advisory board • nominating committee •
the Chlotrudis story

Advisory Board

Sara Edwards, Senior Producer, "Backstage with Barry Nolan"

For nearly a decade Sara was the entertainment reporter and film critic for 200 NBC affiliates across the country. She was also the arts and entertainment reporter for WHDH in Boston since 1989. At CN8, Sara produces and reports for "Backstage with Barry Nolan," CN8's national entertainment program. As Senior Producer, Sara provides guidance and direction to the program and oversees all producing aspects of the show. Sara has been a frequent guest and presenter at Chlotrudis Awards, and a true supporter of the organization.

Sara on Chlotrudis, "Once you embrace the name, 'Chlotrudis' which always prompts the question...whatttt??? Spell that???, you're half way there. When i first took part in the awards ceremony i thought it was just a hoot, but quickly i realized that this group of film fanatics was truly passionate about the art. Some of the smaller independent films they showcased i hadn't even heard of, so it was a true education for someone who was always assigned by a local news station to review the latest star studded action extravaganza. So long live 'chlotrudis!' We can all benefit from an organization that loves and promotes a purer form of filmmaking. Box office be damned! Let film freedom ring!"

Don McKellar, writer/director/actor, BLINDNESS; CHILDSTAR; LAST NIGHT

Don McKellar is a talented, triple-threat, acting in, writing and directing films that have long thrilled Chlotrudis members. As an actor and a writer, Don got his start collaborating with director Bruce McDonald on the films ROADKILL and HIGHWAY 61. From there he appeared in THE ADJUSTER, the first of several Atom Egoyan's films followed by EXOTICA and WHERE THE TRUTH LIES. His writing credits include THIRTY-TWO SHORT FILMS ABOUT GLENN GOULD, THE RED VIOLIN, and two films that he also directed, LAST NIGHT and CHILDSTAR. His latest effort is the screenplay for Fernando Meirelles' BLINDNESS in which he also acts. Other acting highlights include MONKEY WARFARE, CLEAN, and television's "Slings and Arrows" and "Twitch City." Chlotrudis has successfully worked with Don three times, the first in support of Gary Burns' film WAYDOWNTOWN, the second to honor him for his Body of Work at the 13th Annual Chlotrudis Awards, and the third in support of MONKEY WARFARE at the Independent Film Festival of Boston.

Patricia Rozema, writer/director, I'VE HEARD THE MERMAIDS SINGING; MANSFIELD PARK; WHEN NIGHT IS FALLING

Patricia Rozema made her name as the writer/director of the independent features I'VE HEARD THE MERMAIDS SINGING and WHEN NIGHT IS FALLING, both of them quirky and romantic pictures that garnered Rozema an audience who responded to her individualistic style. She took a change of direction with a period film, an adaptation of Jane Austen’s most difficult novel, MANSFIELD PARK. Rozema has recently completed a filmed version of Samuel Beckett's play HAPPY DAYS for "The Beckett Film Project." I'VE HEARD THE MERMAIDS SINGING, which was recently voted as one of the top ten Canadian films of the century by "Maclean's," has just celebrated its 15th anniversary and is about to be re-released by Miramax. Alliance Atlantis has also compiled a DVD collection of Rozema's features and shorts, which was released in December 2002. Patricia attended the 7th Annual Chlotrudis Awards Ceremony where she was awarded the award for Outstanding and Visionary Directing of Film.

AJ Schnack, director, GIGANTIC (A TALE OF TWO JOHNS); KURT COBAIN ABOUT A SON

AJ Schnack is a filmmaker based in Los Angeles. He directed a movie about They Might Be Giants called GIGANTIC (A TALE OF TWO JOHNS), that won the Chlotrudis Award for Best Documentary in 2003. His second movie is THE RADICAL TEEN CHEERLEADERS, which he shot solo-style in Los Angeles in 2004. It will be finished soon. Last year he released his third film, KURT COBAIN ABOUT A SON, based on audio interviews between Cobain and writer Michael Azerrad for the book, Come As You Are: The Story of Nirvana. It was nominated for a Chlotrudis Award for Best Documentary in 2008.