Talent Network | Ken Kerbs - Photojournalist / Broadcast News Cameraman / Editor / Producer

KEN'S TALENT NETWORK

After years of shooting stills, making corporate videos, working on documentaries, traveling around the globe producing television series, and being a cameraman and broadcast technician at a major news network, I've come to appreciate the value of the hundreds of talented people I've worked with.

Directors of Photography. Musicians. Sound recordists. Satellite truck operators. Writers. Animators. Stage hands. Production managers. Some are advisors--financial, technical, and creative. Most are perfectionists--true craftsmen and women in a particular area within film, video and multi-media production.

One thing you learn quickly is that the sum total of the parts is key. I've worked on productions where I was only there for a brief moment to perform one simple task. And I've worked on others where it's soup to nuts--conceive, execute and put to bed. The success is always dependent on the dedication of talented people contributing their expertise.

I promised myself that when I finally got around to making a website, I'd include some of my favorite talented people with links and contact information.

Feel free to call me and discuss how any of these talented professionals can help you with your next project. As a friend of mine once said, you're only as good as your last collaboration!

Jocelyn Anker / NY Jocelynanker@yahoo.com Cell phone: 917.291.4406	A digital product development executive. Jocelyn and I have worked on quite a few video projects for NYSE Euronext and she's a pleasure to work with. She's intelligent and knows how to stay cool under the pressures of meeting production deadlines. This comes from the depth of her experience as an executive and manger on new-media projects for Lifetime and HBO. She also brings to the table a wealth of experience having managed teams in the advertising and marketing arena. Jocelyn understands the creative process, is sensitive to what it takes to make high-quality productions, and motivates the teams she manages with a positive attitude. Did I say she was sharp and really smart?
Brian Wengrofsky / NY Rooster@bway.net phone: 917.568.2124	Brian is a great cameraman. Any format. Anywhere on planet Earth. He goes the extra mile to making great images. A pleasure to work with. We worked together for almost 4 months straight on the German television series "70 Days Around The World With Markus Koch" in 2008 and his meticulous attention to detail is one of the reasons it was received so well. When I was pitching the series in Germany and showed several reels in a meeting, the executive in charge stood up after seeing Brian's work and exclaimed: "I want Wengrofsky." Easygoing. Patient. Beware, he'll hoot and yell, "STOP THE VAN," when he sees the money shot bathed in the perfect light!
Alieen Ghee / New York leenproductions@gmail.com Cell: (398) 230-1646	Aileen is a true media pro. I think of her as a Renaissance Woman! An editor of 16 years, she has cut ads, promos, movie trailers, shorts and docs for HBO, ABC, CBS and CourtTV and many others. We worked closely together for a year when she cut the award-winning NYSE Visitor Center film, "It All Starts Here," back in 1999-2000. Her work has earned an Addy, Cine Golden Eagle, and a Sundance Grand Jury Prize. She's also had success in directing, producing and writing in many formats. Her 9/11 film, "Witnessing," was featured in the 2003 Tribeca Film Festival and broadcast numerous times on MSNBC.
Roger Hawkins / NY Roger@Disastertruck.com phone: 917.683.4554	I met Roger at CBS. He worked in the live news center which is the heart of CBS News. After many years, he decided to go out on his own with a dish and a truck to follow after those disasters the media just love to cover. He does remote Ku band satellite telecommunications via an airline transportable flyaway. (I know, I don't think I ever put the words "satellite" and "flyaway" in the same sentence before!) In otherwords, there are no limitations to where Roger can transmit your television images from as long as he can drive, fly, or put the dish on a camel! A great guy with a vast wealth of knowledge about live television.
Mike Ricigliano / Baltimore michaelricigliano@gmail.com phone: 410.444.6196	Mike, a.k.a RICIG, and I worked together on two different newspaper staffs: First, in Buffalo, then in Baltimore. I was a newspaper photographer; he, the most amazing cartoonist I ever met. Currently, RICIG lives and works in Baltimore. He does toons for The Baltimore Sun, The Buffalo News, The L.A. Times, and USA Today Sports Weekly, plus he draws for greeting cards. He can do anything with his pens. His resume goes on forever so to keep it short, he's great at drawing, dummymaking, and plays a mean kazoo (his words, not mine!). Recently, he was featured in an article in The New York TImes: http://www.nytimes.com/2012/04/25/sports/late-innings-for-the-sports-cartoon-vestige-of-a-bygone-era.html?pagewanted=all
