the Filmmakers
Sasha A. Schriber, Writer/director
The daughter of German and Russian parents, Sasha has always had a passion for film and has been writing screenplays for the past ten years. She discovered that school was not enough to quench the thirst of her creative vision, and her curiosity about the world around her inspired her to become a ferocious advocate for self-education. While entrenched in a coffee shop with her book and laptop, she met her future husband, Peter. The couple has since travelled all over the world. Ever the patient observer, Sasha always keeps a pen and notebook at the ready to take notes when meeting new people, constantly searching for the “perfect story” for her films.
While a regular resident of Switzerland, Sasha splits her time between home abroad and her temporary digs in Vancouver,
Frederique Remy, Producer
Frederique, known simply as “Fred” at home in France and “Freddie” in English-speaking countries, developed a passion for filmmaking at a young age. She spent most of her free time in front of the TV or at the movie theatre to nourish this budding romance. However, she was born in a time and place where going to film school was not really an option, and thus decided to follow in her grandfather’s footsteps by attending the local business school.
After graduation, Freddie engaged in a roller coaster career between the USA, the UK, and France. She has worked for various international companies, and her fondness for foreign cultures has taken her around the world – 45 countries to date! When her zeal for the corporate world began to fade somewhat, she made a smart move: she returned to her hometown to attend a totally unknown film school in Marseille.
Photograph by Fethi Bouchelarm
Chayse Irvin, Cinematographer
Born and raised in Vancouver, British Columbia Canada, Chayse Irvin has had a passion for film production and storytelling since he was eight years old, when he started making short films with friends and family members. In his last year of high school, he was already enrolled in an advanced college film course.
A year later, he enrolled in the film program at Capilano University. While attending film school, Chayse discovered his obsession for cinematography by mentoring under cinematographers, Scott Williams, William Gereghty, and Glen Winter, to whom he was introduced by producer/production designer David Willson.
After completing his first year of film at Capilano University, Chayse enrolled in the cinematography program where he received the Dean's List Honor. Soon after graduation, Chayse booked his first feature, Switch, shot on location in Mexico and Whistler, which has received critical acclaim for its emotional photography. Chayse's second feature film, Son of the Sunshine, was screened at the Slamdance Film Festival in Utah. His work has been called “evocative of great films such as Days of Heaven.”
Chayse's unique and unorthodox lighting style, as well as his organic character and story-motivated camera compositions, have garnered respect from many of his colleagues, including David Mullen, ASC; David Moxness, CSC; and Attila Szalay, CSC, HSC. With his strong reel and passion for storytelling, Chayse is now the youngest member in the history of the International Photographers Guild. Chayse has quickly become one of North America's brightest emerging cinematography talents, bringing a new eye to cinematography and a refreshing contribution to cinema. Chayse’s Web site: www.chayseirvin.com
Soon after, she was given the opportunity to shoot a series of short documentaries on the sensitive issue of HIV/AIDS in Sub-Saharan Africa, while at the same time producing and directing short fiction films.
While attending one of the film festivals in Europe, Freddie met Sasha Schriber and learned about Sasha’s upcoming project Open Diaries. A fast friendship was forged and Freddie decided to join the team as a producer. With her limitless talent and energy, Freddie has also infused the film with her authentic French joie de vivre.
Peter Schriber, Producer
Even as a small child, Peter was gifted with a creative hand. His childhood saw him as an artist in Switzerland, where his love for color dominated his paintings and transformed him into a connoisseur of the modern-contemporary style. As he grew older, so did his creative direction, and Peter’s talents in the fine arts matured to include skills in photography and film.
Peter enjoys having a strong bond with nature, and many of his works underline his love for the environment in the forms of classical landscape photography and the production of documentaries, focused on his native Alps and homeland.
Young adulthood introduced Peter to Canada, where he finished school with a degree in business and production. He also graduated with a plethora of inspiring abstract canvases in his portfolio.
Currently, Peter lives in Switzerland with his wife, where he produces short films and documentaries.
Art and nature continue to resonate with strong tones in all aspects in his life.
