Filmmakers Uncut

Andrew Barnsley is an Emmy and Golden Globe winning Executive Producer (Best Comedy Series) based in Toronto and Los Angeles. He is a six-time Canadian Screen Award winning Executive Producer. Barnsley is currently an Executive Producer on CTV/Bell Media’s 24 x ½ hour comedy series Jann starring Jann Arden, CBC’s 26 x ½ hour comedy series Son Of A Critch, Amazon Prime’s 8 x ½ hour comedy series Kids In The Hall. He has served previously as an Executive Producer on CBC/PopTV’s 80 x ½ hour series Schitt’s Creek starring Eugene Levy and Catherine O’Hara, Family Channel/CBBC's 15 x ½ hour tween series My Perfect Landing, CTV’s 26 x 1/2 hour sitcom Spun Out starring Dave Foley, the TMN/Movie Central documentary series Sports On Fire and the HBO Canada documentary feature Spirit Unforgettable (2016). Since 2001, Barnsley has produced content across multiple genres and formats including comedy, animation, live-action, children’s, documentary and multiple live concert specials.

In addition to Andrew’s role at Project 10 he is the President of Toronto Film School. He is a member of the Producer’s Guild of America, the Canadian Media Producers Association, the Academy of Television Arts and Sciences (USA) and the Academy of Canadian Film & Television. He holds an MA in Communications and Culture from Ryerson and York Universities, a BAA from Ryerson University’s Radio and Television Arts Program and a BEd from St. Thomas University in Fredericton, New Brunswick.

Origin Films Inc. & Origin Weddings Founders Pouya & Danny openly talk about their business, filmmaking in general and how they got to where they are today. 

Matt Ardine works as a lighting designer and gaffer. His career has involved hundreds of commercials as well as feature films, tv and broadcast concerts. He enjoys using cutting edge methods to light the scene. When not on set, he enjoys spending time with his wife and three children, running in the mountains, and rollerblading at the skatepark. Recents projects include Everything Everywhere All at Once, Gaslit, and many commercials.

Sean Skene was born in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada in to a family submersed in the film and theatre community. His father, Rick Skene, is a Stunt Coordinator and his Grandfather, Reg Skene, helped create and chair the U of W theatre department. His Mother, Janice Skene, is an actress, singer and puppeteer in shows such as "Fred Penner's Place".

Sean has been working in film and television as a Stunt Performer, Stunt Coordinator, Producer, Editor and Director and is known for Suits, Goon & Siberia just to name a few. Sean's work has taken him around the world and he currently has over 150 film and television credits.

Junior Lucano is a camera operator, Steadicam operator, ARRI Trinity operator and owner, certified as “Trinity Trainer” for Arri based in China. He developed his career in Italy as a camera operator in private television, working in the News department. While working for short films & music videos during his days-off, he got inspired to attend a private Steadicam workshop in Italy with Mr. Marco Buzzetti, which was a turning point in his career as he explored in depth his passion of camera movements. March 2018, Junior decided to expand his career by purchasing the new Trinity system from Arri, becoming the first Trinity operator in Asia & a member of The ACO and The SOC.

Kris Belman is a Mexican American filmmaker who lives in Los Angeles by way of Akron, Ohio.  He exploded onto the scene with his breakout debut documentary feature More Than A Game, the definitive film about LeBron James on his journey to fame.  Kris translated his success in documentaries to the world of commercials helming campaigns for brands such as Burger King, Verizon, Microsoft, and Heinz to name a few.  His work has received countless accolades including recognition at Cannes Lions, D&AD, the One Show, and the Webby's for Burger King "Whopper Neutrality," and recognition at D&AD and the One Show for his work with Heinz featuring Ed Sheeran.  As a director, he's in his element pulling authentic performances out of non-actors and celebrity talent alike.  His pitch perfect ear for dialogue, innate sense of comedic timing and penchant for storytelling contribute to his one of a kind sensibility, a rare blend of comedy infused by his background in documentaries. And he's one helluva prankster.

