‘AN OLD-FASHIONED CHRISTMAS’
PRODUCTION BIOS
JOEL S. RICE (Executive Producer) – Since the early 90s, Joel S. Rice has been producing films for television that do more than just tell a story – they make a difference. After receiving his Bachelor’s degree in Psychology and Theater from Wesleyan University in Connecticut in the late 80s, Rice moved to Los Angeles and began acting in a variety of films before returning to school. He earned his Master’s Degree in Social Work from UCLA and worked as a Licensed Clinical Social Worker from 1988 to 1992.
In the early 90s, Rice decided to return to entertainment, forming a production company, WildRice Productions, which immediately began producing films for television which focused on social or personal issues that affect families, relationships or the public as a whole. His 1993 film for CBS, “Bonds of Love,” starred Treat Williams and Kelly McGillis in a love story between a man who is mentally retarded and a woman who is not. WildRice’s “Cries From the Heart” (1994) starred Patty Duke and Melissa Gilbert in a courtroom drama about a mother whose seven-year-old autistic son reveals he’s been abused by a guardian at his school, though it’s unclear if he’s telling the truth.
1998’s “About Sarah” for CBS starred Mary Steenburgen as a retarded mother of a teenage girl (Kellie Martin), which tackled the issues of role reversal between children and adult parents with physical or emotional handicaps. The film received a Christopher Award, as well as “Best of the Fest” at the Breckenridge Festival of Film, and Steenburgen received a Screen Actors Guild Award nomination for her performance.
In 2000, Rice exec-produced Showtime’s “One Kill,” starring Anne Heche, Sam Shepard and Eric Stoltz. Heche appeared as a female soldier who kills an officer in self defense, and then is brought up on charges of murder, dealing with both gun ethics and the treatment of women in a male world. Most recently he was executive producer for the 2007 Nickelodeon comedy “Shredderman Rules,” and the critically praised Hallmark Channel Original Movie, “The Note.”
Rice is married to his wife of 19 years, Ronni. The couple live in Los Angeles with their two daughters, ages six and nine.
# # #
MARY CALLERY (Executive Producer) - Mary started her career in broadcasting over 20 years ago at RTÉ (Irish Public Service Television) where she worked in production across a diverse range of projects in factual, current affairs, youth, entertainment and drama programming.
(more)
HALLMARK CHANNEL/‘AN OLD-FASHIONED CHRISTMAS’ – Production Bios – Page 2
In 1993 Mary joined the editorial staff of Independent Productions Unit which was established that year to oversee RTÉ’s engagement with the then fledgling independent production sector in Ireland. In the IPU she oversaw all aspects of RTÉ’s involvement in feature films and television dramas including “Falling for a Dancer,” “Amongst Women,” “Relative Strangers,” and “I Went Down.” She was also involved in setting up Short Cuts (a joint initiative between RTÉ and the Bord Scannán na hÉireann/The Irish film board to encourage excellence in short film making in Ireland) and she managed the scheme for five years.
In 1998 she left RTÉ to take up the newly created position of Head of Development at Bord Scannán na hÉireann /the Irish Film Board where she was responsible for managing all aspects of the Bord’s development slate with particular emphasis on developing new writers.
In May 2000 Mary returned to RTÉ to head up the broadcasters drama department in the newly created role of Commissioning Editor - Drama, a position which saw her responsible for all aspects of original drama programming at RTÉ. During her period in charge RTÉ’s investment in original drama grew to in excess of €30 million per year – the highest at anytime during the broadcasters 40 year history. She was responsible for growing the output of Fair City (the channel’s hugely popular soap) from 60 hours to over 115 hours per year and increased original commissioned drama from 4 hours in 2000 to an average of 30 hours. Working with a diverse range of broadcasters (including the BBC (UK), ABC (Australia), CBC (Canada), ITV (Wales), and TV2 (Denmark) and independent producers (including Parallel Films, Southern Star, Barner- Alpa, Littlebird, Element) she commissioned many award winning dramas including the critically and popularly acclaimed “Proof,” “No Tears,” “The Clinic,” “Stardust,” “Showbands,” “Pure Mule,” “Bachelor’s Walk” and “Foreign Exchange.”
She has been a member of the Programme Bureau of the European Broadcasting Union Fiction Group and of the Advisory Panel for Fás/Screen Training Ireland. She has also been involved in assessing, evaluating and validating script writing courses at both undergraduate and postgraduate level for the National Council for Higher Education in Ireland.
In April 2006 she joined Parallel Films where she continues to develop and produce a range of fiction projects for television and film.
###
Alan Moloney (Executive Producer) – Alan Moloney started his career in production in 1985 initially as a researcher and subsequently as a producer. During this period he worked with networks such as RTÉ, Channel 4, Channel 10 (Australia) and the BBC. In 1993 he teamed up with Tim Palmer to form Parallel Film Productions Limited. Since then Alan has produced “The Signal Box,” “Where Do I Begin,” and “Boys and Men.” He was co-producer of “The Last of the High Kings” and was executive producer of “Ballykissangel.”