Adam Stoltman / NY adam@e2productions.com Phone: 917.592.1722	Adam develops and produces independent media projects. Internet. Streaming media. Film. Magazine and books. Multimedia exhibitions. Much of his career has been behind the lens covering the major sports events of the last 30 years. His website displays his amazing photographs! But his knowledge as a media professional also comes from working as a picture editor for The New York Times and Sports Illustrated, and from his co-founding of Journal E, an on-line photojournalism magazine which twice won best use of photography on the internet in the prestigious Pictures of the Year competition. Adam is a "big picture" guy who helps clients solve problems by drawing on his wealth of knowledge which comes from working in the visual world, under tight deadlines, where content is key.
Leo Wery / Brazil leowery@gmail.com Office phone: +55.21.2266.3583 Cell: +55.21.9638.4700	Need a producer, production manager, or fixer in Brazil or, really anywhere. Then Leo's your man! With over 25 years in film production, Leo's done it all--from films in the Amazon to commercials in Austraiia to documentaries in Tahiti. His corporate client list reads like the Fortune 500: Shell, Coca-Cola, Budweiser, Johnnie Walker (those last two are most impressive!), Renault, Fiat. He's worked for the world's top ad agencies and with film directors like John Woo, Emir Kusturica, Jhoan Kamitz, and Andy Morahan, to name a few. Leo had a blast with us on the "70 Days" series in Brazil in '08 and if there's spot news in and around Brazil, he could hook you up quickly if you need to make television. He speaks a half dozen languages which goes a long way in managing logistics.
Donny Tam / NY Donny@8thchambercorp.com phone: 646.229.6500	Donny's been our soundman on a number of New York Stock Exchange shoots. Always the professional, he didn't mind putting on a tie and jacket (jeans-less) for working on the Exchange floor. That's pretty good, considering all the places his mixer and microphones have taken him! From the desert to the freezing cold studios in New York, he always comes prepared. Donny's client list is endless and impressive: Bravo, Discovery, PBS, History Channel, Comedy Central, A&E, and all the networks, to name a few. Check out his audio work for the show, "Extreme Trains." Despite his serious expression on his photo to the left, he's fun and a great team player to have on any shoot.
Rob Wallace / Sydney giveitup101@gmail.com	His reputation as a producer can be summed up in three words: Schedule is King. He's a stickler for precision logistics and professor to his non-Aussie crew of great Aussie sayings. Rob was the field producer for "70 Days," an all-around, Johhny-on-the-spot go-to man, taking care of the daily schedule, overseeing the travel budget, and the production's liason for company and government officials. He has executive produced and written for hundreds of hours of prime-time reality and documentary programming for Australian television. He was on the road for the Olivia Newton John show, "Wildlife," where he traveled to Africa, Sri Lanka, the Amazon, and to the wilds of Patagonia. He also traveled extensively for "Beyond Tomorrow," and worked on PBS's, "History Detectives." Currently, he's executive producer for the hit series, "Find My Family," a reality show that helps reunite long-lost loved ones. Contact Rob if you have any production needs in the land down under! And at the end of the day, a great guy to sit back and "crack a tinny!"
Kim Taylor / Shanghai kim@kaimuproductions.com Phone: 00.86.21.5272.2121 FAX: 00.86.21.5272.7524	Filming in China? Need logistics for a television series or a documentary? Call Kim at Kaimu Productions located in Shanghai. A student of Chinese history and culture, Kim's traversed China and speaks and writes Mandarin Chinese--pretty helpful when she's laying the groundwork for an up-coming shoot. National Geographic Television, CNBC, CNN, BBC have all called upon her services.Scouting, fixing, researching, equipment rentals, and all types of corporate branding initiatives. Her company also produces content for an on-going Shanghai Television series. Kim spent a week with us in 2008 setting up some very difficult logistics in four cities and arranging for our constant travel needs, too. (Fond memories of eating organic pork at a rural outpost near a pig farm as children playfully danced around us while we ate. And, Kim made sure we ate well wherever we went--proof to me she's an experienced producer!) She has a journalist's instinct and a solid background in academia making her the perfect GO-TO woman in China to help make your experience rewarding and your production run smoothly.