Diane
St. Laurent
Director
Diane St. Laurent is the award winning writer and director of A Lively Experiment: Dr. John Clarke Co-founder of Rhode Island and director of Left Behind - The Deadly Consequences of Drunk Driving. Diane attended New York Film Academy where she received a certificate in Film Production and she holds another certificate in Entertainment Media Management from New York University. Diane also holds a MBA and BS degree in Business Administration from the University of Rhode Island. Diane's short film collection includes Identity, Crazy, Panic, Freedom, A Hardened Heart, 49 Take Streeet, A Change of Address and Pop's Harley.
Diane is most proud of the work she has done with the Katie DeCubellis Memorial Foundation. Diane and her sister Toni-Ann, wrote, directed, and produced an award winning film trilogy named The Deadly Consequences of Drunk Driving. Left Behind, the second film in the trilogy, is the recipient of the 2004 Telly Award. These films were produced to educate teenagers about the dangers of drunk driving and substance abuse. The films are shown everyday throughout the U.S. to teenagers who are attending driver's education.
Toni-Ann
Baker
Producer
Toni-Ann Baker is co-owner of Two Sisters' Productions, Inc., located in Rhode Island, which presently has several projects underway in various stages of production. Toni-Ann has written, produced, and directed several movie projects, television broadcast commercials, radio spots, website trailers, and promotional videos. She is an advertising agent for Cox Communications, a local cable company. Most notably, she co-produced A Lively Experiment: Dr. John Clarke, Co-Founder of RI (1609-1676). It has received Honorary Mention in the Roving Eye Documentary Festival in RI and also was an Official Selection in the Rhode Island International Film Festival, which is scheduled to air on PBS summer 2007.
Toni-Ann also co-wrote and produced the video series called The Deadly Consequences of Drunk Driving for the Katie DeCubellis Memorial Foundation, which was included in the State of Rhode Island driver's training curriculum. One of the volumes in the series, Left Behind, was the recipient of a Telly Award.
Raz
Cunningham
Writer
Raz Cunningham studied at Marymount Manhattan College in New York City where he graduated with degrees in English and Communications. He began his career working as a production intern at NBC's Late Night With Conan O'Brien where he learned the ins and outs of television and logistics for well over a year.
After his time at NBC he joined the successful and well-known indie film production company Forensic Films, Inc., in downtown Tribeca where he gained vast experience in film working as the personal assistant to the Executive Producers. He was with the production company through several films.
Soon after his time with Forensic Films, he began to work as a freelance producer and production manager in New York, working on several films in various capacities and also functioned as a consultant to several indie film companies and projects. His work has taken him up and down the Northeast and has provided him with invaluable experience uncommon to an individual at this level.
Raz also has experience writing and directing short films as well as a vast acting resume. In 2006, Raz was semi-finalist in ScreenplayFestival.com's screenplay festival for his script, BIBLEFEST.
Seth
Melnick
Director of Photography
Seth Melnick is an accomplished Director of Photography and a business-oriented producer. Originally a technical consultant he managed projects with budgets of several million dollars and dozens of people such as Iwon.com and the first Internet ISP in Brazil, IG.com. Seth co-created SLM Production Group LLC with Lauzanne Nel as a venue to produce original and provocative works. As a production company they have been involved in the production of over a two dozen feature films, shorts, videos, trailers and animations. They are equipped to bring project from concept through pre-production, principle photography, editing, and other post-production to a completed product.
Seth Melnick specializes in HD filmmaking using the medium to its maximum potential in telling a visually compelling story. Two of his projects were just submitted to the 2008 Sundance Film Festival: 3rd of July (short film shot on the HPX500) and American Standard(feature shot on the HVX200). He recently completed the feature film "Chasing the Green" starring William Devane, Jeremy London, Ryan Hearst, Robert Picardo and Patricia Rae.
Seth Melnick was recently featured in a press release by Panasonic – the release can be seen here. Studio Daily also recently conducted an interview with him which can be seen here. You can see more about his work at http://www.slmproduction.com.
Thomas
Ohanian
Post Production Supervisor
A native of Providence, Rhode Island, Thomas A. Ohanian has a BS degree in Film and Broadcasting from Boston University and a Masters in Instructional Technology from Rhode Island College. He is an accomplished film editor, inventor, and published author.
In 1989, Mr. Ohanian joined Avid Technology, a start-up computer software company formed to create computer-based film and video software editing systems. Ohanian was the first editor and 8th employee at Avid. He joined the company in January 1989 and was responsible for research and design of the Avid/1 Media Composer, digital nonlinear editing system. He is now Chief Editor, responsible for input and design concentrating on the editing and effects products.
The Avid Media Composer has revolutionized the field of professional video editing, replacing the use of videotapes with digital hard disks. Today, digital nonlinear editing, and the Avid Media Composer is the standard video editing system for the professional video post-production industry. Over 80% of US television commercials and 70% of prime-time programs are created on this system, as well as countless television and news programs around the world. For 100 years the basic aspects of film editing had remained unchanged. With the invention of the Avid Film Composer in 1992, in only three years 67% of film editing in Hollywood has switched to digital nonlinear editing technology. Today, the Avid Film Composer is the recognized leader in supplying creative tools and technology to the film industry.
