as the severely brain injured Dody in Pale Saints, earned him a 1998 Genie Nomination for Best Actor in a Supporting Role. Recently released were the feature film Cube Zero and BBC's critically acclaimed Super Volcano. Most recently, Michael is shooting the soon to premiere thrid season of This Is Wonderland. Michael currently resides in Brooklin, Ontario with his daughter Dylan.
David Ferry - David is Artistic Director of Appledore Productions, which is currently in development of Florence Gibson’s new play Missing for production (currently slated for the 2006 Theatre Passe Muraille season.) David has directed over 40 productions from coast to coast. He was Artistic Director at Bluewater Summer Playhouse from 1997-2002. He also has a wide experience as an actor on stage and film. He has performed on and off Broadway, and right across Canada. He recently filmed an episode of Ken Finkleman’s new series Metropolitan Hotel and was a guest star on an episode of This is Wonderland He was a continuing character on the last season of Paradise Falls. He recently played in the acclaimed productions of George Walker’s End of Civilization and Adult Entertainment at Toronto’s Factory Theatre. He played Smirnov in Chekhov’s The Bear at the Art Gallery of Ontario in 2005. He received his third DORA acting nomination (Best Actor) for his performance in the 2003 Hockey Mom, Hockey Dad at Factory, which also completed the first leg of a tour for Marquis Entertainment last fall. He played Prospero in the acclaimed Festival of Classics2003 production of The Tempest directed by Miles Potter. In January 2006 he will play the lead in an adaptation of Dosteyesky's The Gambler at Toronto’s ArtWord Theatre. David is currently compiling and editing He Speaks (a collection of theatre monologues for men) for Playrights Canada Press, and will be editing a collection of selected plays by James Reaney, also for Playrights Canada Press. He is compiler and editor of a CD collection of Canadian dialects called Canajun, Eh?. He recently went back to school and received his MFA degree from University of Victoria last June. He is currently a Governor of the Actra Fraternal Benefit Society.
DIANE KERBEL started her career by studying acting at York University in Toronto and continued her studies in New York City with the late Stella Adler. Shortly after her return from New York, Diane joined the casting department at the CBC where she spent four years, first as an assistant and then as a Casting Director in Toronto and Vancouver. For the past 12 years, Diane has been an independent Casting Director working in both feature films and television. Diane is thrilled to have worked with such esteemed directors as Sidney Lumet, Paul Schrader, Roger Spottiswoode, Don McKellar, Bruce McDonald and Ron Howard. Most recently, Diane has been working with John Madden on his screen adaptation of the Elmore Leonard novel Killshot.
Walter Alza is an award-winning actor/filmmaker who recently completed filming Jim
Peter Outerbridge grew up in Toronto and was bitten by the acting bug in high school. His parents were very supportive and encouraged him when he decided to enrol at the University of Victoria in BC to study With over forty credits to his name Outerbridge’s list of film and television work is impressive. His film credits include The Bay of Love and Sorrows based on the novel by Giller Prize winner David Adams Richards, Men With Brooms starring Paul Gross and Leslie Nielson, Marine Life starring Cybil Shepherd and Better Than Chocolate with Wendy Crewson, both of which were directed by one of Canada’s premiere director’s Anne Wheeler. One of his first feature films was Kissed, with Molly Parker, which earned him his first Genie nomination for his role as “Matt.” Award-winning director Jerry Ciccoritti cast Peter in his first starring role in the feature film Paris, France with Leslie Hope. His television credits include: the lead role as Detective William Murdoch in two Detective Murdoch Mysteries: Except the Dying and Poor Tom Is Cold produced by Shaftesbury Films for Bravo!, directed by Michael DeCarlo, two Chasing Cain movies for CBC, again under the direction of Jerry Ciccoritti, who also directed Outerbridge in the ambitious mini-series Trudeau, (CBC), and Sturla Gunnerson’s 100 Days in the Jungle (CTV). Some of his other television guest appearances include the critically acclaimed series 24 starring Kiefer Sutherland (Fox), the new drama series The D.A. for ABC, The Outer Limits, the internationally successful Road to Avonlea (CBC) and 21 Jump Street with Johnny Depp (Fox). Currently Peter plays David Sandström on Global TV’s sci-fi series Regenisis.
