Ruth Thomas Suh
Director/Co-Producer
Ruth graduated from Middlebury College, and later received a Masters in journalism from NYU and a Masters in social work from Columbia University. Her documentaries “Belonging” and “Reject” are inspired by the work of her late father, forensic psychiatrist Dr. Herbert E. Thomas and his book The Shame Response to Rejection. She was awarded a proclamation from the City of New York for contributions to the arts and to the community. She previously held senior positions at Time Warner, J. Walter Thompson, and Agency.com and served for 10 years as Board member of The Korean-American Family Service Center in New York City.
KURT ENGFEHR
Producer
Kurt is an award-winning director, editor and producer, and has done work for HBO, MSNBC, CBS and ABC. He was editor and co-producer on the acclaimed documentary films “Trumbo”, “Fahrenheit 9/11” and Academy Award winner “Bowling for Columbine”and won the American Cinema Editors Award for best documentary editing for his work on Bowling for Columbine. Most recently, Kurt co-directed the films, “The Yes Men Fix the World” (HBO premiere), “Fat, Sick and Nearly Dead” and “The Kids Menu.” He edited “A People Uncounted”, a 2012 Producers Guild of America nomination for Best documentary, and won a 2021 Emmy award for editing at the Axios documentary unit.
Simone Giuliani
Composer
Simone is an award-winning music producer, Film & TV composer, arranger and keyboard player born in Florence, Italy and currently based in Los Angeles and New York. He has worked with international artists including Beyoncé, Andrea Bocelli and the Wu Tang Clan as well as the London Symphony Orchestra and the Royal Philharmonic. Simone served as Music Director and conductor for “Music for Mercy”, a concert for Pope Francis’ Year of the Jubilee. His TV and film work includes writing and produced original music for The Handmaid’s Tale (Hulu) and scoring films including as “Weed the People” (Netflix), “Unseen” (Amazon Must-Watch Documentaries 2018) and “Reject” (Kanopy).
peter brauer
Editor
Peter is a documentary filmmaker, podcaster, and historical researcher. After graduating from NYU film school, Peter made Return to Life After Spinal Injury which won a Helen Hayes Award. He later co-directed Second Skin, a feature documentary that premiered at SXSW 2008 and won best documentary at the ACE Film Festival. Peter went on to produce short documentaries for Motherboard at Vice Media and was editor and co-producer of the feature documentary Reject that premiered at CIFF in 2013. Most recently, Peter has been a lecturer at University of Michigan Stamps School of Art & Design, and creator of Founding Truth podcast that examines the history of slavery in the Northeast.
NARA GARBER
Co-Director Photography
Nara is a Brooklyn-based documentary filmmaker, specializing in observational social issue documentaries, most recently as director, producer and editor of Bankie Banx: King of the Dune. Her cinematography credits include Peabody Award winner Best Kept Secret (POV), Making the Crooked Straight (HBO), Keep Talking (PBS), Flat Daddy (PBS America) and Reject (Kanopy). Nara contributed camera work to Academy Award winner Alex Gibney’s Finding Fela and Emmy-nominated End of the Line: The Women of Standing Rock (Fuse TV). Between long-form projects, she directs and produces short films for arts organizations and non-profits in New York City.
bryan sarkinen
Co-Director Photography
Bryan is a New York City-based cinematographer whose clients include HBO, Netflix and CNN Films, with projects ranging from documentary to reality TV as well as commercial projects. He is a graduate of New York University with a joint degree in Film Production and Journalism. Bryan’s more recent work includes Andrew Rossi’s “After Truth” for HBO, Erin Lee Carr’s “How to Fix a Drug Scandal” on Netflix, “The Gospel According to Andre” (Magnolia Pictures) and “The First Monday in May” (Magnolia Pictures). www.BryanSarkinen.com