Mauro
Colangelo
Music Composer, Sound Design & Editing
Mauro Colangelo has mastered music composition in a career spanning over two decades. He graduated at the Conservatory of Music in Milan, Italy, his hometown where in 1990 he was also hired by a recording studio as a composer. From that time he never left the studio business and went on to produce and score for Films and Documentaries, TV, Radio and Multimedia building a reputation for delivering the musical goods in any number of music genres and for different media. His classical musical background is only parallel to his jazz-contemporary music studies: harmony, arrangement, composition and orchestration.
In 1992, he launched his own studio Bread and Music upgrading from analog tape to the latest digital technology. He mastered software's packages such as Protools, Logic Audio, Performer, Reason, Cubase 4 among others. He has since achieved recognition for his "packaging" and outstanding sound quality. In fact, Mauro is considered a pioneer for the Protools software as he was first in Italy to use its Digidesign suite and was hired by Digidesign as demonstrator.
Mauro's versatility is best expressed however in Film and Documentary Scoring. His unique talent for setting exactly the right "mood" conveys the musical heart of a movie. Mauro's music style has a readily identifiable European flavour. Among his recent work the TV Docu-drama "3 Degrees" broadcasted by Cox TV, produced by Cox Communications; the Documentary "In Pursuit of the Truth" produced by Meanstreet Film; the Indie Film "The Curse of Micah Rood" with Ron Palillo (Horshack in "Welcome Back Hotter"), produced by Firesite Films. Mauro scored for the Documentary Series "Overland" a prime time series broadcasted on the national public television RAI and all over the world. Among others, he also composed an original score for the Siemens 100th anniversary-commemorating documentary.
In 2005, Mauro established his residency in Rhode Island where he launched Mauro Colangelo Music Factory Inc. and scored – with original music – several commercials, one of which, produced for Cox Communications, in 2008 earned him the prestigious Telly Award for "Best Use of Music" in a commercial.
Mauro produced music for Radio and TV commercials for several renowned accounts such as Sprite. The song "Get Up" produced for the Sprite commercial received such an outstanding consensus that (opposite to customary marketing procedures) actually, Sugar Records – same as of internationally renowned singer Andrea Bocelli - picked it up and went on to produce a very successful record. Other major accounts include: Coke, Vigorsol, Olidata, Fiat, Alfa Romeo, San Carlo chips, Mattel, Kinder Nutella, Siemens, and many more. Mauro is currently scoring a Feature Film "Out of Alignment", produced by J. Conforti, and a new TV Series "Xpose" to be broadcasted on Cox TV next spring.
Mauro is also an accomplished session drummer and performer. In addition to playing with his own band "Billow", among others, he performed for Alex Baroni, Juanes, Lene (Aqua), and Ricky Martin.
"As a Film composer my aim is to offer a new layer of emotions and provide a full experience of the senses" - Mauro Colangelo
Paul
Roselli
Associate Producer
Paul has a passion for the image and story telling. Independent Director of Photography, Senior Editor, Producer and Director, and writer for over 30 years. Narrative films, documentaries, broadcast programming, shorts and more. Paul's body of work includes:
What Lingers – SciFi Trailer; Hope for a Sustainable Future – Award Winning short; Universal Journey, Make it Three, Plasma Crossing – three short films; The Work of the Ancient Hand: restoration of a 5000 year old mummy coffin ensemble – Rochester Museum; Gifts of the Nile – world tour exhibit featuring artifacts from the ancient Egyptians; University of Massachusetts Medical School – Autism: The First Time; CvG – trailers on the tennis life in Newport; Tree Stories – People and Trees Growing Together; Simón Bolivar – The Liberator; the Problem with Lead Paint – Childhood Lead Action Program; The Rising Generation – Brown University; …for the children – Hasbro Children's Hospital dedication; Speak to the Past – John Carter Brown Library & IBM, and many, many more. Sense of Place with David Macaulay; The Yekuanna Indians – Holding the Ancient Ways in the Amazon; Pharaohs of the Sun – City of Amarna; Restoration of the Nightingale/Brown House; and many, many more.
Paul has worked for Earth Day Rhode Island, CCRI, PRIDE RI, Coca Cola, American Mussel Harvesters, PRAXAIR, MTTI, Code Red, Brown University, Johnson & Wales, University of Massachusetts Medical School, DURO Finishing, Drexel University, ThunderWave, The Annenberg Institute of Education, Suprina, Merk Institute for Science, University of Pennsylvania, Falkirk Mining, ABACUS, NUCON, Observer Publications, Houston Independent School System, World Sports Camp, US West, CVS and many, many more. Experience with formats that include 35mm, 16mm for film and SD and HD with video.
Senior Editor on many projects using both Media 100 and Final Cut Pro. Paul is a valued member of the community, offering volunteer services, guidance and technical skills to many non-profit organizations throughout the state. Paul is president of the Burrillville Land Trust, a board member of the Blackstone River Watershed Council/Friends of the Blackstone, a board member and past president of the Rhode Island Land Trust Council, founder of the Burrillville Farmers' Market and helped start 3 other markets in Rhode Island, an avid environmentalist who is committed to protecting, managing, and restoring the quality of Rhode Island's environment. Paul has taught at the Burrillville High School, adjunct professor at Katherine Gibbs and Johnson & Wales, Drexel University, Brown Learning Community, RISD, and has given guest lectures at ICESA, NERCOMP, Apple Computer and more. Paul holds a BS and MA from the University of Rhode Island. A photojournalist, paparazzi, and writer. Paul continues to display his generosity to others in way of offering his most valuable asset - his time.