KARTIKI GONSALVES
FILM DIRECTOR & PRODUCER ; FOUNDER EARTH SPECTRUM
Kartiki Gonsalves is an Academy Award winning Director & filmmaker. She is the first Indian Film Director to have ever won an Academy Award in the history of India. She is also one of the first women chosen as a Sony Alpha Artisan of Imagery in India and also associated with brands like Peak Design, Swarovski Optik Nature Explorer 2021. She is shuttles between the Nilgiri mountains in the Western Ghats of Southern India and the Pacific North West of North America. Gonsalves is the founder of Earth Spectrum, an organization founded in 2018 which uses the power of storytelling to raise awareness about biodiversity and cultural life.
Kartiki infuses her passion for adventure to bring new perspectives and a deeper public understanding to the environmental and humanitarian issues that define our times. She strives to document our natural world and to help others better understand the profound connection that we share with it. On the cultural side, she focuses on capturing the diversity of cultures and tribes across the world where she seeks to give a platform to women and indigenous tribes, especially those working to conserve nature. Kartiki focuses on solutions and highlight projects that show success stories where conservation is working to give hope.
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt23628262/?ref_=ext_shr_lnk
GUNEET MONGA
FILM PRODUCER, CEO SIKHYA ENTERTAINMENT
Guneet Monga (born 21 November 1983) is an Indian film producer, executive producer of an Academy Award-winning short, a 2015 BAFTA nominee (for “The Lunchbox”), and the founder of Sikhya Entertainment a boutique film production house that produced notable films like Gangs of Wasseypur - Part 1, Gangs of Wasseypur - Part 2, Peddlers, The Lunchbox, Masaan, Zubaan and Pagglait.[1]
In 2018, Monga was amongst the first producers from India to be inducted in the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.[2] She served as an Executive Producer on Period. End of Sentence. which won the 2019 Academy Award for Best Documentary Short Subject. Monga was voted as one of the top 12 women achievers in the Global Entertainment industry by The Hollywood Reporter and among the top 50 Indians changing India by India Today.
In 2021, Guneet Monga was conferred with the Chevalier dans l'Ordre des Arts et des Lettres by the French Government for her significant contributions to Indo-French cinematic and cultural collaborations through films like The Lunchbox, Masaan, and Taj Mahal, as well as her relentless work towards women empowerment through the 'Indian Women Rising' collective.
DOUG BLUSH
EXECUTIVE PRODUCER, FILM EDITOR
Doug Blush is an award-winning director, producer, editor, writer and cinematographer whose work includes over 130 feature and television projects. He is a member of the Academy of Motion Pictures Arts and Sciences (AMPAS) as well as the American Cinema Editors (ACE). Credits include as Executive Producer the 2020 Critics’ Choice Award and 2022 Peabody Award-winning MR SOUL!, the 2019 Academy Award-winning PERIOD. END OF SENTENCE, the 2018 Academy Award-winning ICARUS, and, as supervising editor, the 2013 Oscar winner 20 FEET FROM STARDOM. Recent projects include JUSTICE which premiered at Sundance this year and THE ELEPHANT WHISPERERS, which was awarded the Oscar for Best Documentary Short Film at the 95th annual Academy Awards.
He is also a longtime film educator with classes and seminars at USC, UCLA, Syracuse University and the YoungArts Foundation in Miami, as well as exchanges and panels in Indonesia, Brazil, New Zealand, Armenia, Malaysia, Nigeria, China, Latvia, The Netherlands and more. Doug co-owns MadPix Films, a Los Angeles-based production and post production company.