RON LEA was born in Montreal and did his classical training at The National Theatre School, in the same graduating class as Colm Feore and Ann Marie McDonald. Theatre credits at The Centaur Theatre alone include Extremities, Fire, BrightonBeach Memoirs, Cat On A Hot Tin Roof, Caucasian Chalk Circle, The Chain and Observe The Sons of Ulster. Other theatre credits include One Eyed Kings and True West at The Tarragon and George F. Walker’s Adult Entertainment at The Factory. Ron has an impressive film and television career working in French and English in Montreal and Toronto. Film credits include starring opposite Gary Oldman and Kevin Bacon in Criminal, with Kevin Costner in The Gunrunnerm with Al Pacino in The Recruit and with Colin Farell in Home at the End of the World, as well as Canadian classics such as Cherry Docs, Anonymous and Jesus de Montreal. Ron received his first Gemini nomination for Best Lead Actor in Mortimer and Shalinsky, in which he played opposite Paul Soles. Ron will next be seen in the 20th Century Fox feature The Sentinel with Michael Douglas and Kim Bassinger. Ron’s prolific TV series credits include being a series regular on Street Legal and Omerta (Best Supporting Actor Gemini nominations for both), Wind At My Back, Cat Walk, Live Through This and Doc. In L.A. Ron worked on The Practice (ABC) and Diagnosis For Murder (CBS). He is currently playing lead roles on CBC’s This Is Wonderland and a new French series, Casino.
DAVID MANION has been working in the film and television industry for 20 years. David worked in various
Jennifer Jonas is a literature grad from McGill and Cambridge who left academia after her first film experience on Quest for Fire. Her credits include executive producer of Cake starring Heather Graham, and Sugar, starring Brendan Fehr, both co-produced with New Real Films. She produced Don McKellar's latest feature film Childstar starring Jennifer Jason Leigh with Rhombus Media. Other feature film credits as producer include The Perfect Son starring Colm Feore, The Life Before This (co-producer), Perfect Pie (co-producer) and the Cannes Film Festival Prix de la Jeunesse Winner, Last Night (associate producer). For television, Jennifer has produced Grammy-nominated, Satie and Suzanne as well as Firebird and Elizabeth Rex for Rhombus Media. As Assistant Director, Jennifer worked on Eye of the Beholder, the Academy Award-winning The Red Violin and the internationally acclaimed Thirty-Two Short Films About Glenn Gould.
Millie Tom is a Toronto-based casting director with wide-ranging experience in casting series, shorts and features for film and television. Millie began her casting career in 1998 as a casting assistant at Alliance Atlantis Communications working under Emmy-nominated Casting Director, Deirdre Bowen. Millie’s assisting credits include the feature film Men With Brooms starring Paul Gross, the multi Gemini-nominated television series The Associates (CTV) and the Emmy-Award winning miniseries Life With Judy Garland: Me & My Shadows (ABC). With casting director Stephanie Gorin she worked on such high-profile projects as the Academy-Award-nominated film Chicago , and the Showtime series Leap Years. Millie most recently worked as a Casting Associate with Jon Comerford Casting on the hit USA Network/ABC series Monk starring Tony Shalhoub and several Showtime movies including Soldier’s Girl directed by Frank Pierson. As an independent casting director, Millie has worked on such renowned Canadian Film Centre shorts as Ernest, Silent War: Short Hymn, Dog Walker and most recently The Sadness of Johnson Joe Jangles. Her feature film credits include the independent crime-drama feature It All Happened Incredibly Fast starring Maurice Dean Wint, and Rub & Tug, starring Don McKellar, which premiered at the 2002 Toronto International Film Festival. Most recently she completed Olivier Assayas’ feature film drama Clean with John Buchan Casting for Rhombus Media. Currently she is casting the fourth season of the popular teen drama Degrassi: The Next Generation. |
now. Afterhaving two children, her focus went primarily to film and tv, acting in recurring roles on Wind At My Back, DOC, Sue Thomas FBEye and in movies such as Jasper Texas, Jenny and the Queen of Light, and a recurring role in a movie trio : Revelation, Jugdement, and Tribulation. Most recently, she has done shows such as RegenesisII, Wildcard, and the Martha Stewart movie dubbed The Untitled Charlie Boehl Project, and in commercials such as Twix, ScotiaBank, Colgate, Nestle, and Best Buy Geek Squad. You can also hear her as the voice of Nellie the Dog on episodes of the kid's show PeeP and The Big Wide World.
produced David Cronenberg’s early shockers “They Came From Within” and “Rabid” as well as the popular comedy “Meatballs”.
