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The Crew
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MARY MORTEN, PRODUCER/DIRECTOR
Mary is a filmmaker, activist, and consultant and is committed to social change though video and film development. Mary has served as the producer/director for several films that have covered national policy initiatives, women's rights and the LGBT community. Special events and theater productions include: the Bailiwick Theater Playwrights Festival where she directed world theatre premiere of A Lady and A Woman. Morten has a B.A. in Communications from Loyola University of Chicago with a concentration in radio and television and minor in theatre.
Mary is the President of Morten Group (MG), a consulting firm specializing in social change through skills development, public policy and advocacy.
Mary is frequently seen in national and local media outlets for her expertise as a women's advocate. Mary's background includes 20 years of executive leadership at non-profits and a mayoral appointment in city government. Mary is the immediate past Director of the Office of Violence Prevention for the Chicago Department of Public Health. Prior to this position, Mary was an appointee for Mayor Richard M. Daley and served as a Director for the Chicago Commission on Human Relations.
She has received numerous honors for work with women and girls and in the philanthropic community. In 2010, Mary received the Freedom Award from Equality Illinois. Past honors include recognition from Rape Victim Advocates with the Visionary Award, the Women's Bar Association with their Women with Vision Award and Changing the Face of Philanthropy Award from the Women's Funding Network. Mary is a member of the Association of Fundraising Professionals and the Donors Forum of Chicago.
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INES SOMMER, DIRECTOR OF CINEMATOGRAPHY
Sommer is an independent filmmaker with extensive experience working both as a cinematographer and as a video producer for documentaries and tapes for non-profit organizations. Ines has worked on numerous documentary, advocacy, educational and dramatic projects, ranging in subject matter from health to women's issues, the environment, youth, and arts and culture. Her award-winning shorts have played widely at festivals and alternative exhibition venues for over 15 years.
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APARNA SHARMA, PHD, ASSOCIATE PRODUCER
Aparna Sharma is a Program Officer at a local family foundation. She received her PhD in applied social psychology at Loyola University Chicago, and worked as the Senior Researcher at Loyola University Chicago's Center for Urban Research and Learning (CURL), which is a non-traditional research unit that builds and supports collaborative research and education efforts.
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KEISHA FARMER-SMITH, MA, LSW, PHD., ASSOCIATE PRODUCER
Farmer-Smith manages the Girl World programs at Alternatives, Inc. Currently a doctoral candidate at the University of Illinois at Chicago College of Urban Planning & Policy Analysis and a social worker, Farmer-Smith research and practice uses feminist standpoint and asset-based theories in community work with girls and young women. Keisha is a founding board member of Women and Girls Collective Action Network and the Chicago Freedom School.
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MARISOL YBARRA, MA, ASSOCIATE PRODUCER
Ybarra provides technical assistance to the documentary production and subjects. Her background includes a concentration in women studies and community organizing and as an advocate on a variety of issues. She currently manages the outreach activities and professional development of five leadership council at a local foundation. Marisol sits on the Chicago Alliance Against Sexual Exploitation board of directors.
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CATHY COHEN, PHD, PRODUCING CONSULTANT
Cohen is deputy provost of Graduate Education at the University of Chicago and principal investigator for the Black Youth Project. Cohen is the David and Mary Winton Green Professor of Political Science. Cohen is the author of the book The Boundaries of Blackness: AIDS and the Breakdown of Black Politics (University of Chicago Press, 1999) and the co-editor with Kathleen Jones and Joan Tronto of Women Transforming Politics: An Alternative Reader (NYU, 1997).
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HOLLY DE RUYTER, FILM EDITOR
Holly is an independent filmmaker living in Chicago. She works in the city editing and consulting on post production management. Holly is currently working on her first feature film about Wisconsin supper clubs called, Old Fashioned: The Story of the Wisconsin Supper Club.
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LUCY SMITH, ORIGINAL MUSIC
Lucy is a Chicago-based singer, composer and bandleader. Her quartet frequents the Chicago jazz scene and her musical collaborations include works for theatre, film and spoken word productions. Lucy performs often for organizations working on social and economic justice issues and she is currently tackling her 2nd solo release: a fusion of sacred, spiritual and jazz music.
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CHRISTYLEZ BACON, MUSIC
Christylez Bacon (pronounced: chris-styles) is a GRAMMY Nominated Progressive Hip-Hop artist and multi-instrumentalist from Southeast, Washington, DC. As a performer, Christylez multi-tasks between various instruments such as the West African djembe drum, acoustic guitar, and the human beat-box (oral percussion), all while continuing the oral tradition of storytelling through his lyrics.
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