Conversations with the living- The AIDS Crisis in Haiti » Bios

Marc Landas (Director)

Staff — Sat, 17 Oct 2009 20:14:53 +0000

Marc Landas is a filmmaker and writer based in New York. He has written and directed three short films, the latest of which is currently in post-production. He is also the author of The Fallen: A True Story of American POWs and Japanese Wartime Atrocities (John Wiley & Sons; 2004). He currently serves as an editor for the London-based European Food and European Laboratory magazines, as well as for their website, Scientist Live. He has worked as an online and print journalist for over fifteen years, contributing to an eclectic collection of news sources ranging from Fox News to the Los Angeles Times. Marc Landas received his Bachelor of Arts in Biology from New York University and his Master of Arts in English Literature from Queens College CUNY.

Leigh E. Carlson (Producer)

Staff — Sat, 17 Oct 2009 20:14:01 +0000

Leigh E. Carlson received her Bachelor of Arts degree in Electronic Media from Xavier University in Cincinnati, Ohio and worked for several years in broadcast media as a graphic designer, animator and story producer for the ABC and PBS affiliates in Cincinnati. While studying to receive her Master of Fine Arts degree in Filmmaking at the New York Film Academy, she wrote, produce and directed over a dozen short films including Eminent Domain, which has had success on the festival circuit and most recently won a 2008 Indiefest Award of Merit.

Over the past ten years, Leigh’s production experience has ranged from producing commercial projects and television series, to short films, independent feature films, local media broadcast projects, new media and documentary pieces for both independent production companies and networks such as Lifetime, Discovery Channel and Animal Planet. She recently co-produced the feature film The Grover Complex, is currently producing a part live-action part animated family film, The Paper Castle, as well as producing and coordinating events for Getting Out By Going In, (GOGI), a non-profit organization that promotes education instead of incarceration.

Gregory Cassagnol (Producer)

Staff — Sat, 17 Oct 2009 20:13:22 +0000

Gregory Cassagnol made his foray into the arts in the late 1980’s and early 1990’s while a student at New York University. He began writing for a then fledgling Source Magazine, Spin Magazine, www.360hiphop.com , and www.joellortiz.com as a record reviewer, news reporter, and columnist before turning to film as a medium of expression.

What began as a hobby, first doing short films with his NYU counterparts, quickly turned into a stint as an independent news producer and assistant to BET correspondent David Dent. Gregory then shifted towards documentary filmmaking eventually landing a deal with Win Media/Ventura Distribution for his 2003 Hip Hop Odyssey Film Festival Best Feature Documentary Hip Hop 101:The Game.

Gregory has also served as a researcher and proof writer for the Natives’ Guide to New York by Richard Laermer, Broadway Books, 1997 and Get On With It by Richard Laermer, Broadway Books, 1997.

Trina DeMattei (Line Producer)

Staff — Sat, 17 Oct 2009 20:12:37 +0000

Trina DeMattei originally hails from Northern California. She began her creative pursuits in the theatre and has since acquired over 20 years experience as an actor, director and stage manager. She put her creative pursuits on hold to attended Oregon State University, where she majored in political science with the plan of continuing on to law school. After finding that the world of law was not for her, she worked for a brief period in a corporate environment, but decided soon after to finally pursue her creative desires. She moved to Los Angeles in 2007 to attend The Los Angeles Film School. In film school she found a love for producing, and embraced an environment where she could mix her experience in the arts with her business savvy. Since graduating in August of 2008, she has line produced 9 short films and 1 independent feature. She also co-produced the short film Heather and Goliath, an environmental documentary about the LA River. She is extremely excited to be a part of Conversations with the Living.

Robert Dannin (Advisor)

Staff — Sat, 17 Oct 2009 20:11:49 +0000

Robert Dannin holds a doctorate in ethno-linguistics and anthropology from the School for Advanced Studies in Social Sciences in Paris. He worked many years as a journalist and served as the director of Magnum Photos. His teaching appointments include positions at Brown University, New York University, and Suffolk University. He is the author of Black Pilgrimage to Islam (Oxford University Press, 2002) and other publications on the Muslim-American experience. His recent scholarship examines communitarian movements in New York’s Lower East Side and the school-choice controversy in Ohio. He is currently writing a biography of noted philanthropist and tycoon Jacob Schiff.

Bernard Moor-Jankowski (Director of Photography)

Staff — Sat, 17 Oct 2009 20:11:11 +0000

Bernard Moor-Jankowski is a Director of Photography whose credits include working with The New York African Museum of Art, Discovery Channel, National Geographic, Court TV, TLC, Outdoor Life Network, Fuse TV, MTV, and VH1. During the last 4 years he worked on a self-funded human rights documentary in Mauritius, Africa (http://www.chagosfilm.com/).

As a field producer and cameraman, he has international experience in reality and documentary production and has worked in many different countries and environments from the Sahara Desert to the rain forests of Colombia and most recently in Mali, Africa for the New York African Museum of Art. Bernard has a BA in Documentary Filmmaking and Eastern European studies from Hampshire College in Amherst, MA.

Brandon Huus (Sound Mixer)

Staff — Sat, 17 Oct 2009 20:10:27 +0000

While attending school at The Institute of Production and Recording in Minneapolis, Minnesota, Brandon worked as a sound technician for live music acts. After graduating he moved to Orange County California, where he began work as a live sound technician and technical director for 2 theaters, and as a Boom Operator in film and television. After relocating to Los Angeles, he began work exclusively in film and television productions as a Boom Operator and Sound Mixer. His projects range from web series, short films, and television pilots to television series and feature length films. He has seen and heard a lot through his experiences, and can’t wait for the next adventure!

Mithun Gangopadhyay (2nd Unit DP)

Staff — Sat, 17 Oct 2009 20:08:36 +0000

Mithun or Mitch as he is popularly known is a Cinematographer and Photographer based in Los Angeles.

Hewas raised in India, Europe and Africa as his family led a nomadic lifestyle before eventually settling down in Delhi, India. He got his Bachelors degree in Business before relocating to Bombay towork in the Hindi film industry also known as Bollywood. After a 4 year stint where he worked on blockbuster films, the genetic wanderlust kicked in and he moved base to New York which he credits as one of the most incredible experiences of his life. After an intense 18 months where he immersed himself in films, art and photography he hungered for a new challenge and in 2008 made the move to Los Angeles.

For the past 3 years he has been working in the Camera and Lighting Dept while racking up numerous credits and gaining valuable experience learning from the best in the business. He is currently working as a Cinematographer on documentaries, music videos, narrative shorts and video art installations. An accomplished photographer himself, he credits his abiding love for the magical medium of photography as his
primary influence.