A LITTLE BIT ABOUT MYSELF
Born in Chicago, I began as a designer, a cartoonist, active in theater, directing and producing, a performer of Mime and a student of ‘improv’ at the Chicago's Second City Company. On an assignment in California and a dare, I began to paint and had my first one woman show. Six months later, I fell in love with paint and never returned to Chicago. In California, best known as Gaslamp’s Comic-Con painter, a digital illustrator, muralist and as Monterey Jazz Festival’s stage set designer for 26 years. But in 2013, fate changed my course. I moved back to Chicago to care for my mother who had dementia. Away from my paint, I began to write and authored the book I needed to read but couldn’t find, 'Wonders in Dementialand', the other side of dementia no one is talking about.
The AFM selected Dementialand for me to pitch at their book-to-movie session. From the book, to a podcast, to a movie in the mix, everything Dementialand was exciting. Pitching at the AFM was Dementialand’s first introduction to the film industry. Wow. Great response and a full movie producer contract. The script’s first draft written, a trailer in the works. Then came the pandemic, Covid and the return of my cancer. Everything canceled. Devastated but not broken. American Film Market’s response to my movie-pitch made me realize the enormity of the subject and how important it is to tell this story. After all, the AFM’s opinion can’t be wrong.
I absolutely love it when the universe and all the Gods tell me… ”Hold on. Don’t jump off a bridge yet. We got a better idea for you.” Short Films. The pandemic changed the film industry. Long films were more difficult to produce and costly. The trend all over the world was moving toward Short Films, Streaming videos and serial storyline episodes. Ahh… I can do this. I started writing my first movie script titled Natalina Woods. Now appearing in mugs. Script written, film crew ready to go, funding in the works. Hope to start shooting in early 2023.