Producing Team
Back Pocket Productions, the production company for Split Ends, has
produced three short films: You Are My Sunshine, for the Elisabeth Glazer
Pediatric Aids Society; Dream House, a 24-minute film, which was accepted at
a number of film festivals, won Directors’ Choice at the New Jersey State
Film Festival, and was distributed on the Internet through THE DIRECTORS
CUT; and a movie trailer, A Scene from Out and About. In addition to Split
Ends, Back Pocket is also in development on a second feature film, The Rife
Machine.
Split Ends’ producing team brings a wide range of talents and abilities to
the table:
Elizabeth
Christensen – Writer/Producer
Split Ends is the brain child of Scottish-born Libby Munro Christensen. On
Mother’s Day in 2002, the New York Times published a piece about Libby and
her interesting career as a successful business woman and hairstylist to the
stars. With encouragement and support from friends and clients she wrote
about her experiences and adventures in the hair trade and then came to
Co-writer/Producer Gila Zalon with her story.
Ms. Christensen has taken a unique path into show business. As longtime
personal hairdresser to music legend Connie Francis, she has toured
extensively and is well acquainted with the hard work and discipline
required to succeed in the entertainment industry.
Her perseverance and determination to see Split Ends through to completion
resulted in her putting many of the principals together, including bringing
Vincent Pastore and Peter McRobbie on board. This is Ms. Christensen’s first
venture into writing and producing and she plans to continue to contribute
her insights for many years to come.
Gila
Zalon – Writer/Producer
Gila Zalon has been producing, writing and acting in film and on stage
professionally since age sixteen. As a writer, she was on the
research/writing team for the Public Television series Civilization and the
Jews, and created a number of plays, which were used as fund-raisers. For
Back Pocket Productions, Ms. Zalon wrote and produced their first two
ventures, You Are My Sunshine, which was used as a fundraiser by the
Elizabeth Glaser Pediatric Aids Society, and Dream House, which won
Directors Choice at the 2005 New Jersey State Film Festival as well as two
other awards. Her screenplay, Home Wasn’t Built in a Day received a
Certificate of Merit in the Writers Digest Screenplay Competition and her
latest screenplay, The Rife Machine, has been a semi-finalist in all four
competitions in which it was entered: Writers Network, American
Screenwriters’ Association, Acclaim Film & TV screenplay contest, and
Hollywood Nexus Screenwriting Contest.
She has also had short stories and essays published in anthologies and
magazines. Ms. Zalon was a literary agent at Ashley Famous Agency (now ICM).
As a free-lance producer she was Assistant to the Associate Producer for the
CBS TV series, The Winston Churchill Series and Associate Producer for the
Metromedia weekly talk show, Under Discussion. Her many stage productions
include the off-Broadway play, Things That Almost Happen and an extremely
successful production of Jacques Brel is Alive and Well and Living in Paris
in both Washington D.C. and Los Angeles. She has also produced concerts
including Pete Seeger and, with her husband, Sly and The Family Stone. As an
actress, Ms. Zalon has appeared in plays in regional theatres and
off-Broadway, on Television and in a number of independent films.
Ms. Zalon lives and works with her attorney husband in their New Jersey
home. Amid the hubbub of both offices in their home, they periodically host
their three children and four grandchildren and sundry other relatives and
friends. In this exciting environment Ms. Zalon is in post-production on a
full-length film which she wrote, and is rewriting her second feature-length
screenplay, which is already garnering attention.
Bob
Pusateri – Producer
Bob Pusateri has produced and production-managed Back Pocket Productions’
short films. He brings to Back Pocket a background in feature film and
commercial special effects, as well as experience in industrials for major
corporate concerns. Bob has also been actively involved in the Los Angeles
and New York theatre scene, enjoying the challenges of producing, directing
and showcasing the acting talent those cities offer.
Bob’s background in business — more than 12 years’ experience in profit and
loss responsibility, sales, marketing and business development — makes him
uniquely positioned to develop independent feature film projects. Bob has a
BS in Mechanical Engineering and a minor in Theater from Rensselaer
Polytechnic Institute in Troy, NY.
Jimmy Allen — Co-Producer and Post-Production
Supervisor
Jimmy Allen has produced innovative multimedia, film, entertainment, live
events and music for the public and for top industry leaders and companies.
Noteworthy among those companies are Pfizer, HBO, JetBlue, Time Inc.,
BusinessWeek Magazine and Morgan Stanley, as well as others. From feature
films to national radio and television promotions, to live theatrical
events, to corporate films and promotions, Mr. Allen’s work and expertise
reaches into every aspect of media production and has been seen and heard
all over the country. He is also an accomplished composer with several of
his themes currently running on national television. Noteworthy among them
is the theme package for BusinessWeek Weekend, nationally syndicated on ABC.
In the area of live events, Mr. Allen wrote, produced and directed the award
winning New York comedy stage review, The Jakes, which garnered excellent
reviews and enjoyed a successful two-year run. Mr. Allen also directed the
pop/rock show, What’s Next? featuring Jessica Simpson and Nick Lachey for
Teen People Magazine at the world-famous Apollo Theatre. He has worked as a
director and choreographer on countless theatrical productions all across
the nation.
As an entertainer his credits include performances at Radio City Music Hall,
The Tony Awards, The Late Show With David Letterman, the daytime dramas
Guiding Light and All My Children. Regionally he has been featured in shows
at the prestigious Goodspeed Opera House and the Paper Mill Playhouse. He
has also starred and been featured in several national tours. Mr. Allen is
also a member of Actors Equity Association, ASCAP, AGVA (American Guild of
Variety Artists), AFTRA (American Federation of Television and Radio
Artists), The Society of Composers & Lyricists and holds a Bachelor of
Science degree in Radio, Television and Film from Western Michigan
University.
Melissa Sweeney — Writer/Associate Producer
Melissa Sweeney has been involved in creative pursuits since writing and
directing her first 8mm film, Julius Caesar, at the age of eleven. She took
her first professional film assignment at sixteen on Clu Gulager’s acclaimed
dramatic short, A Day with the Boys. After numerous film writing
assignments, she co-produced Dorothy Lyman’s first feature film, The
Northern Kingdom, as well as Ms. Lyman’s theatre directing efforts My
Kitchen Wars at the 78th Street Theatre Lab, A Month in the Country at the
Odyssey Theatre Ensemble, Taken in Marriage and A Prayer for My Daughter at
ITA Theatre in Los Angeles.
As a songwriter and musician, Ms. Sweeney has performed at Los Angeles’
Troubador, Pasadena Jazz Institute, Boston Court Theatre, and the Jazz
Bakery. Her first CD with Grammy-nominated pianist/arranger/composer Bill
Cunliffe earned accolades from All About Jazz. She and Mr. Cunliffe are
currently collaborating on a 2-disc CD project. Their musical play, High
Water, is in development.
Jules D. Zalon – Attorney
Jules Zalon is an attorney specializing in the areas of entertainment,
trademark and copyright law. His clients have included music industry
notables Van Halen, Rush, Michael Jackson, Willie Nelson, Iron Maiden, Duran
Duran, Judas Priest and Dave Matthews, as well as entertainers Pee Wee
Herman, Pat Cooper, and The Three Stooges. He has represented sports
personalities, including Dennis Rodman, independent filmmakers, and numerous
theatres and theatre personalities. Prior to launching his own practice, he
was an attorney at Ashley Famous Agency, currently known as ICM) and at
Cadence Industries (Marvel Comics).
Split Ends Productions, LLC
Back Pocket and the members of its company are the primary producers and
managers of SEP.