IMDB : https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0089926/bio?ref_=nm_ov_bio_sm
SVEN FAULCONER
MUSIC COMPOSER
Sven Faulconer, originally from Belgium, is a Los Angeles-based composer for film and TV. He employs a wide and unique range of musical styles, as reflected in the varied list of credits acquired by him over the years. His music for the 2023 Oscar winning documentary ‘The Elephant Whisperers’ by Kartiki Gonsalves got nominated for best score at the Jackson Wild Media Awards and at the Hollywood Music in Media Awards. He also wrote the score for Pippa Ehrlich’s ‘Older Than Trees’, another finalist at the 2023 Jackson Wild Summit. Other noteworthy credits of his include ‘The Last Ice’ (NatGeo, nominated for best score in the 2020 Critics Choice Documentary Award), ‘Into the Okavango’ (NatGeo, Emmy nominated) and several ‘Pristine Seas / NatGeo’ films (Enric Sala’s ‘The Nature of Nature’, ‘Last Wild Places’ and ‘Cape Horn’).
In addition to his work for documentary films, he’s acquired a long list of credits for other film and TV genres. Recent scores of his include ‘Scream 6’ and the Netflix comedy series ‘Unstable’. A keen sense for collaboration and strong story-telling skills have earned him credits on well-known movies like ‘Top Gun: Maverick’, ‘Ad Astra’, ‘Aquaman’, ‘Black Widow’, ‘Abominable’, ‘The Hunger Games’ and ‘Nightcrawler’. Beginning formal music training at age 8, Sven became a passionate clarinet player and showed an early knack for improvisation and composition. His studies took him on an exciting journey starting in Ghent (Belgium), later moving to Rome to conclude his academic career in Los Angeles at the renowned UCLA Film Scoring Program. In addition to his own projects, Sven also has ongoing collaborations with several other composers including Brian Tyler, James Newton Howard, Rupert Gregson-Williams, Steve Jablonsky, Henry Jackman and Lorne Balfe.
IMDB : https://www.imdb.com/name/nm3562733/
KRISH MAKHIJA
DIRECTOR OF PHOTOGRAPHY
Krish Makhija is a Cinematographer from Bombay, India. Formally educated in Economics, he picked up the camera when he was 18 years old to start documenting the chaotic world around him. His love for stills soon led him to being an Assistant Director on television commercials, branded content and feature films. Krish went on to complete his Masters degree in Cinematography as part of the first-intake at the Kino Eyes European Film Masters Program in Lisbon, Tallinn and Edinburgh.After graduating, Krish has been responsible for the image creation of numerous projects, ranging from shorts to documentaries, music videos, commercials and narrative feature films.
In the narrative long-form category, he has played the role of Cinematographer on two episodic shows, 'Afsos' and 'Eternally Confused and Eager for Love' which have streamed on Amazon Prime and Netflix respectively. He has additionally lensed two feature films, 'Friday Night Plan' and 'The House Guest' which are set to premier on the same leading streaming platforms in 2023 and 2024. Krish actively works with passionated documentary story-tellers as well to bring their vision to life.
He was a ‘Director of Photography’ on the Oscar winning documentary, 'The Elephant Whisperers' in 2022. He has also recently concluded production on a feature length documentary, 'Turtle Walker' which is set to have a world premiere in 2024. Apart from this, Krish has work on multiple short films, including the award-winning, Mongolian film, 'Mountain Cat'. This project went on to screen at numerous prestigious film festivals across the world including, Cannes, Sundance, TIFF, Busan and many more.
IMDB : https://m.imdb.com/name/nm7139274/filmotype?ref_=m_nm_flmg
KARAN THAPLIYAL
DIRECTOR OF PHOTOGRAPHY
Karan Thapliyal is a cinematographer, based out of New Delhi, India. His forte is documentary films based on human interest. A mountain soul, Karan spent most of his childhood either exploring nature in his backyard or inside his father’s photo studio fiddling with editing machines. It has been over a decade now, since Karan has been professionally working as a Cinematographer.
Documentary films have been closest to his heart and have shaped Karan’s vision of story telling. As camera person, his efforts have always been to associate himself with film projects with a focus on human interests, humanitarian and environmental situations. He loves to take out projects that throw him out go his comfort zone ranging from films deep into the jungles of the Mighty Himalayas to the most heavily guarded glacier in the world of Siachin.
When not working, I like to listen to people's life stories and what makes them do that they are doing. I love traveling cross-country on motorbike and spotting wildlife in remote locations of India. I have discovered my growing interest in geography and human evolution write ups and books.
