MICHELLE LE BRUN
President, Harken Productions
401 477-4630
e-mail: Michelle@HarkenProds.com

EDUCATION

M.A., School of Arts and Social Sciences, Lesley University, Cambridge, MA 1987
B.A., Liberal Arts, Sarah Lawrence College, Bronxville, NY 1982

FILMOGRAPHY

Producer, Director, Cinematographer
RI Youth and Civics 2007
Aired on RIPBS in June

Producer, Director, Cinematographer
Gone Fishin’ 2006

Aired on RIPBS 9/28 & 12/28 2006
as part of the Rhode Island Council for the Humanities initiative,
“What Unites Us, What Divides Us”?
Screened at the Cable Car, Providence, RI 1/24/07

HARKEN! Youth Media Program
Producer, Creative Director, Educator 2002 - Present

Produce short documentaries as an outcome of media literacy training programs
with “at-risk” and gang-affiliated youth.
 Programs delivered:
 Soledad Enrichment Action in East Los Angeles: Initiated and ran youth media 2002 – 2004
 program for 3 lock-down high schools.                 

AS220 in Providence, RI: Delivered Harken Youth Media Program resulting in a 40 minute 2005
Documentary, “Life in Our Eyes”, screened throughout RI with accompanying panel of participating youth.
Press coverage included Providence Journal, The Pheonix & The Newport Daily News                   

Producer, Director, Writer, Cinematographer, Co-Editor
Westside Children's Center  2003
Promotional documentary on Westside Children’s Center; an interdisciplinary neighborhood
center that provides social services, early childcare and education, foster care, adoption and
health care services, proving daily that a thriving future can be guaranteed for vulnerable children.

Field Director/Producer
Insightworks,2002
A New York based marketing research and consulting firm. Researched, scheduled
and shot events, products, personalities, and "man on the street" interviews for
corporate marketing campaigns.

Producer, Director, Cinematographer
An Offering  2000
Short documentary on Gamelan Sekar Jaya produced for World Festival Of  Sacred
Music, Los Angeles- spearheaded by His Holiness the Dalai Lama.

Producer, Director, Writer, Cinematographer
Death: A Love Story         1999
Multiple award winning feature-length personal point-of-view documentary examining
our fears, avoidance and denial of death, and the transformation possible when we
simply sit and listen to our loved ones as they pass. Nominated for Grand Jury Prize
Sundance Film Festival 1999, Winner Best Documentary in 4 other film festivals.
Traveled with the film to Medical Ethics and Death and Dying conferences to screen
film and lecture.

Actor/Associate Producer
The Gifted: (Dramatic) Directed by Lawrence Simeone 1999
Staring James Madio (Basketball Diaries), Al Sapienza (Sopranos) Sibel Ergener (JAG).

Actor/Publicist
Somebody to Love: (Dramatic) Directed by Alexandre Rockwell 1995
Staring, Rosie Perez, Harvey Keitel, Steve Busceme
Produced National Premiere; Responsible for securing venue, publicity, sponsorship
both for premiere and party afterwards, also played supporting role in film.

Director/Cinematographer
An Interview with Rollo May 1987
Interview with the founder of Existential Psychology. Produced by The Center for Existential Psychology, Newton, MA.

PROFESSIONAL APPOINTMENTS

Lesley University, Cambridge, MA 1989 – Present
Adjunct Faculty Member,
Graduate course taught on campus & nationally:Creative Arts in Learning Dept.   
Drama and Critical Literacy: Use of dramatic improvisation in the classroom to facilitate
the curriculum and literacy.

The International Documentary Association, Los Angeles, CA 2001 – 2004
Juror on the International Documentary Awards committee.

Communications/Creativity Specialist, --Cambridge, MA1988-1993
Movement and team building consultation to individuals, businesses, clinics and
educational institutions. Clients included: Guest Quarters Hotel, Boston University,
Walnut Hill School for the Performing Arts, NPACE, and Harvard University’s
Ways to Wellness Center.

Harvard Community Health Plan: Pain Program, Cambridge, MA 1990-1993
Behavioral and Stress Management Consultant
Led weekly movement therapy group for pain patients. Conducted periodic staff development
seminars for Pain Program team. Designed and implemented training sessions for physicians,
nurses and other heath-care professionals in the use of body awareness, body image, and
Labananalysis techniques for use with clients with stress-related illnesses.

AWARDS/ HONORS/ GRANTS

Rhode Island Council on the Humanities Film Grant: Gone Fishin’ 2006
Rhode Island Council on the Humanities Grant: “Life in Our Eyes”: The Art of Media & Social Change 2005
ARTIST IN RESIDENCE: AS220, Providence, RI; HARKEN! Youth Media Program. Supported by a grant from the Wallace Foundation 2005
DEATH: A LOVE STORY:

Winner Best Documentary – New York International Independent Film and Video Festival, 2000
Winner Best Documentary – Big Bear Film Festival,     2000
Grand Jury Prize Nominee – Sundance Film Festival, 1999
Winner Best Documentary – Santa Barbara Film Festival, 1999
Winner Golden Gate Certificate – San Francisco Film Festival, 1999

INTERVIEWS

Interviewed by John Anderson for his book Sundancing, 2000 NYC, Avon Books
Interviewed by Peter Brunette, Boston Globe, February 7th, 1999

DEATH: A LOVE STORY Reviews: (partial list)
Peter Stack, San Francisco Chronicle, October 25, 1999
David Hunter, Hollywood Reporter, September 7 – 13, 1999
Glenn Lowell, VARIETY, September, 1999
Kevin Thomas, Los Angeles Times, September 2, 1999
Thomas White, Cara Mertes, International Documentary, April 1999
Renee Graham, The Boston Globe, March 19, 1999
Peter Keough, The Boston Phoenix, March 19 – 25, 1999
Josef Woodard, The Independent, March 4, 1999
Rana Lehr, The Daily Herald, January 15, 1999

SPEAKING ENGAGEMENTS/ PRESENTATIONS

Keynote Speaker:Surviving the Image: Representing Death - Symposium on death and the moving image  presented by the University of South Florida, Tampa. 2004
Speaker: National Cancer Association. Los Angeles chapter 2002
Presenter:Spirituality in Health Care - Medical ethics conference presented by the Association of American Medical Colleges. San Francisco, CA. 2001
Speaker: Various film festivals and theatrical screenings of Death: A Love Story nationally. 1999, 2000, 2001

PROFESSIONAL AFFILIATIONS

Screen Actors Guild
International Documentary Association

LANGUAGES

Conversant in French & Spanish

Recommendations and Examples of Work Furnished Upon Request.