Carol Swarbrick(Actor/Co-Writer)
She has been an actor for more than 40 years, working on stages around the world, including four Broadway shows. She has been seen in films such as Man Trouble, Big Business starring Bette Midler, The Whole Truth, and Norma Jean and Marilyn. On television, she has had various recurring roles, such as on The Bold and the Beautiful, and could be seen guest starring on such shows as Murder She Wrote and Columbo. She has been in Movies of the Week, commercials, concerts, and on cruise ships. Carol has worked with such legends as Stephen Sondheim and Marvin Hamlisch. Carol can also be seen in Dolly Parton’s Christmas movie, Christmas on The Square, due out this year.
Several years ago, her agent suggested that she look into a biographical one-person show. One fortuitous event after another led Ms. Swarbrick and her husband, Jim Dries, to an invitation from Jimmy Carter to visit Plains and “meet more of the family.” Since then, there have been more than a handful of additional meetings with Rosalynn and Jimmy Carter, each clarifying and adding the stories that are told in Miss Lillian – The Lillian Carter Story.
In addition to her performing, Ms. Swarbrick has authored a book of her inspiring essays, It Occurred To Me, and co-authored Better Late Than Never – A Love Story about her romance with husband Jim Dries.
Steven Ullman(Producer)
Steven Ullman has been producing and directing for more than 30 years. During his ten years as Producing Artistic Director of the Civic Light Opera of South Bay Cities, Steven became the only producer in Los Angeles to win the L.A. Stage Alliance Ovation Award for Best Musical three times: West Side Story, Dreamgirls, and Crazy For You. He was also nominated for Best Musical for Titanic, Ragtime, and Forever Plaid.
Other producing highlights include: Off-Broadway’s Falling For Eve, a new musical written by Joe DiPietro, Bret Simmons, and David Howard. In Paris, he produced and directed Jeffrey Hatcher’s A Picasso, performed alternately in English and French to rave reviews, including in Le Monde. In San Francisco, productions of Greater Tuna starring Michael Jeter (six-year run) and The Foreigner starring Imogene Coca, Rene Auberjonois, and Charlene Tilton. At the Edinburgh Festival, he produced and directed the world premiere of Pulitzer Prize and Tony Award-winning playwright Doug Wright’s first play, The Stonewater Rapture (Fringe First Award). In Chicago, SNL alumna Nora Dunn’s one-woman show Mythical Proportions; and the National Tour of Some Like It Cole! (five-year run).
Steven has produced more than 50 productions in Los Angeles, including the West Coast Premiere of David Rabe’s Hurlyburly, directed by the playwright and starring Sean Penn, Danny Aiello, Mare Winningham, Michael Lerner, and Suzy Amis; Nora Dunn’s one-woman show, Small Prey (one-year run); Loose Lips directed by Martin Charnin and starring Robert Morse, Fred Savage, Steve Landesberg, Joanna Gleason, and others.
Vivian Winther(Director)
Vivian is a multitalented creative Producer, Director, and Writer from Toronto, Canada. Her career spans thirty years and three continents. She started her career in front of the camera: she was the face of Yoji Yamamoto in Tokyo, and, in London, the face of the iconic BOY brand. Her success as a model led her to dramatic acting in such films as Cocktail, Independence Day, The Day After Tomorrow, Heaven Is For Real, and Elvis and Nixon, plus many television appearances.
Despite her acting success, it was the behind-the-scenes aspects of film that had a much stronger pull for her. Vivian started Harvest Table Pictures, and, in 2015, she released En Lumiere, which premiered at the 2017 Austrian Independent Film Festival. Her follow-up release, ATOMIC, showed to sold-out audiences at multiple screenings in 2017. In 2018, Goliath 22 was an official selection at Holly Shorts in Los Angeles.
Her latest directorial effort, Lisl Baby, a documentary about the life of photojournalist Lisl Steiner will be released in 2019. Her follow-up documentary, Explant, a cautionary tale about the side effects of breast implantation is currently in post-production.
Jim Dries(Co-Writer)
Jim Dries (Co-Writer) co-authored the play and screenplay of Miss Lillian – The Lillian Carter Story. He has written the novel, A Harsh Mistress, and is currently working on a second one, Commies, Cuties and the CIA! And Cobras! . He co-authored, with Carol Swarbrick Dries, the non-fiction book, Better Late Than Never – A Love Story.
As well as being a published author and award-winning director, Jim, like Lillian Carter, served in the Peace Corps in the 1960s and traveled far and wide, including to the Phillipines, Uganda, Rwanda, and New Zealand. He has been around the world three times.
Tyler Winther(Editor)
Tyler Winther (Editor) is an award-winning filmmaker, born in New York and raised between Vancouver and Los Angeles. His films have been screened at numerous festivals, including Sundance, Slamdance, and Hollyshorts. His work as a director and an editor has been featured on top music sites, such as Earmilk and Pigeons&Planes, and in top digital magazines, including Oyster, Solar, Remix, Ladygunn, and Moviemaker Magazine. He has edited projects for Sony Music, Epic Records, +1 Records, as well as digital spots for Chanel, Apple, and Tesla. Tyler is a member of the international artist collective 6×6 PROJECT. He lives in Los Angeles and works around the world.
John Van Tongeren(Composer)
John Van Tongeren won the 2019 Emmy Award for Music Composition for his work on The Tom and Jerry Show for Warner Brothers Animation. He also won the Gemini Award (Canada’s version of the Emmy Award) for Music Composition in both 2000 and 2001 for his work on The Outer Limits for MGM, which he worked on for seven seasons. He composed the scores for the films Swindle, Suite Life Movie, The Boy Who Cried Werewolf, Miss Congeniality 2, Malibu’s Most Wanted, The Cheetah Girls, and Twitches 1 & 2. Other television series include The 4400, Poltergeist The Legacy, Thief, and Wanted.
John was one of the original three members of Media Ventures, along with Hans Zimmer and Mark Mancina. With Hans Zimmer, he worked on Thelma and Louise, True Romance, and Drop Zone. With Mark, he worked on Speed, Assassins, and Twister.
Alex Haessner(Director of Photography)
Award-winning Los Angeles-based cinematographer, camera operator and photographer. Expertise in creating highly stylized and visually stunning commercials, lifestyle content, fashion films, narrative shorts, music videos, and documentaries. Clients include BMW, Diane von Fürstenberg, Toyota, NARS, Evan Williams, Peloton and Geico, to name a few.
Throughout his career, Alexander has collaborated with some of the greatest filmmakers including Janusz Kaminski, Darius Khondji, Harris Savides, and Emmanuel Lubezki.
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