ABOUT THE FILMAKERS AND THE FILMS

CHANTELLE OLSEN: DIRECTOR/PRODUCER

Chantelle Squires Olsen is the director/writer/producer of Reserved To Fight, a feature length documentary that received finishing funds from ITVS and aired nationally on PBS November 2008 and has been broadcast in 9 countries around the world and been screened at several film festivals across the country. She edited Moving McAllister, an independent feature film starring Jon Heder and Mila Kunis. She was the assistant editor on the feature film trilogy, The Work and The Glory. She was invited to edit a short documentary for the Slamdance Film Festival On The-Fly-Films competition in 2004, and she worked as an in-house editor for the LDS Motion Picture Studios from 2003-2004 editing documentaries for PBS, commercials and short films. She directed a 30 second PSA about literacy, which was a Telly Award finalist and produced a 30-minute documentary for BYU Broadcasting. Olsen directed a 3-part documentary/reality series about Mormon missionaries called, The Mission. She is currently executive producer on the 13 episode reality series, The Generations Project, airing on BYUtv. Olsen and Varghese first began working with each other while both were studying film at Brigham Young University.

MANJU VARGHESE: PRODUCER/DIRECTOR

Manju Varghese is the producer of Reserved To Fight, a feature length documentary that received finishing funds from ITVS and aired nationally on PBS November 2008. She also produced and directed the film, The Sari, a short experimental film that looks at the ancient tradition of wearing the sari amongst East-Indian women, which premiered at the LDS film festival and was awarded “Best Documentary Film” at the BYU Film festival on 2004. She has also worked in many areas of production; she was the cinematographer of Free, a film that premiered at Slamdance in 2004. She directed and produced a documentary, Reflections of America, which delves into the cultural struggles of an Iraqi-American family post 9/11. Varghese also directed a 30-minute documentary for BYU Broadcasting titled Chante Wouden: Faith and Miracles. Varghese produced a 3-part documentary/reality series about Mormon missionaries called, The Mission. She is currently executive producer on the 13 episode reality series, The Generations Project, airing on BYUtv. .

ARTHUR VANWAGENEN:

PRODUCER/HEAD OF BUSINESS & LEGAL AFFAIRS

Mr. VanWagenen’s prior practice emphasized preparing and structuring contracts for motion pictures and other media projects, including Hi My Name is Ryan, My Girlfriend’s Boyfriend (starring Alyssa Milano), Reserved to Fight (a PBS documentary), and Age of the Dragons (starring Danny Glover). He also assists in litigation matters involving motion picture financing, copyright and trademark issues, insurance defense, and real estate lending issues.
Mr. VanWagenen graduated from the S.J. Quinney College of Law at the University of Utah
where he was selected as a note and comment editor for the Journal of Land, Resources, and
Environmental Law, and received an S.J. and Jessie E. Quinney Foundation Scholarship which is given to law students who reflect the attributes of academic excellence, integrity and service, for which the law school’s namesake was known. While in law school, Mr. VanWagenen clerked in the business and legal department for Newline Cinema in Los Angeles, which produced the Lord of the Rings trilogy. Mr. VanWagenen also received a graduate certificate in Environmental and Natural Resources Law upon graduation from law school. After law school, Mr. VanWagenen produced a documentary series on humanitarian aid work, entitled Acts of God, which won a Cine Golden Eagle award in 2008. Mr. VanWagenen received a B.A. degree from Brigham Young University in German Literature. While at BYU, he played for five seasons on the men’s soccer team and captained the team for two of those seasons. Just prior to attending law school, he volunteered as a United Nations consultant, using his soccer experience to implement sustainable soccer programs for refugees living in northern Uganda through the renowned international NGO, Right to Play.

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CHILDREN IN THE GARDEN OF DEMOCRACY

On the eve of February 11, 2011 millions of Egyptians celebrated as Hosni Mubarak stepped down from his presidency in response to one of the largest revolutions in the Arab world. The satisfaction soon dissipated as the youth who formed the core of the revolution discovered that overturning the mindset of their parent's generation would be more difficult than overthrowing their leader. Children in the Garden of Democracy (working title) follows several of these young people over a two year period, as they struggle to keep the revolution alive and secure the future that they long for.