Starting his own production company in 1980, Carmody went on to produce the smash hits “Porky’s” and “Porky’s II”, also the perennially popular “A Christmas Story” as well as “Spacehunter: Adventures In The Forbidden Zone”, “Whispers”, “The Big Town”, Physical Evidence”, “Switching Channels” and several Chuck Norris films, including “The Hitman” and “Sidekicks”. He returned to comedy successfully with the “Weekend At Bernies” series, and “The Late Shift” for H.B.O., which was nominated for seven Emmy Awards, three Cable Ace awards and the Producers’ Guild of America Golden Laurel. “The Late Shift” also won a Golden Globe for actress Kathy Bates and a Directors’ Guild Award for Betty Thomas.
His credits include some 75 films thus far, including “Johnny Mnemonic” with Keanu Reeves, “The Mighty” with Sharon Stone, “Studio 54” with Mike Myers, the Academy Award nominated “Good Will Hunting” with Matt Damon, Ben Affleck and Robin Williams, “In Too Deep” with L.L. Cool J, the cult hit “The Boondock Saints” with Wilhem Dafoe, “The Third Miracle” with Ed Harris and Anne Heche, “Get Carter” with Sylvester Stallone, “The Whole Nine Yards” with Bruce Willis and Mathew Perry, “The Pledge” directed by Sean Penn and starring Jack Nicholson, “3000 Miles to Graceland” with Kevin Costner and Courtney Cox, “Caveman’s Valentine” with Samuel Jackson, “Angel Eyes” with Jennifer Lopez, David Mamet’s “The Heist” with Gene Hackman, and Danny DeVito, “City By The Sea” with Robert DeNiro and Frances McDormand, “Wrong Turn” with Eliza Dushku , “Gothika” starring Halle Berry, Penelope Cruz and Robert Downey Jr., “Resident Evil” based on the all time bestselling video game and “Resident Evil: Apocalypse” starring Mila Jovovich, and “Assault On Precinct 13” with Ethan Hawke, Laurence Fishburne, Gabriel Byrne and Maria Bello. Currently he is Executive Producing “Lucky Number Slevin” in Montreal with Bruce Willis, Josh Hartnett and Morgan Freeman and Producing “Silent Hill” based on the terrifying video game in Toronto. In 2002 he was Co-Producer of the hit film musical of “Chicago” starring Rene Zellweger, Catherine Zeta-Jones and Richard Gere, which won seven Academy Awards including Best Picture, three Golden Globe Awards, Including Best Musical or Comedy and the Producers’ Guild of America Golden Laurel Award for Best Picture as well as many, many other awards and citations around the world. Don Carmody was born in New England and immigrated to Canada with his parents as a boy. He graduated from film school in Montreal and has gone on to produce films all over the world. He currently lives in Los Angeles.
program Gale is best known for(65 episodes, 3 Specials - 
Gemini, Theresa was a regular for five seasons on the award-winning CTV series, E.N.G. Since then she has gone on to write, produce and star in her theatrical musical Still The Night which won four Dora awards and was nominated for the prestigious 1999 Governor General's Award for Excellency in Literature. Stage highlights include performing for the president of the United States when she starred as Emma Goldman in the National American tour of the Broadway Musical Ragtime. She played Yente in Fiddler on the Roof at the 2000 Stratford Festival season and she played Lady Jane in Gilbert & Sullivan’s Patience.