IMDB : https://www.imdb.com/name/nm3757998/
ANAND BANSAL
DIRECTOR OF PHOTOGRAPHY
Anand Bansal (age 25) is a cinematographer based out of Mumbai, India. His interest in photography began to develop when he was in school and has been photographing his experiences since then. After finishing school, he joined Whistling Woods International, Mumbai to pursue a career in cinematography.
He is primarily based out of Mumbai and has his interests both in fiction work as well as non fiction. He has shot two independent features, Gamak Ghar and Dhuin. He aspires to look for projects where he can be very honest and truthful in the process of making images for the stories he is a part of.
https://www.anandbansal.com
IMDB : https://www.imdb.com/name/nm9846858/
MICHELE RICOSSA
BASELIGHT & RESOLVE ARTIST
Born in North Italy, Michele fell in love with cinema early on. In his childhood, he developed a fascination for the power of pictures - a passion for the visual medium which grew steadily but surely - one that eventually brought him to complete his studies in filmmaking and photography. Michele began his career as an assistant colorist in 2007 on a telecine at Lumiq Studios (Turin) and spent the next 10 years working in Europe and Asia. He has worked as an in-house colorist at Rumblefish (Milan) and Prime Focus (Mumbai), as well as freelancing in Italy, Nepal, and India. Currently, Michele is a Baselight and Resolve artist that freelance internationally, pushing the bar on boldness for commercials as well as long formats. When he's not in DI studio, Michele works on self-intimated photography assignments that help him comprehend our beautiful and chaotic world. He founded ‘NO COLOR ’ provides freelance color grading services internationally for both short and long formats. It is based out of Turin (Italy) and Mumbai (India).
Blind, Uma, The store , Larvae, Modern Love: Mumbai, Baai, Yellow Oleander , Bachchhan Paandey, Gehraiyaan, Bob Biswas, Ghost Stories Bala, Samudra Manthan, Typewriter, The Rise of the Fakeer, The Night of the Blood Moon, The Ghost Of Sultanpore, Operation School Bell, Four Kids and a Dog, Uri: The Surgical Strike, Frase d'arme, Lou Soun amis, Anukul Daughters of the Curved Moon, Gillette Venus (Deepika Padukone & Harleen Sethi) TVC, Suntali, IBirthday, Florencia, Riverbero, Un'insolita vendemmia, L'ultimo weekend, Ligabue Campovolo - il film 3D, Amigdala Comando e controllo, Harmattan
IMDB : https://www.imdb.com/name/nm3761139/?ref_=fn_al_nm_1
Dr. SREEDHAR VIJAYAKRISHNAN
ELEPHANT BIOLOGIST - SCIENTIFIC INPUTS
A wildlife biologist by training, with a specialisation in elephant behaviour and physiology. He is currently a doctoral scholar at the National Institute of Advanced Studies in Bangalore and a Research Fellow with the Western Ghats Programme of the Nature Conservation Foundation, Mysore, both in India. Growing up hearing elephant tales and spending time with elephants, Sreedhar has been passionate about the species ever since he can remember. And it is this passion that inspired him to take up an academic career path, to understand the species more closely and scientifically.
His primary research interests are in the field of behavioural ecology, wildlife endocrinology, and human – animal relations, with a particular focus on the endangered Asian elephants, both in wild and in captivity. He believes in multidisciplinary approaches involving these areas of science, in dealing with larger-than-life issues such as human – elephant conflict. He is also interested in understanding the historical and cultural aspects of human – elephant relationships in India, as practiced by generations of mahouts, particularly in the states of Kerala and parts of Tamil Nadu, and as portrayed in the literary works of yore. Sreedhar has written extensively in the popular media on issues concerning elephant management and welfare in the country, with specific focus on conflict in the wild and in captivity. He also attempts to extend his understanding of the animal's behaviour in the wild to managers and on-ground practitioners including mahouts, to better elephant management practices.
