The Linor Documentary Project

I have wanted to make this documentary for a long time and it is finally happening.

These are the people that I am fortunate to have working with me to bring this journey to the screen.

Abot Reif Hameiri, Inc. – Executive Producers

“Abot Reif Hameiri” is an Israeli Production Company owned by Eitan Abot, Motty Reif and Guy Hameiri, that specializes in various fields of operation. The main branch focuses on Television productions for major broadcasters in Israel as well as abroad.

As one of the largest production companies in Israel, Abot Reif Hameiri produces some of the most significant projects on Israeli T.V such as the Israeli version of the famous TV format “Survivor” (first and second seasons, currently in preproduction for the third season), “The Beauty and the Geek”, “The Bachelor” etc. The company also specializes in producing big T.V specials such as the “Miss Israel Beauty Pageant” and the “Israeli Fashion Awards”.

The international branch of the company located in L.A produced the documentary “Life After Tomorrow” and is currently producing a documentary feature featuring 1998 Miss World Linor Abargil.

Cecilia Peck – Director/Producer

Cecilia Peck most recently directed and produced, with Barbara Kopple, the feature-length documentary “Shut Up & Sing”, which chronicles the political backlash against and artistic triumph of the Dixie Chicks following their criticism of President Bush just prior to the invasion of Iraq. The film, shortlisted for the 2007 Academy Awards, was awarded Best Documentary by the Boston Society of Film Critics and the San Diego Film Critics. It won Best Documentary at the Sydney, Aspen, and Woodstock Film Festivals, and Jury Prize at the Toronto and the Chicago Film Festivals. It received the Courage in Film Award from the Women Film Critics Circle, the Wyatt Award from the Southeastern Film Critics Circle, and was nominated for a Broadcast Critics Award and a National Film Critics Award.

Cecilia produced and directed Justice For All, an examination of the capital punishment system, which was awarded the Silver Gavel Award. She produced A Conversation with Gregory Peck, an intimate portrait of her legendary father, which a Special Selection in the 2000 Cannes Film Festival, as well as a special presentation for TCM and PBS American Masters. She also produced Once Upon A Time in the Hamptons, a four hour documentary series for ABC primetime. She was Associate Producer on Defending Our Daughters, a non-fiction film about women’s human rights for Lifetime Television, which was honored with the Voices of Courage Award by the Women’s Refugee Committee.

As an actress, she was nominated for a Golden Globe Award for her performance in “The Portrait”. She portrayed a Palestinian school teacher in love with an Israeli soldier in “Torn Apart.” She also studied dance with Martha Graham and performed in “American Document,” the last ballet choreographed by Miss Graham.

She has been contributing editor at Premiere Magazine, French edition, and Moving Pictures Magazine, and has served on the jury at the Aspen Shortsfest and Cognac Film Festival.

A graduate of Princeton University, she lives with her husband and two children in Los Angeles.

Howard Rosenman – Executive Producer

Zvi Howard Rosenman was born in Brooklyn, NY to Israeli-born parents (both seventh generations born in Jerusalem). His sister currently resides in Jerusalem and his parents have the honor of being buried on a hill overlooking the entrance to Jerusalem.

Mr. Rosenman began his career working on Broadway for Katherine Hepburn and Sir Michael Benthall, who was directing Miss Hepburn in the Andre Previn musical of COCO, the story of Coco Chanel, in 1968. Later, he became a producer of commercials for Benton and Bowles and he won many Clios for such accounts as Cool Whip, Cool ‘n Creamy and Texaco’s Havoline Oil.

Mr. Rosenman went to Hollywood in 1973, where he produced a TV movie for ABC, under the aegis of the legendary film unit created by Barry Diller and run by Michael Eisner and Deanne Barkley. Mr. Rosenman, along with Ron Bernstein and Deanne Barkley, then founded RSO Films with Robert Stigwood, where they made many MOWs for television. Among them were the first movies of John Badham (ISN’T IT SHOCKING?), Randall Kleiser (ALL TOGETHER NOW) and Joel Schumacher (VIRGINIA HILL). They also produced KILLER BEES starring Gloria Swanson, Kate Jackson and Eddie Albert and DEATH SCREAM starring Raul Julia.