is well known to television audiences as Madeline on the cable hit La Femme Nikita (Gemini nomination). A Toronto native, Alberta received a Best Supporting Actress Genie nomination for one of her first movie roles, In Praise of Older Women. One year later, she took home the Best Actress award at the Yorkton Film Festival for Exposure. Alberta then headed to the U.S., where she studied with Gene Lasko, made several films including the cult horror classic The Keep with Sir Ian McKellan, and the TV movie Woman of Valor with Susan Sarandon. Alberta earned a Genie Award for Shoemaker. Atom Egoyan then cast Alberta in The Sweet Hereafter which won the Grand Prize of the jury at Cannes plus Academy Award and Genie nominations. 
stage appearance won him a Dora Award. He has just returned from a smash hit production of Cabaret in Montreal. In film and T.V. he has enjoyed a variety of roles from the romantic hero in the TV series Red Serge, a sexual pervert in Lucky Girl, a bi-curious guy in Eclipse, a rabid right–winger in This is Wonderland, a downtrodden insurance salesman in Four Brothers to his sensitive depiction of Canadian diplomat Herbert Norman shot in Egypt and Japan. He has appeared as a guest on many of the TV shows and films that are shot in Toronto such as One True Love (as Hasselhoff’s brother), The Eleventh Hour, Newsroom, Wildcard and Redemption. Yet still, he must support his family with a part-time job as a meat cutter.
Company out of Toronto, Canada. It was the most fun he'd ever had and since that time he has brought laughter to bellies across North America. He has appeared in more than 80 film and television roles including Serendipity, Star Trek Voyager and Shall We Dance and in stage productions from coast to coast. He has voiced radio spots and character voices for the cartoons JoJo’s Circus and Totally Spies and has directed for the stage, for corporate/industrial film projects and for his own projects. As a writer David has completed four films, a TV pilot, hours of sketch comedy, a children’s book and the parody theatre hit, The Honey Murders, which played to sold-out crowds in Los Angeles in 2000. LA Weekly said "Sparrow channels Kramden to the stage." He is currently in preproduction on his half-hour short – So Easy
several short scripts and is a founding member of Skystone Pictures. An ACTRA Toronto Councillor since 2002, Elizabeth has also been VP for Internal Affairs for three years, where she oversees the Co-op and TIP programs, among other duties. A huge supporter of Canadian talent, Elizabeth was instrumental in revamping the Co-op guidelines, and even produced a Co-op film herself, 2003’s I Am Waiter. She also moderated the original Co-op panel at ACTRA Toronto’s first conference in February 2003, and appeared as a panelist in a Co-op workshop in 2004.
bridge to self-employment in the entertainment field and hasn't looked back. Working behind and in front of the camera for years, (principal, stunts, BG, stand-in, craft, casting) Jo is most recognized lately for her commercial work. (Nutella anyone?) After attending the Juilliard School NYC in 2000 for Broadway interpreting, Jo has reacquainted herself with her theatre roots by performing in sign language at Soulpepper, CanStage, The Lorraine, Shakespeare in the Rough and Theatre Direct. This year Jo has started to use her voice in theatre and she is venturing into voiceover work for radio and television.
Die For, Bogus, All The Fine Lines and Red Green’s Duck Tape Forever. Derby has worked on many TV MOWs, pilots and series and spent four years on Degrassi: The Next Generation, two years on Riverdale, two years on Psi Factor and two years on Ready or Not. Derby has just wrapped up on an MOW for CTV that was written and directed by David “Sudz” Sutherland. Derby has extensive experience working with background and has trained many ADs on working with background. Learning all the background names is a challenge he puts to all his set ADs and at lunch will quiz them to see that they know as many names as he has memorized. Derby believes that if you involved the background in the scene, their performances are better, making it a better scene.