DHEERAJ AITHAL
AERIAL CINEMATOGRAPHER
Dheeraj Aithal is a 2021 National Geographic Explorer and documentary filmmaker who is passionate about involving the latest technology in documentary filming to create content appealing to one and all. Dheeraj has worked on projects across the country for production houses like Nat Geo Wild, Smithsonian Channel, Animal Planet, and the Discovery Channel. As an aerial cinematographer he has been involved with brands like Infosys, Toyota Kirloskar, Karnataka Tourism, One Plus India and many more.
He co-directed the documentary ‘The Last Hop(e)’ which deals with frog conservation in the Western Ghats. A contracted filmmaker for the UNDP in India, he is keen on pushing the envelopes to achieve meaningful cinema in the fields of wildlife, social change and environmental preservation.
IMDB : https://www.imdb.com/name/nm8345647/?ref_=nv_sr_srsg_0
NITYE SOOD
TIME-LAPSE SPECIALIST
Nitye Sood is a time-lapse specialist, cinematographer, and National Geographic Explorer. Over the last few years, he has filmed, directed, and produced for international broadcast networks like Nat Geo Wild, Netflix, the BBC, Al Jazeera, and Discovery Channel. A deep passion for the outdoors drives Sood's work. His skills include time-lapse photography, high-end wildlife camerawork, underwater filming and drone operation. His filming assignments have taken him across some challenging terrain - remote jungle expeditions, diving with sharks in murky waters, tracking big cats on foot, and working undercover to document marine wildlife trafficking.
Along with his teammate, Sood founded Untamed Planet - a film production house that creates impact-first documentaries that have reached millions of people on broadcast and digital platforms. His engineering background fuels a passion for constant innovation while filming, and as a dop/producer, he works with a diverse crew including cameramen, presenters, sound recordists, and directors to create visually compelling documentary films.
Prior to his foray into documentaries, Sood worked on an Academy Award nominated film titled “Court.” Sood's recent feature documentary on Manta Rays, “Peng Yu Sai” was nominated for the Green Oscars at Wildscreen Festival and won a Special Jury Award at the Jackson Wild Media Awards.
GARIMA PURA
STORY DEVELOPMENT
An award winning independent screenwriter, director and journalist who dabbles between non fiction and fiction visual stories. While her latest fiction writing assignment was on a Netflix original web show; she also wrote, directed and produced a short documentary for USAID (United States Agency for International Development) recently. Having created films and other types of audio-visual communication for organisations and brands such as Packard Foundation, Nestaway, Nescafe, Navgurukul, Terribly Tiny Talkies, Outlook Traveller Podcasts etc., she has found herself carrying the creative baton behind what she believes is the skeleton of all stories- the script. As a writer for the print and digital media turned screenwriter and director, her human interest, art and environment related stories have been published in Outlook Traveller, Terribly Tiny Tales, The Tribune, Tibet Post International, LiveWire, The Significant Anthology, Sakal Times and other international publications. Her most favourite project remains to be the English magazine she helped third grade students of a school in Teach For India, New Delhi publish during her tenure there.
Strong geo-political, socio-cultural contexts fuel her passion to tell the stories she chooses to. Her debut directorial and screenwriting short film on 1984 sikh genocide named Kandh De Paar (Eng Title:Beyond The Wall) set in a space few days after the assassination of the Indian Prime Minister Indira Gandhi has made it to a dozen film festivals till date.
IMDB : https://www.imdb.com/name/nm11120470/?ref_=nv_sr_srsg_0
SALMON DANIEL
NATURALIST
With twenty years of experience as an naturalist and ornithologist, Daniel can never venture too far off. He was born and bought up in gorgeous foothills of the Western Ghats of Southern Indian in Masinagudi. After his education his love for the wild pulled him back to start a full time career as a naturalist. His goal is to create a lifetime body of work with one main goal - conservation. The president of Masinagudi Eco Naturalist Club, his main goal is to inspire people to fall in love and protect the natural wild ecosystem he lives in. An avid ornithologist and wildlife photographer enables him to conduct on the ground awareness programs like “plastic free spaces, save water etc.