RESERVED TO FIGHT

Reserved To Fight is a feature length PBS documentary that shares the experiences of four young Marines as they readjust to civilian life after serving in Iraq. The film is an intimate portrayal that explores the veterans' feelings of isolation, difficulty relating to their loved ones and the reality of coming to terms with psychological wounds. Reserved To Fight was awarded finishing funds from ITVS and was made in association with The Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB) and The Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America (IAVA). It aired nationally on PBS in 2008, has been used in a training program for the National Guard, has screened at several film festivals across the country and has been broadcast in 9 countries including Israel, Ireland, Switzerland, Australia, Japan, Canada, France, Norway, and Sweden.

THE GENERATIONS PROJECT

What secrets run in your blood? This reality series uncovers the hidden identities in family pasts, proving that the best way to know who you are is to know who you came from.
The Generations Project takes ordinary people on a hands-on journey to learn about their ancestors and in the process discover more about themselves.

THE MISSION

The Mission is a 13 episode documentary/reality series commissioned by the missionary department of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. This series follows five young men as they graduate from High School and prepare for a mission. From losing scholarships to losing girlfriends, and working night and day to save enough money to go on a mission, Season 1 of 5 Friends captures an undocumented journey of what it takes to prepare to leave your life behind and serve the Lord for two years. This series is currently in production and will air in 2010 on BYU Broadcasting and mormon.org.

CHANTE WOUDEN:FAITH AND MIRACLES

Chanté Wouden:Faith and Miracles follows the intimate story of Chanté Wouden who was recently diagnosed with a tumor in her liver and has to undergo liver surgery. Frightened by the unknown outcome of her surgery, she examines her childhood and what caused her tumor. Chanté suffered from Ewing Surcoma, a rare type of bone cancer both at the age of 3 and 7. Miraculously she survived, but being one of the first survivors of this type of cancer, the side effects of the treatment were unknown. Now at the age of 27, she is facing another surgery and the heartbreaking news that her heart is failing. Without knowing how much longer she has to live, she embraces her challenges and finds the faith to live her life to the fullest. Chanté Wouden: Faith and Miracles premiered on the BYU television series, LDS Lives. It also aired at the LDS Film Festival in 2009.

SALT LAKE CAP HEADSTART.

MirrorLake films produced two 5-minute documentaries for The Salt Lake CAP Headstart program for their annual fundraiser. The documentaries follow the stories of families who have been positively affected by the Headstart program, a government subsidized education system for pre-school age children, and are now making a difference in others lives. MirrorLake Films also provides consulting services for documentary fundraising as well as grant writing. Additionally, they have been featured in radio programming, magazine articles and network morning shows.

Called To Serve Trailer

MirrorLake Films in Wasatch Woman Magazine

Chanté Wouden: Faith and Miracles

Directed by Manju Varghese, this 30 minute documentary shares the beautiful story of Chante Wouden a two-time cancer survivor. The film will be airing October 27, 2008 on KBYU Chanel 11.

Most people today are familiar with the disease known as Cancer, many know someone who has struggled with the illness. While others have stood by loved ones as they have fought the battle to survive. Some of you have even raised money to help find a cure and bring awareness to the disease.

Ewing Surcoma, is a Rare type of bone cancer, which mainly affects male teenagers. This bone cancer is rarely found in females especially under the age of 10. In the 1980’s the treatment for Ewing Surcoma was unknown and specialists were working hard to develop a cure. A brave number of men and women who had the disease volunteered to be part of the experiment in hopes to save themselves and help others in the future.

Adults who Struggle with cancer find it to be not only a physical fight but also an emotional and spiritual one as well. Now imagine only being three years old and trying to make sense of the disease. Chante Wouden the second oldest of a family of six shares her experiences with being diagnosed with this particular bone cancer and the experimental treatments that were being developed for the rare disease. When you see Chante with her 5’1 frame and 109 pounds you would not suspect the incredible challenges she has faced. But, Chante has not only faced them she has walked away from the battles stronger and she has lived to tell her tale.


PLEASE JOIN MIRRORLAKE FILMS ON OCT 27th 2008 on KBYU channel 11 to watch the life and experiences of this extraordinary woman on LDS LIVES - CHANTE WOUDEN: FAITH AND MIRACLES.