directed more than 130 hours of television programming from Darcy’s Wild Life to Naturally Sadie, Godiva’s to Cold Squad. Stacey Curtis directed the entire first season of Moccasin Flats, and in 2004 went on to Associate Produce, as well as direct five of the eight episodes of season two for Showcase and APTN. This edgy series follows a group of teens in the rough native ghetto of urban Regina. Her directorial horizons include short films such as Death by Landscape - based on the Margaret Atwood short story, for Shaftesbury Films and Original Pictures, Bliss shot for Gala Films and Back Alley has been seen on Showcase and Oxygen. Her independent short, The Earliest Memory Exercise, screened at the Los Angeles, NY, and Memphis International Film Festivals, the Crested Butte Reel Fest and the Zeitgeist in San Francisco. She is in development with several feature films including What You Need. Other directing credits include the MOW What Katy Did, Recipe for Revenge, four series: the historical anthology Dear America for HBO and Scholastic Books, the contemporary family drama Black Harbour set on the Canadian east coast for Fogbound Films and the CBC; the espionage mini-series Cover Me for Serendipity Point Films and Alliance Atlantis and Zixx Level One for Savvy Films and YTV. Stacey won a Gemini Award for her direction of the Street Legal episode“Presumed Toxic” and received her fourth Gemini nomination for her work directing the film Dreamstorm, based on the long running series North of 60. Awarded the 1999 WIFT-T Crystal Award for Creative Excellence, Stacey is highly respected in the Canadian television industry. She has worked with new and aspiring directors, through various mentorship programs, as Director-in-Residence at the National Screen Institute, the Aboriginal Screenwriters Program, and at the Women in the Director’s Chair Intensive at the Banff Centre.
are. He has performed in dozens of television and radio commercials, TV shows and is the voice of numerous cartoon characters every Saturday morning. His most recent feature film roles include ‘Truth, Justice and the American Way’ with Adrian Brody and Ben Affleck, ‘’Homie Spumoni’ with Whoopi Goldberg and Against the Ropes, with Meg Ryan. He is currently filming Ken Finkleman’s new six part dram-edy ‘Hotel’. A Second City Mainstage alumnus, Neil has been performing improvised and sketch comedy for over twenty years. When not on the stage or in front of a camera Neil is busy writing; as an award-winning weekly humour columnist for Metroland papers or as the author of stories for ‘Big and little kids’. His first children’s book, I am dead at Recess, is currently published on the Internet. Neil is a cancer survivor and available as a motivational speaker, focussing on the power of laughter in healing. He is also available to teach spontaneity and creativity enhancement workshops.
While in university, Shari established a theatre troupe for young people to fill the gap left from school board cuts to the arts. Following the success of her programs, Shari became the Choir Director for Livent’s Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat. Shari’s ability to pick out the shining star’s in her programs eventually led her to running the Youth Department of what was then The Talent Group. In that time, Shari has distinguished herself as one of the city’s most respected agents, representing primarily young actors working across the board in theatre, film and television. Shari is a regular contributor of articles for print media as well as television panel appearances discussing and providing insights for young people in the industry.
starring in Raju’s Blind Date to producing the three-day symposium of workshops for the Worldwide Short Film Festival. Raju’s Blind Date debuted at the Reel World Film Festival in 2002 and is currently touring the festival circuit. It recently screened on Air Canada’s domestic flights and can soon be seen on the CBC’s Canadian Reflections and ZeD. Priya is currently developing the short film into a series and is also developing her first feature, The Red Room. Her film review show, Girls On Film, was selected as a finalist for the Alliance Atlantis Lifestyle Award at the 2003 Innoversity Creative Summit. Priya is honoured to be a Diversity Advocate for ACTRA Toronto, as well as the Chair of ACTRA's National Diversity Committee.
, corporate videos, and theatrical plays. His performing credits include Scales of Justice, Friday’s Curse and Nikita. Eric has created, written, and produced several videos for various commercial organizations that include the Hudson’s Bay Company, the CNIB, and ProtectAir. He has garnered competitive writing grants from the Ontario Arts Council, the OMDC, and Super Channel. Eric is fluently bilingual, holds a BA from St. Pat’s College and a Masters Degree from Laval U. Eric is a member of ACTRA, l'Union des Artistes, and Canadian Actors' Equity Association.
2003); The Law of Enclosures (2000, Best Actor Genie); Lilies (1996 - Best Film Genie, Best Film at festivals in Montreal, Johannesburg, Los Angeles, San Francisco); Un©ut (1997, Honourable Mention, Berlin Film Festival); Zero Patience (1993 - Best Canadian Film, Sudbury Film Festival); The Making of Monsters (1991 - Best Canadian Short, Toronto Film Festival, Best Short Film Teddy - Berlin Film Festival); and Urinal (1988 - Best Feature Teddy, Berlin Film Festival). He co-edited Queer Looks, a critical anthology on gay/lesbian film & video (Routledge, 1993), is the author of Urinal and Other Stories (Power Plant/Art Metropole, 1993), and has published essays and artists pieces in Alphabet City, Public, FUSE, and twelve critical anthologies. An assistant professor in film at York University, he was awarded the Toronto Arts Award for Film/Video, 2000.
