Our Team
Jerry Spinelli
Executive Producer and Author
“Milkweed” author Jerry Spinelli is a Newbery Medal and Newbery Honor winner. His young adult novel, “Maniac Magee,” was made into a Nickelodeon television movie in 2003. His “Stargirl” debuted on Disney+ in March of 2020 starring Grace VanderWaal; his sequel, “Love, Stargirl,” spent time on the New York Times bestseller list to rave reviews. When published in 2003, “Milkweed” won the prestigious Golden Kite Award.
Gail Rosenblum
Producer
Gail is a newspaper columnist, author, public speaker and mother of a blended family of seven young adults. In 2019, Gail founded nonprofit MPGL Entertainment (Man Plans God Laughs) to provide free films and interactive teaching curricula to help 21st century middle school students connect the dots to history. Her first collaborative animation, “Enough Already!” was named one of the best children’s videos of the year by Child Magazine. (gailrosenblum.com)
Annita Soble
Art Director
Annita runs an animation and illustration studio in Brooklyn, NY, where she skillfully translates abstract concepts into visual forms. Annita’s art and animation, which also graces wine bottles and book covers, have been enjoyed by more than 1 million on YouTube. The parent of five Jewish children, she is particularly invested in “Milkweed.” (www.AnnitaSoble.com)
Mike Owens
Animation Director
Mike is an Emmy- (“Danger & Eggs”) and Oscar-winning (“Hair Love”) animation director, show creator and educator with more than 20 years of experience in the industry. He is co-owner of WOMO Studio in St. Paul, MN., where he develops and produces original animated content.
Wendie Owens
Animation Director
Wendie is a creative filmmaker and storyteller working in animation and live action. Wendie’s career began as an animator for children’s television programming in Chicago. She is now co-owner of WOMO Studio in St. Paul, MN., where she develops and produces original content.
Audrey Robinson Favorito
Animation Producer
Owner of Wild Carrot Productions, Audrey served for 12 years as executive producer for Reelworks Animation, a commercial animation studio known for traditional hand-drawn animation. She also produced 3D animation projects at Lamb & Company for six years, working with the team that pioneered the use of motion capture technology. Audrey now works with nonprofit organizations to help them tell their stories.
Chris Bartle
Screenwriter
While this is his first full-length feature screenplay, Chris is an award-winning writer and commercials director in London. He found his way to “Milkweed” the novel more than a decade ago, quickly realizing the impact a movie would have. He is excited and honored to be on the “Milkweed” team.
Tom Lieberman
Music and Soundtrack Supervisor
Tom is a composer, performer and producer for radio, television, stage and screen. He served as music supervisor for “Sweet Land,” winner of the 2006 Film Independent Spirit Award for Best First Feature. The film’s soundtrack featured Tom performing his composition “Eskimo Kisses,” which Variety reviewer Ronnie Scheib described as “a triumph of inventive storytelling.”
Matt Herbst
Composer
Matt studied film scoring at the University of Southern California’s world famous Scoring for Motion Pictures and Television. He has won the prestigious BMI Award for Achievement in Film Scoring and is a member of ASCAP.. Matt works from his studio in Los Angeles
Bruce McFarlan
Animator
Bruce has over thirty-five years of experience in producing animation for broadcast, web, and theater. His roots are in traditional, hand-drawn animation and cover all aspects of character animation — from story-boarding and character design, to layout and producing hand-drawn key-frame animation.
Ellen Kennedy, Ph.D.
Curriculum Specialist
Ellen is founder and executive director of St. Paul-based World Without Genocide, which provides education about past and current conflicts and advocates locally and nationally for policies and legislation that promote peace and justice.
KK Neimann, M.A.
Curriculum Specialist
KK has a master’s degree in teaching from the Harvard Graduate School of Education. She has worked in education for 20 years, teaching essential skills that students need to be responsible and engaged citizens locally and globally.
Pondie Taylor
Project Manager
Pondie has been an educator for 15 years; for the past three years, she created and taught a social justice class for 6th-through-8th-graders at a charter school in St. Paul, Minnesota. She also serves on several theater boards and said she is eager to begin work on a project “that combines my passions for education, history and the arts.” Plus, she noted that she gets to work with some of the coolest people out there – teachers! – empowering you with resources to teach empathy and inclusion while connecting the past to today’s struggles.