David Wain is a director, writer, actor and comedian. He has directed six feature films, the most recent being the Sundance hit A Futile and Stupid Gesture (starring Will Forte, Domhnall Gleeson & Emmy Rossum) which premiered at the Sundance Film Festival (and on Netflix) last year. Previously he directed and co-wrote the movies Wet Hot American Summer, The Ten, Role Models, Wanderlust and They Came Together. On television, he’s the co-creator, co-writer and director of Medical Police, an epic action comedy series which premiered on Netflix in 2020. Previously he was co-creator (with Michael Showalter) and sole director of two Netflix eight-part mini-series: Wet Hot American Summer: First Day of Camp, and Wet Hot American Summer: Ten Years Later.  He also plays the swarthy, sexy Israeli counselor “Yaron.”He was also an executive producer, writer, director and frequent guest star of Childrens Hospital, Adult Swim’s hit series starring Rob Corddry, Megan Mullally, Henry Winkler and Malin Akerman. The show ran for seven seasons, winning six Emmy Awards. (Medical Police is a spin-off of Childrens Hospital.) He co-created and co-starred in two other TV series, both of which have an enduring cult following: The State (MTV) and Stella (Comedy Central). He has written, directed and/or acted in dozens of other movies and TV shows including Broad City, Portlandia, Superstore, New Girl, Party Down, Drunk History, Another Period, Younger, Crazy Ex-Girlfriend, Superjail, Fresh Off the Boat and The Daily Show. He is the voice of Courtney (Gene's necklace-sucking girlfriend) on Bob's Burgers. He was an early web series pioneer with Stella Shorts, and later Wainy Days, a web series chronicling his (slightly) fictionalized romantic adventures. Wain grew up in Shaker Heights, Ohio. At age 19, he was the drummer in the Rockin’ Knights of Summer, a band created for the purpose of touring summer camps. He then graduated from NYU, debuting his short film Aisle Six at the 1993 Sundance Film Festival. After 26 years in Manhattan, he now lives in Los Angeles with his two sons.

A native of Los Angeles, Pat embodies the vitality and energy of the city and his generation. A gifted director, Pat also brings a strong background in post production, sound design, and visual effects, so he intuitively knows how to capture the content he needs to create an impactful edit. His extensive production skills underpin his success as a storyteller; his executions are fresh and engaging. Pat’s boundless curiosity and natural talent for telling stories on film started at a young age. Akin to a prodigy, he is a three-time Santa Barbara International Film Festival finalist, winning his first festival at the early age of 15. He has recently directed and edited content for Adidas, Oakley, Facebook, ASICS, MeUndies, WSJ, Foot Locker, and Outside Magazine.

Celeste is a mixed-race writer/director whose focus is in children's and youth media. She is is a natural storyteller with an imaginative voice and vision and a uniquely fun, colourful, mixed-media style. Celeste’s short films have gotten into festivals across the globe including: TIFF Kids, DOC NYC, The Toronto International Reel Asian Film Festival, and The St. Louis International Film Festival. Through the success of her films she was commissioned to write and direct two segments for PBS’s Sesame Street's 44th season.

She has also written and directed for Radical Sheep Production’s preschool TVO show Can You Imagine That; CBC Kids News; CBC Short Docs; and was integral in bringing to life the APTN children’s show Anaana’s Tent. In addition to writing and directing Celeste has 11-years of experience working in the art department as a DGC graphic and motion graphics designer, and as a production designer on numerous short films and web content.

Celeste is nominated for Best Direction in a Web Program or Series at the 2021 Canadian Screen Awards for her CBC Short Doc Love Letters From Everest. The film is also nominated for Best Non-fiction Web Program or Series. 

Oklahoma native and Dubai-based creative Gerry Blaksley is the  Director at Dubai Film and Creative Director at XDUBAI. He Directed the Netflix feature documentary “Fittest in Dubai” as well as numerous commercial projects with brands such as PlayStation, Mercedes-Benz, Reebok and Red Bull. Gerry is an aerial DOP and underwater cinematographer with a love for action sports and adventure stories.

NYC Director/ Visual Engineer Steve Giralt joins Origin Films to talk about his career & mindset while working alongside some of the biggest brands in the world.

Born and raised in New York City, Ben Lyons is a Host, Producer, and Marketing consultant working at the intersection of sports, film, media, and culture. Over the years he has interviewed every major artist and athlete of his generation, while covering and attending the worlds most prestigious award shows and premieres, biggest and most important sporting events, music, and film festivals. Currently working as a Contributing Correspondent for CBS-LA covering sports and culture across Southern California, Ben has spent the past 9 years working as an On-Air personality at ESPN and ESPN-Los Angeles, contributing content on "SPORTS-CENTER, local and national radio, and ESPN digital platforms. Ben's background in the film space consists of working as a film critic and journalist over the years covering the movie business and hosting panels and press conferences at film festivals all over the world including Cannes, Sundance, Zurich, Toronto, Tribeca, SXSW, New York, LA, London, Chicago, San Diego, Moscow, Dubai, and Miami to name a few, as well as serving on the jury for AFI, Aruba, and GenArt. Ben has partnered with film studios such as Disney, Sony, Paramount, Lionsgate, Universal, Netflix, A24, Focus, Fox, etc..to host VIP/Influencer screenings of their films, in addition to branded content surrounding their release. Ben has partnered with brands from X-Box, Jose Cuervo, and MasterCard, to Nike, Jordan Brand, MedTerra, Remy Martin, Old Spice, Dove, Intel, and many others, to create press and content campaigns and consult on their behalf. Before he moved to LA, he produced music videos for Hip Hop artists Sean Price, Tony Touch, Black Moon, and Bone Thugs N Harmony. He has acted and appeared as himself in several major and independent film, TV, and digital projects including, "The House Bunny", Entourage", Beverly Hills 90210", A Stand-Up Guy", Blackjack: The Jackie Ryan Story, and "The 5th Quarter. Ben has also been asked to write profile pieces on actors and actresses for magazines like GOTHAM, LA CONFIDENTIAL and HAMPTONS.