Leading Dramatic Role on “Cold Squad” and was recently named "Most Popular Actress in a Drama", by TV Guide. Other awards garnered by Stewart include a 1997 Gemini Award nomination for Best Performance in a Guest Role on “North of 60”, and a 1993 Gemini Award nomination for Best Performance in a Dramatic Program or Mini-Series in “Letter From Francis”. She has also appeared in the series’ “Ekhaya: A Family Chronicle”, “Coming of Age”, “Night Heat” and “Friday the 13th”. Born and raised in Kingston, Ontario, Stewart lives in Toronto. 
acting at Studio 58, the professional theatre-training program of Langara College in Vancouver. He graduated in ’94 and received the Vancouver Foundation Advanced Arts Award for theatre and B.C. Ministry of Culture, Senior Award for Drama. Since then he has performed in film, television and theatre from Victoria B.C. to NYC. David has been an elected member of ACTRA Toronto and ACTRA National councils since 2000 and served as ACTRA Toronto’s Vice-President of Communications and ACTRA’s National Vice-President. As publisher of ACTRA Toronto’s member magazine David oversaw its highly successful re-launch as Performers. His film and TV credits include The Commish, Hawkeye, Deepwater Black, Relic Hunter, The Eleventh Hour, How to Lose A Guy in 10 Days, Except the Dying, Welcome to Mooseport, Ham & Cheese, Hustle, The Newsroom, and most recently Knights of the South Bronx and Regenesis.
Kristopher Turner is a relatively new actor on the scene here in Toronto. With training in theatre at the University of Winnipeg, Kristopher transitioned to screen with various guest credits in the youth TV series: 2030CE, renegadepress.com, and Dark Oracle. Kristopher is now currently one of the series leads on the new hit CTV teen drama Instant Star playing the role of Jamie. 
theatres in Toronto. Within six years, he was nominated for the Dora Award for Best Actor four times. Within months of graduation, he had won the most coveted role in Canada - the lead in Chasing Rainbows for the CBC. Between 1989 and 2004, Michael has been the lead in twelve feature films, numerous films for television and an award winning mini-series. 
He is also the Consulting Director of Resurgence Theatre Company and the York Shakespeare Company. He directed the acclaimed productions of Much Ado About Nothing and The Complete Wrks of Wm Shakspere (abridged) for Resurgence’s 2004 season. This past summer he directed The Taming of the Shrew for ShakespeareWorks in Toronto. He has recently directed a commercial production of Fully Committed starring Peter Kelleghan. He will start rehearsals directing the Canadian premiere of The Last Days of Judas Iscariot (Birdland Theatre at Gooderham-Worts in Toronto) in mid October. 
Sheridan's feature film with 50 cent in Toronto, New York and Dublin. Walter also stars in the 90-episode series Metropia. Walter won the Trailblazer Award and is soon to be nominated for The Latin American Achievement Award. Both are prestigious and exciting honors exemplary of his hard work, determination, perseverance and recognition as a leading male actor and artist. Walter has more than 13 years’ of experience in front and behind the camera with more than 200 hours of television and film. Walter co-starred in the acclaimed feature film The Uncles, and starred in the feature film Three and a Half, receiving rave reviews. Walter teaches scene study and character development to young actors.
theatre. Soon after, he began a four-year stint in a ‘fringe’ theatre troupe called Way Off Broadway which toured across Canada. 
categories – transport, craft service, and art department – before settling in to assistant directing. He has worked as a First Assistant Director for the past 12 years. Some of his credits include Street Legal, TwitchCity, Traders, The Associates and Odyssey 5. David recently completed work on the TV series Jeff Limited and is waiting for the release of the feature films Cake and Homi Spumoni. David was honoured to accept the award for outstanding team achievement for the feature film Childstar at this year's DGC awards. In his few hours away from work, David likes to hang out with his daughter Kate or play hockey during the winter and golf in the summer.