(more)
HALLMARK CHANNEL/‘AN OLD-FASHIONED CHRISTMAS’ – Production Bios – Page 3
In 1998 Alan was executive producer of two hugely successful mini-series “Falling for a Dancer” and “Amongst Women.” Both were Parallel Films productions for the BBC, RTÉ and the Irish Film Board. In 1999, along with Tim Palmer, he produced “A Love Divided” and was executive producer of “DDU,” a detective drama series. In 2006 Alan Moloney produced “Joe Strummer – The Future is Unwritten” directed by Julien Temple and a television adaptation of Harold Pinter’s play Celebration for Channel 4 directed by John Crowley and starring Michael Gambon, Colin Firth and Stephen Rea. This year also saw Parallel produce a further series of “The Clinic” for RTÉ and “Kingdom,” a 6 part drama series for ITV, starring Stephen Fry for which Alan is an Executive Producer.
Other productions to date include “Breakfast on Pluto,” “The Clinic Series” 1 – 4, “Showbands” 1 & 2, “Intermission,” “Sinners,” “Beckett on Film” (with Michael Colgan), “A Love Divided” and “Amongst Women.”
###
DON MCBREARTY (Director) - Over the course of his diverse and distinguished career, Director Don McBrearty has earned much critical acclaim and numerous awards for his work. He won a 1988 Gemini Award for Best Director for the television movie “A Child’s Christmas In Wales,” starring Denholm Elliott, a Peabody Award for the 2002 television movie “The Interrogation Of Michael Crowe,” with Ally Sheedy and Mark Rendall and, in 1984, his short film, “Boys And Girls,” based on the story by Alice Munro, received an Academy Award.
McBrearty’s recent credits include the television movie “Luna: Spirit Of The Whale,” starring Adam Beach, several episodes of the period-dramatic series “Murdoch Mysteries,” the series “Heartland,” “The Wild Roses,” the powerful mini-series “October 1970,” Shaftesbury Films’ “Terry,” a television movie starring Shawn Ashmore as Terry Fox, and episodes of Shaftesbury’s drama series “ReGenesis.”
Also among his many television credits are the movies “Chasing Freedom,” starring Juliette Lewis, “Mrs. Ashboro’s Cat,” produced by Shaftesbury Films and starring Ellen Page and Michael Ontkean, the dramatic thriller, “The Haunting Of Lisa,” featuring Cheryl Ladd, the fact-based “Butterbox Babies,” and the historical dramas “The Arrow,” starring Dan Aykroyd, and “Race To Freedom: The Underground Railroad.”
Well known for his work in episodic television, McBrearty has put his stamp firmly on the Canadian television landscape with credits including the drama series “Blue Murder,” “Power Play,” “ENG” and “The Ray Bradbury Theatre.” He has also worked with many of Canada’s young actors on such family and youth series as “Wind At My Back,” “Road To Avonlea,” “In A Heartbeat,” “The Zack Files,” “I Was A Sixth Grade Alien,” “Little Men” and “Emily Of New Moon.”
(more)
HALLMARK CHANNEL/‘AN OLD-FASHIONED CHRISTMAS’ – Production Bios – Page 4
His most recent television credits include the Hallmark Channel Original Movies “Accidental Friendship” and “The Wild Girl.”
A native of Dalhousie, New Brunswick, McBrearty now makes his home in Toronto.
###
DONALD MARTIN (Writer) - Recipient of the inaugural Gemini Humanitarian Award (2001) and The Queen’s Golden Jubilee Medal (2002), Donald Martin began his career in Toronto in 1988, becoming one of Canada’s most prolific writers. He now divides his time between Canada and L.A., writing for the big and small screen.
His feature film work includes “Shackles” for Sony Pictures, starring comic D.L. Hughley in his dramatic debut, which had its world premiere at the 2005 Tribeca Film Festival; and the recently released “Dim Sum Funeral,” for which Martin also served as executive producer. The film had its world premiere at the 2009 Asian Pacific Film Festival in Los Angeles. His film “Never Too Late” was nominated for a Writers Guild of Canada Award and a Genie Award for Best Original Screenplay. He has adapted the book The Dream Maker into a feature script, and is now adapting the book The Deserter’s Tale as a feature for Toronto’s The Film Works. His space epic film, “A Dream of Red Mansions,” slated to film in Taiwan, is currently in pre- production.
Martin’s TV films have won awards around the world. Such credits include Hallmark Channel’s “Mending Fences,” “The Christmas Choir,” “Wild Hearts,” and “The Three Gifts,” along with “The Staircase Murders,” “Family Sins,” “Ebenezer,” “The Hunt for the BTK Killer,” “Loss of Faith,” the Gemini Award winning “Coming of Age” and “Shadow Lake.”
###
--HALLMARK CHANNEL--