Patrick Britton, Director of Post Production
As a child growing up in suburban British Columbia, Patrick Britton was always watching movies, and videotaping TV shows. From an early age, he learned that you can tell compelling stories by putting two different images beside each other. After graduating at the top of his class in 2004 from the Vancouver Film School, Patrick has put together a resume full of feature and short film credits. His movies have screened in international film festivals, won several awards including Audience Award and Best Comedy, and he has been nominated for a Leo Award for editing a short film. As Post Production Supervisor, he has guided several shows and companies, as well as devised new workflow solutions for emerging technologies.
Once he and Sasha began the edit of Open Diaries, they finished the first cut in eight days, as their ideas for what the movie should be meshed very quickly. The final cut of Open Diaries was done in three weeks and is one of the edits Patrick is most proud of. Patrick’s Web site: http://bluespeck.net
George Flores, Sound Editor
George is an independent sound editor, designer, and re-recording mixer offering complete sound post services for film and television. George’s credentials include: Cinema Audio Society and Motion Picture Sound Editor accreditations, an Emmy award nomination, SOCAN, industry references, and extensive professional credits.
As a lifelong student of sound, acoustics, and psycho-acoustics, George has a solid understanding of the of physics of sound and has acted as consultant for projects such as The National School of Theatre Arts in Mexico City, The City of Dallas Revitalization competition project, and the proposed Mexican Pavilion for the 2010 Shanghai’s World Fair. Further to this, George conducts Sound Post-Production workshops and has presented at LIFT, The University of Toronto, Ryerson University,
and at Quatro Sound Productions. To complement his hands on work experience, George has an art and technical background from the Ontario College of Art and from Trebas Institute.
Assembling the master sound for Open Diaries was a very rewarding experience for George not only because he did most of the work on a long distance basis (Vancouver, Zurich, Toronto), but because during final mix, when Sasha and him finally worked face to face, our working relationship became even stronger. The result is a beautiful, clean, and smooth sounding film where the directorial “sound vision” complements the storytelling on screen. George’s Web site:
Canada, where she was filming her first feature film directorial debut, Open Diaries. She is currently in the pre-production stage for two other projects slated for principal photography in 2010.
Alex Red, Composer
Alex came to Open Diaries at the very last moment, when the film was already at the editing stage. He sat down, watched it, and within a month’s time, he wrote sixteen songs, simply by visualizing scenes from Open Diaries while driving his car, having lunch, or walking down the street. He recorded the "basement version" with guitar and voice only, and Sasha gave it the green light right away, choosing the song, "To Find Somebody to Love" as the theme song for the film. (A different mix of this song is used in one of the film’s trailers.)
While Sasha worked on sound with George Flores, Alex was still recording the last parts of the movie’s soundtrack in Vancouver. He sent it overnight package to Toronto on the final day of editing so that they could insert it and proceed with the final 5.1 Surround Sound mix.
Crew Credits:
FIRST CAMERA ASSISTANT
MASAYO TAKADA
SECOND CAMERA ASSISTANT
PETER LEUNG
GAFFERS
JESSE KEAY
TORBIN DOEGE
KEY GRIP
DAMON EVANS
GRIP
STAN GOETZ
PRODUCTION SOUND
RYLAN KERBES AND MILLAR MONTGOMERY
ASSISTANT DIRECTOR
KATE GREEN
SET DECORATOR and COSTUME DESIGN
AMELI TORRES, Italy
KEY MAKEUP ARTIST
NICOLE FLORUT
MAKEUP ARTIST ASSISTANT
SANTANA ALEXIS
HAIRDRESSER
NICOLE FLORUT
CASTING
SASHA A. SCHRIBER, Switzerland
ELLEN MIRKIN, Switzerland
FREDERIQUE REMY, France
SCRIPT ADVISORS
ANGELE LE BLANC, Canada
JENNIFER SOMMERSBY YOUNG, USA
STEPHANIE HORTON, England
DIALECT COACH
DOUG ABRAHAMS
PRODUCTION ACCOUNTANT
CAROLE GOHEEN
SET SECURITY
BEST SECURITY, Vancouver
SUPPLIERS
WILLIAM F. WHITE
NORM LI
DOLLAR THRIFTY AUTOMOTIVE GROUP CANADA, INC.
LEGAL SERVICES
BROUGHTON LAW CORPORATION, Vancouver
HARRIS & COMPANY, Vancouver
INSURANCE
CG&B GROUP, INC., Toronto