In features, his credits include, SPARKLE, RESURRECTION, FATHER OF THE BRIDE, BUFFY THE VAMPIRE SLAYER, FAMILY MAN, and A STRANGER AMONG US, GROSS ANATOMY, TRUE IDENTITY, STRAIGHT TALK, SHINING THROUGH and NOEL.

Executive producer credits include THE MAIN EVENT starring Barbra Streisand and Ryan O’Neal, MY FIRST MISTER, and COMMON THREADS: TALES FROM THE QUILT (a documentary written and directed by Jeffrey Friedman and Rob Epstein), which won both an Academy Award for Best Documentary and a George Foster Peabody Award for Outstanding Journalism. He also Executive Produced THE CELLULOID CLOSET, (a documentary written and directed by Jeffrey Friedman and Rob Epstein), which was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Documentary and won Mr. Rosenman his second George Foster Peabody Award for Outstanding Journalism. His third documentary was PARAGRAPH 175, about gays in the Holocaust also written and directed by Jeffrey Friedman and Rob Epstein. He also produced Harvey Fierstein’s TIDY ENDINGS for HBO which garnered an Emmy and an Ace award.

Recently Mr. Rosenman produced YOU KILL ME starring Ben Kingsley, Tea Leoni & Luke Wilson & BREAKFAST WITH SCOTT starring Tom Cavanagh & Ben Shenkman to be released in the Christmas of ’08 by Regent. BREAKFAST WITH SCOTT opened up OUTFEST on July 8, 2008 and closed FRAMELINE in San Francisco.

Currently Mr. Rosenman is developing more than twenty features. He is preparing to produce BETSY and The EMPEROR starring Al Pacino who will play Napoleon and Dakota Fanning who will play Betsy Balcomb. John Curran (THE PAINTED VEIL) is directing and rewriting. In the winter he begins shooting JONAH starring Tony Shalhoub. Bill Guttentag (NANKING and LIVE!) wrote the screenplay and will direct. Among the Studio pictures he’s preparing are AMERICAN NEUROTIC at Sony and ‘CAT n MOUSE at Fox.

Mr. Rosenman is Co-Founder of Project Angel Food in LA, which provides Meals-on-Wheels for AIDS/HIV patients, and has served on the Board of Directors of the AIDS Research Alliance, Bet Tzedek Legal, DIFFA, Youth AIDS Services, and the Advisory Board of GLAAD. He lectures at USC, the Stark program, UCLA, AFI, NYU, Dan Gordon’s Documentary School in Sedona and Columbia. He has taught a Master Class in Creative Film Producing for the past six years at Tel Aviv University under the auspice of the Jewish Federation’s Los Angeles-Tel Aviv Cultural Partnership. He is currently serving on the Board of the Center For Jewish Culture & Creativity. He lives with his handsome German Shepherd, Tom, and his prolix yellow-naped Amazon, Tucker.

Inbal B. Lessner – Producer/Editor

Born in Israel, Inbal discovered her passion for filmmaking in the “Alon” high school cinema program, where she edited a short comedy that won first prize in a national student film competition. She went on to produce training films for the Engineering Corps. In 1998, Inbal moved to New York to study film at NYU Tisch School of the Arts. She was the first international student to receive the prestigious W.T.C. Johnson $80,000 Fellowship.

Upon graduating with honors in 2001, Inbal moved to Los Angeles, where in addition to editing documentaries and numerous television shows for major broadcast and cable networks, she directed a TV docudrama, was a second-unit producer on the HBO/ARTE documentary “Watermarks” and was an editing consultant on the Emmy-winner “Be Good, Smile Pretty”. In 2004, she cut Seth Grossman’s “Shock Act”, which won Best Narrative Short Award at the Tribeca and the Chicago Int’l film festivals. Her collaboration with Mr. Grossman continued on his debut feature “The Elephant King”, starring Ellen Burstyn. Last year Inbal completed editing and co-producing “I Have Never Forgotten You”, about Nazi hunter Simon Wiesenthal, narrated by Nicole Kidman. The critics noted the film was “intelligently assembled” (Screen Daily) and “expertly put together” (Variety).

Inbal lives in Los Angeles with her husband, concert pianist and composer Daniel Lessner.