Sean Carey began his career as a trainee at CAA and later helped launched AOL Originals in 2010 where he lead development, production, marketing and distribution for numerous award-winning doc and scripted series including partnerships and co-productions with Killer Films, Mark Burnett Productions, Tribeca Films, the Jonas Group, and Mandalay Sports Media. As an independent producer, notable projects include the theatrically-released and critically acclaimed documentaries In Search of Greatness featuring Wayne Gretzky, Jerry Rice and Pelé, and Red Army about the Soviet hockey team, Executive Produced by Werner Herzog and Jerry Weintraub, and released by Sony Pictures Classics after premiering at the 2014 Cannes Film Festival.  In Search of Greatness and Red Army both received WGA nominations for Best Documentary Screenplay.  Red Army is ranked in the top 10 sports films of all time according to critics by Business Insider and the #1 Hockey Film by Vice Media.  Current projects in development and production include a scripted limited series based on UNLV Coach Jerry Tarkanian and the transformation of Las Vegas across the 1970’s and 1980’s in partnership with Jonah Hill, Drake, Ted Griffin, and Rick Yorn; a feature documentary about the life and candidacy for Sainthood of Freddie Steinmark, the legendary Longhorn who led Texas football to the 1969 National Championship before inspiring America’s War on Cancer, directed by Jared Christopher and a co-production with ESPN/The Longhorn Network; and a scripted television series about the Wayland Baptist College Flying Queens basketball team and the longest winning streak in sports that led to Title IX, in partnership with Jared Christopher, Laverne McKinnon and Kay Cannon, and based on the Texas Monthly HOOP QUEENS article by Skip Hollandsworth.

After graduating from the Applied Photography course in 1988 from Sheridan College, John went on to work at Templeton’s Photo Studio, CBC’s the Journal and Midday and freelance work in Toronto’s Film and Television industry. Three of his latest projects as Property Master include, ‘Schitt’s Creek’, ‘Private Eyes', and ‘Anne with an E’, have met with acclaim. John currently resides in Innisfil ON and continues working in Canadian TV and Film. When time allows, you’ll find him photographing birds and wildlife @jarchbell on Instagram.

Jared Christopher is a five-time Emmy-winning documentary filmmaker. He most recently created and sold Texas 6, an 8 episode half-hour doc series to CBS All Access. Following the show's success, CBS announced an order for a second season which will premiere in the fall of 2021. He is most known for his documentary series Titletown, TX which was picked up by Facebook’s ‘Watch’ platform as part of its video launch in 2017. The series received more than 60 million views and won numerous journal awards including two Edward R. Murrow awards for Excellence in Innovation and Excellence in Video. It can be seen on Amazon’s Prime Video. Christopher spent the last decade as senior video journalist for McClatchy owned Fort Worth Star-Telegram. He’s won dozens of journalism awards during his tenure for projects that include coverage of the tragic Dallas Police shooting of 2016, the murder of Euless police officer David Hofer, the abduction of journalist Austin Tice while reporting in Syria, and the first person investigation of Las Vegas Trail, one of the most dangerous neighbourhoods in America. Christopher also served as second camera on the 2015 Sundance Film Festival breakout hit Hot Girls Wanted which was later acquired by Netflix.

Josh Morgan is the founder and creator of Momentum Productions. Beginning as an actor, Josh found his passion as a content creator and began his journey. He has worked with many celebrity clients ranging from bodybuilders like Mike O’Hearn, Producer, Randy Jackson, Youtubers like Rebecca Black, and more! Now, Josh is focusing on his own brand and content on YouTube and Instagram.

Andres P Galicia, Born in Mexico City, studied for 4 years in Universidad Iberoamericana, with a major in film (Not finished). He has recently filmed projects in Mexico, Ecuador, Canada and currently pre-producing a film shot in Africa. ​He has worked with brands like Samsung, PepsiCo, and REDKEN 5th Av.

Evan is a DP/cinematographer based out of Dallas, TX. He primarily works on narrative films and music videos. He’s worked on projects featuring artists like Leon Bridges, Gregg Allman, and Black Pumas. He enjoys collecting vintage lenses and will begin filming a new horror film in the Spring.