Filmmaker Bios
SYLVIA CAMINER, Director/Producer
Sylvia Caminer is an Emmy® Award-winning director/producer, with extensive credits in film and television. Over the past fifteen years she has filmed on five continents, most recently turning her focus to feature length documentaries. She just completed TANZANIA: A FRIENDSHIP JOURNEY which was just awarded “Best Documentary” honors at the Long Island and SoHo International Film Festivals (SoHo also named it “Best World Showcase” in all categories).
Sylvia is currently finishing up her latest documentary AN AFFAIR OF THE HEART, which chronicles the relationship between rock Icon, Rick Springfield, and his adoring fans over the last three decades; and is currently in production on ANGELS AMONG US, a long-term project that deals with the changing issues and tolerance for individuals with developmental disabilities.
For Discovery/Travel Channel, she directed and produced three hit series (GREAT HOTELS, PASSPORT TO EUROPE and PASSPORT TO LATIN AMERICA) and among others has produced for TLC, WE, and Lifetime.
Sylvia began her producing career in the independent New York film scene. Over the past five years she produced four narrative features LOVE ‘N DANCING (opened May ’09) starring Amy Smart, Tom Malloy, Billy Zane, Rachel Dratch, Caroline Rhea and Betty White, directed by Robert Iscove; ORDER OF REDEMPTION (opened Fall. ’09) starring Tom Berenger, Busta Rhymes and Armand Assante, directed by Jeff Celentano; DOORMAN starring Jackie Long, Zulay Henao and Gary Dourdan, directed by Stephen Leeds; and AFTERMATH starring Anthony Michael Hall, Chris Penn, Frank Whaley, Federico Castelluccio, Lily Rabe and Tony Danza, directed by Thomas Farone.
Sylvia also produced the critically acclaimed feature romantic fable BLUE MOON, starring screen legends Ben Gazzara and Rita Moreno, directed by John Gallagher. She previously teamed with Gallagher on the popular cult comedy THE DELI, (Mike Starr, Gretchen Mol, Ice T, Heather Matarazzo, Debi Mazar, Michael Imperioli, Iman). Other producing credits include MIXING NIA, starring Karyn Parsons, Isaiah Washington, and Eric Thal, directed by Alison Swan and THE ANIMAL ROOM, starring Neil Patrick Harris, Amanda Peet, and Matthew Lillard, directed by Craig Singer.
Through her active production company, DolGer Films, Sylvia is currently developing several film and television projects and, among others, is attached to produce CHICKADEE starring Chris Cooper, Ellen Burstyn and Julie Kavner.
MELANIE LENTZ-JANNEY, Executive Producer/Producer/Marketer
Having lived in what she likes to refer to as the “triangle of the entertainment world” (New York City, L.A., and Orlando), Melanie Lentz-Janney has 20+ years’ experience in entertainment public relations, promotions, advertising and brand marketing and is considered a seasoned veteran among her peers. She holds a degree from Pepperdine University in Advertising and Marketing.
Prior to starting her own agency, Doverwood Communications, in 2002, Melanie spent over 10 years working at several of Central Florida’s most prestigious advertising and public relations firms, including Yesawich, Pepperdine, & Brown (YPB), Carlman Booker Reis (CBR) and Magic Pencil Studios. Some of her clients include and have included: Walt Disney World Resorts & Parks, Wyndham Off-Shore Resorts, the Orlando/Orange County Convention Center, Hard Rock Live, the environmentally intelligent town of Harmony (Florida), Pink Sneakers Productions, Women in Film & TV – Florida, and the Hotel del Coronado.
Melanie has worked on various special events with a broad range of celebrities including: Elton John, Dana Carvey, Kenny Rogers, Pauly Shore, Brendan Fraser, Rare Earth, Kevin Smith, and more recently, the Jonas Brothers and the Cheetah Girls. For over 15 years, she has worked on various publicity/WOM initiatives with film and TV companies including Sony Pictures, Miramax, 20th Century Fox, Fox Searchlight, Paramount Pictures, Screen Gems, Dimension Films, VH-1, MTV, A&E, and several independent companies.
The Orlando Business Journal has recognized Melanie as one of the “100 Most Influential Business People” in Central Florida and her public relations agency is ranked in the Top 10. She is always quick to apply her marketing/PR/social media savvy to various charities and causes that speak to the heart.
Since 1981, Melanie has been a loyal fan Rick Springfield fan. She has been to numerous concerts and Rick related special events over the course of the past three decades. Melanie’s collection of Rick Springfield memorabilia was part of a feature story, “Collectors: Passions, Obsessions, Prized Possessions”, for Orlando Leisure magazine. In April 2009, Melanie wrote a story for the New Jersey Star Ledger about Rick’s fans traveling great distances to get their “Rick Fix” and the friendships that blossomed because of a mutual admiration for Rick Springfield. The article is available at: http://www.nj.com/morristown/index.ssf/2009/04/they_came_to_morristown_from_f.html Upon writing the story, she received so much positive feedback from non-Rick fans that she knew there was a bigger story to be told. She collaborated with Sylvia Caminer and together they created Yellow Rick Road Productions to produce the Rick Springfield and fans documentary, AN AFFAIR OF THE HEART.
Currently, she continues to run Doverwood Communications, which is handling publicity/marketing for AN AFFAIR OF THE HEART as well as the award-winning feature documentary TANZANIA: A FRIENDSHIP JOURNEY. She is an active member of Women in Film & Television – Florida and Film Florida. She speaks at numerous high schools and universities about entertainment marketing and the power of social media. She also is in the process of writing her first book, “My Journey on the Yellow Rick Road”, which she hopes will inspire other people to follow their dreams.
DAVID DEAN, Editor
David Dean is a three-time Emmy-nominated editor specializing in non-fiction storytelling. His credits include three popular series on the Travel Channel featuring Samantha Brown: “Passport to Europe,” “Passport to Latin America,” and “Great Hotels.” For ten years he cut six different public television series for the food and travel host Burt Wolf, including the currently-airing “Travels and Traditions.” Other credits include the Emmy-winning syndicated series “Jack Hanna’s Into The Wild,” and one-hour specials on the Fine Living network, Travel Channel, Animal Planet and WE tv.
He’s won two Telly Awards, for the public TV series “Animal Attractions” and for a documentary on the Waldorf-Astoria hotel, as well as a Monitor Award for editing the CBS primetime special “Dolphins, Whales and Us.”
David has also written six feature screenplays, and is also credited with writing many of the programs he’s cut; he’s also written speeches delivered by President Ronald Reagan, Governor Mario Cuomo, and (yes) Jon Bon Jovi. Some of his work can be viewed on his website, www.dfdean.com.
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