Through gripping storytelling, Bountiful Films moves the conversation forward on today’s most compelling issues. Since 2000, we have produced a wide range of award-winning documentary films, seen in more than 20 countries.
Helen Slinger
In naming her one of BC’s 100 Most Influential Women, the Vancouver Sun said, “Helen Slinger’s filmmaking is all about taking a grabber of an event and turning it on its head. The documentarian deliberately digs deeper, looking for real meaning beneath surface shock.” Slinger began her career as a reporter, first newspaper, then television. After a lengthy left-turn into news management, she left mainstream media to pursue her passion for documentary. An empathetic director, the subjects of her films trust her completely, revealing deeply intimate aspects of their lives. But it’s Slinger’s command of the narrative that is most remarkable. She artfully weaves together complicated storylines, delivering a nuance that eludes most. Notables from a long list of documentary credits: Shadow Warrior, Leaving Bountiful, Alexandra’s Echo, Mounties Under Fire, The Gangster Next Door, When the Devil Knocks, Dog Dazed, and Condo Game. When not immersed in Bountiful projects, Slinger is an in-demand writer and script doctor, whose efforts elevate dozens of documentaries.
Maureen Palmer
After two award-winning decades at the CBC, where she held senior producer positions in both radio and television, Palmer left in 2000 to series produce for American broadcasters TLC and the Discovery Channel. Shortly after, she and partner Helen Slinger formed Bountiful Films. The duo has produced a string of powerful and critically acclaimed hit documentaries. Maureen’s most recent writing and directing credits include How to Divorce & Not Wreck the Kids, Cat Crazed, Sext Up Kids (for Dream Street Pictures), and Angry Kids & Stressed Out Parents – all for CBC’s Doc Zone. Maureen is also an accomplished Lifestyle and Factual producer/writer/director. Sample credits include the pilot for The Food Network’s Glutton for Punishment, The Week the Women Went for CBC Television, and Border Security, for National Geographic and Global TV.
Creative Partners
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Steve Rendall
Director of Photography
is a Gemini Award-winning former CBC News cameraman. Steve and Director Helen Slinger are the creative team behind many of Bountiful’s docs. Steve brings to the process a still photographer’s eye for composition and an editorial sense both sharp and deep. He’s a great cameraman to have beside you when the going gets tough; he’s even better when the subject matter is sensitive. His credits include When the Devil Knocks, The Gangster Next Door, Mounties Under Fire, Embracing Bob’s Killer, Alexandra’s Echo and Leaving Bountiful.
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John Collins
Director of Photography
is Bountiful Films’ other Gemini-winning Director of Photography. John shoots Maureen Palmer’s projects and she rests easy, assured he’s got the shot and that it’s a thing of beauty. Since going freelance in 1995, John has filmed over 30 documentaries, capping his career in 2010 with his Gemini for Best Cinematography for Wild Horse Redemption.
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Tim Wanlin
Editor
has cut just about every Bountiful Films documentary. He’s the kind of editor who enjoys beautiful visuals but truly celebrates the heart of the story, and is not content until he’s found it. We rely on Tim’s innate grasp of visual narrative and on his calm intensity. His credits include When the Devil Knocks, Mounties Under Fire, Embracing Bob’s Killer, How to Divorce & Not Wreck the Kids, Peace Warrior, Leaving Bountiful, The Brothel Project and The Downside of High.
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Sue Ridout
Production Manager
has been the queen of Business Affairs for Bountiful Films since 2008. Sue’s also a producer and director in her own right through her company Dreamfilm Productions formed in 2001, after twenty award-winning years in network news and current affairs at both CTV and CBC Television. From intimate biographies to science & health issues, to the history of World War II, Sue has produced, written and directed documentaries for CBC, CTV, History, Discovery, and BC’s Knowledge Network. The award she’s proudest of is the 2009 Gemini for Best Biography Documentary for Peace Warrior, about the rehabilitation of Canadian soldier Trevor Greene.
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Ally Hill
Production Coordinator & Post Production Supervisor
is our stellar Production Coordinator and Post-Production Supervisor. No problem is too big or too small or too last minute or too daunting for Ally. She just dives in and gets it done. Ally’s been organizing, scheduling, renting, hiring, post-producing and generally adding skills to her bag of tricks for Vancouver production companies since 1998. Part Production Coordinator, part Post Production Supervisor, part Event Planner…100 per cent organizational goddess.
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Yvette Brend
Chief Researcher
is a former national CBC reporter who has worked across Canada. Brend won awards for her high-profile investigations, chasing everything from dirty police officers to the causes of deadly hospital infections. She’s currently facing her toughest challenge ever, raising two children, while trying to appease her need to dig into important stories. And that’s why Bountiful Films is lucky enough to have cornered this award-winning journalist as our chief researcher.
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Tiz Beretta
Motion Graphics & Graphic Design
likes to think of herself as the Swiss Army Knife of design, taking pleasure in finding design solutions for any medium, ranging from print to web to motion graphics, through her company Beretta Designs. She has worked in television and film for more than 19 years, working primarily as a motion graphics designer and now spends a good portion of her time designing publicity materials and opening title animations for Bountiful Films.
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Cordell Barker
Animator
is a legendary figure in Canadian animation. His films The Cat Came Back (1988) and Strange Invaders, (2001) received Oscar nominations for Best Animated Short, while Runaway won raves when it premiered at the 2009 Cannes Film Festival. His animations have enlivened commercials for clients such as Coke, Bell Canada and Nike in England, Mexico, and the US. Amongst all that, he squeezes time to share his madcap genius with us, in our films Cat Crazed and Dog Dazed.
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Melanie Wood
Director
and Helen Slinger’s creative collaboration stretches back two decades, culminating in two groundbreaking films on the impact of the internet: A Stranger in our Home and O.com. Melanie went on to direct and produce the acclaimed School of Secrets, uncovering the long-hidden story of a Vancouver teacher and the teenage girls he seduced. Wood also produces other filmmakers’ projects like Carbon Hunters with director Miro Cernetig and the deservedly celebrated Liberia ‘77 with director Jeff Topham. Although she most often directs and produces for her own company, Stranger Productions, Melanie has recently been hired by Dreamfilm to direct Rescue Me – an adventure documentary with exclusive access to rescue teams pushed to their limits when extreme adventure goes wrong, for CBC Doc Zone.
Steve Rendall
is a Gemini Award-winning former CBC News cameraman. Steve and Director Helen Slinger are the creative team behind many of Bountiful’s docs. Steve brings to the process a still photographer’s eye for composition and an editorial sense both sharp and deep. He’s a great cameraman to have beside you when the going gets tough; he’s even better when the subject matter is sensitive. His credits include When the Devil Knocks, The Gangster Next Door, Mounties Under Fire, Embracing Bob’s Killer, Alexandra’s Echo and Leaving Bountiful.