Barb Lee, President & Director/Executive Producer: I love telling and hearing stories, especially when I learn something that makes me re-evaluate my own life’s choices and better understand who I am and who I’m becoming. That’s why Point Made tells stories that explore identity in American society, because while I think we all love to be entertained by movies, we’re still drawn to stories that help us determine who we truly are.

In our film “Adopted” we dig into the emotional, social and psychological nuances buried deep within a growing trend in our country- internationally adopted families. Nowhere are the issues of American identity more tangible and more complicated than inside these special families. In the upcoming film, “In 500 Hundred Words or Less,” we take a look inside the college admissions process from the perspective of nine high school seniors. As I watch these young people face the daunting task of claiming who they are at the ripe old age of 18, I’m awed by their courage and instincts. I’m also getting nervous about facing the process with my daughter in a few years.

Our third project is being produced in conjunction with a talented young director, Andre Lee. In his film “The Prep School Negro,” Andre tells the difficult and uncomfortable truth about the consequences young African American scholarship students face when they’re engulfed by the pressures and expectations of attending the most elite prep schools in America.

These stories fascinate me, inform me and make me want to get off my cell phone and start paying attention. I hope you enjoy these upcoming films, but more importantly I hope you learn more about your own identity as a modern-day American.

Nancy Kim Parsons, Co-Producer: My love for storytelling began on stage in college, and led me to the Yale School of Drama for my MFA because I realized how much I learned about myself and others through the different roles that I played. I believe in the power of theatre and film and its ability to inform, provoke discussion, inspire and be a catalyst for change.

“Adopted” was my first opportunity to produce and is especially personal to me because I was adopted from Korea and grew up in Minneapolis, MN. I now hope to use my personal understanding of transracial adoption to educate, inform and perhaps change some preconceived notions of what it means to be adopted and Asian in America. I am also currently working on “In 500 Words or Less”, and because we are working with so many students of various races, cultures and socio-economic backgrounds the experience has challenged my perspective and pushed me to ask more questions.

Molly Fowler, Vice-President & Director/Producer: I love telling stories. I think we learn a lot about ourselves, and obviously about others, by telling stories. As a child growing up in the South, the youngest cousin in a huge family of storytellers, my favorite memories involved listening to the adults around me tell stories. Somewhere in high school, I began to tell them myself. I even dropped out of college for a semester to get my grandmother to tell me some stories before she died. Now, as a Mom, I hear the stories I tell my kids and realize they are often about me. Maybe some of them are about you. But as the teller, they are told to provide context, experience and tribal identity.

I've been a journalist, a stage director, I've directed personal monologues, I've produced talk shows and news pieces and long and short form documentary. It's all about finding the truth in a personal narrative and expanding it formally for a reader or a viewer. It's my legacy for my children. It's also good for the soul. Right?

Randip Ghuman, Assistant Editor: I do a little bit of everything when it comes to production. I’ve been the grip on most of the shoots for the current documentary project and I’ve done most of the off-line editing for Barb, as she reads all the transcripts and pulls together sound bytes. I like the families, but I’m most fascinated with the way in which the story will be told. It feels like a big responsibility because emotions run high when it comes to family and just a cut instead of a dissolve can change the tone or the perception of a sequence. I know it’s important that we get the story right. I’ve always liked video because I think it’s a powerful medium. What I’ve learned on this project is that it also comes with a huge responsibility.

Emma Gardner, Associate Producer & Research Assistant: I am an avid traveler, and have lived abroad in Lilongwe, Malawi and Dakar, Senegal. In Malawi, I worked with a local NGO, teaching HIV/AIDS education to rural Malawian children. I also spent a semester at the Universite Cheik Anta Diop in Dakar, Senegal. I graduated from Yale University with a BA in History in 2006 and am a graduate of The Westminster Schools in Atlanta.

Catherine Wigginton Greene, Senior Associate Producer: An inherent love of storytelling led me to journalism-- first as a writer, but always curious about making documentaries. I joined Point Made to help write for the Adopted website and within a few weeks I had the chance to work as a production assistant on a shoot with the Fero family on the West Coast. I immediately knew I had found my passion. I continued to work with the Fero's through the end of production on "Adopted" and learned so much from them about the way race affects all of us, what makes a family, and how family forms our identity. This past year, I've been lucky enough to work with bright, motivated and earnest high school seniors for Point Made's forthcoming film, "In 500 Words or Less." What they have already accomplished is amazing, and what lies ahead for them is inspiring.

Going into other families' homes to learn about and document their lives is an intense experience and such a privilege. I'm so grateful to all of the families I've met through Point Made Films who are allowing us to tell their stories.

Flávia de Souza, Editor: I have worked as an editor in New York City for the last ten years on several documentary films and television programs, including When the Spirits Dance Mambo (Havana International Film Festival, 2002) and Getting In: Kindergarten (The Learning Channel, 2007). I received an MFA in Photography and Related Media from the School of Visual Arts.

Carolina Williams, Editor's Assistant: I have my BA in Communications and worked in video production for 7 years in Albany, NY. My background is in training videos, public service announcements, and commercials. After moving to New York City in 2007, I freelanced as a production assistant on several projects. My experience is in all facets of production, including scripting, camera, and editing. However, my interest in editing brought me to New York and eventually to be a member of the Point Made team.

Russell Santos, Editor & Camera: Today, documentaries are continually evolving. There seem to be no clear boundaries. Having worked in the theatre, film, and video industry for over 16 years, I am now fortunate enough to be working with such a talented and passionate group of people who are willing to embrace change and be citizens of the world.

joi foley, Web Development & Design: I began making films when I was 11 and had just discovered the "Special FX" button on my uncle's video camera ("fade in/out" was apparently my favourite). In 2003, I graduated from Emerson College with a BFA, and later attended grad school at the New York Film Academy. Before coming to Point Made, I did web and graphic design for non-profits and artists in Philadelphia and Boston, and worked on several films in a variety of production roles.