Justin Lubke DIRECTOR,EDITOR,WRITER, DIRECTOR OF PHOTOGRAPHY
Justin Lubke spent his youth playing basketball and taking photographs in the tiny town of Ennis, Montana where he was born. When his high school career as a Class C basketball "star" ended, Justin traveled and worked with the poor in Brazil and studied sociology and political science in India. Inspired and motivated by his experiences, he returned to Montana and graduated from Montana State University with an honors degree in documentary filmmaking. For more than ten years, Justin has worked in non-fiction film. He has directed, shot and edited a variety of programs with topics ranging from indigenous tribes to foxes to chili peppers. His work often engages questions of identity and change in rural places and celebrate the unique subcultures that thrive in isolation. His clients have included, PBS, National Geographic and several non-profit organizations. Whether in the jungles of India, in the streets of Brazil, or on the back roads of his native Montana, Justin is always listening to stories and finding innovative ways to share them. Class C is Justin's first feature length documentary.
Shasta Grenier DIRECTOR,EDITOR,WRITER
Shasta Grenier grew up in Montana. Far too short to play basketball at Class AA Bozeman High School, she cultivated a love for stories. Shasta, a Presidential scholar in the Davidson's Honors College,recieved her BA at the University of Montana. Since completing her MA in English at the University of British Columbia, where she specialized in non-fiction and autobiography, Shasta has written and edited a variety of films including both natural history programs and social documentaries. Her collaborative side-projects include organizing and mentoring an ongoing photo-documentary program with the Arapaho community on the Wind River Indian Reservation in Wyoming. Class C is Shasta's directorial debut.
Wally Kurth PRODUCER, NARRATOR
Wally Kurth was born and raised in Billings, Montana. He graduated from UCLA with a degree in Film, TV and Theatre. Since then, Wally has worked in almost every capacity of the entertainment world. He currently executive produces and hosts the very popular TV Series, “1 Day With….”, on Disney Channel’s Soap Net. He and his partners at KST Productions just completed their first 20 episode season. He is a featured actor on the very popular ABC daytime series, “General Hospital”, where he has appeared in the role of “Ned Ashton” since 1991. Wally has also guest starred in several films. On stage, Wally starred on Broadway as the Pirate King in the “Pirates of Penzance” for the NY Shakespeare Festival and has performed in numerous plays and festivals across the US. He is also proud of producing and directing two original plays and a rock opera in Los Angeles.
Wally’s love of Montana brought him home to make a music video for his critically acclaimed fourth album, “Freedom”. He is currently preparing two films to be produced in Montana.
Tim Swain PRODUCER
Tim Swain started as a Theatre Manager while in college, graduating from University of Montana, and then was promoted to the Film Buyer of the South Western Division for Mann Theatres. After serving in the same capacity for Syufy/Century Theatres, he moved into Independent film distribution. After serving as Vice President/General Sales Manager of New World Pictures for 6 years, he moved to Trimark Entertainment where he oversaw the Domestic Sales and Marketing operations for 9 years. While at Trimark, as Executive Vice President, he managed the Theatrical, Home Video/DVD, Domestic Television, Acquisitions and Post Production divisions. Leaving shortly before Trimark’s merger with Lion’s Gate Entertainment, he was one of the original founders of MovieWeb.com where he served as Senior Vice President in charge of all Entertainment operations. He then started Beartooth Entertainment where he has focused almost exclusively on Independent Film Production.Tim’s first independent project was in 2002 as Executive Producer of “Dahmer” nominated for three IFP Spirit Awards. In 2003 Tim produced “Gang of Roses” (Guns and Roses), along with Writer/Director Jean-Claude LaMarre. Made in Partnership with Doug Schwab’s Sleeping Giant Films, the hip-hop western starred LisaRaye, L’il Kim, Monica Calhoun, Stacey Dash, Marie Matiko, Bobby Brown and Macy Gray and was released theatrically in 2003.
Markus’s twenty years of experience spans dozens of feature motion pictures for numerous companies. Markus quickly rose through the ranks of Cannon Films in the early 80’s and then onto startup companies like the now powerful New Line Cinema. Over his career Markus has unit managed television productions for HBO, USA, and TNT, produced segments for CNN and MSNBC and location managed film projects for Oliver Stone, Warner Bothers and Walt Disney Pictures. Markus Zetler is a 1985 graduate of Montana State University with a B.A. in Film and Television Production and minors in Speech and Public Relations Communications. Living in Bozeman, Montana, Markus works as a free-lance producer, overseeing all aspects of production. Markus has contributed to such films as “Return To Lonesome Dove”, Disney’s “Iron Will”, “The Patriot” and most recently HBO’s “Taking Chance”. Markus also runs Heroshots, LLC, a stock footage company specializing in nature cinematography.
Philip Aaberg COMPOSER
Composer Philip Aaberg writes music that connects a global audience to the sweeping landscape of the West. By translating Montana's farms, ranches, and native cultures into musical concepts, he's forged a unique keyboard style that paints an audible portrait of his home state.
Although classically trained, Philip celebrates many traditions with his compositions. He weaves strains of blues and bluegrass as well as rock and new music throughout his melodic tapestries. Besides playing piano with the Boston Pops and participating in the Marlboro Chamber Music Festival, Philip has appeared with Peter Gabriel, Elvin Bishop, and the Doobie Brothers. He has cut eight solo albums, one of which, Live From Montana, received a 2002 Grammy nomination. As a guest artist, Philip has performed on over 200 albums and on PBS’s All-American Jazz, which earned him an Emmy nomination.