Welcome to Dead Creek


Filmmakers

Mike Turner: Director, Writer, Producer

Mike Turner was born in Burlington, VT in 1974.  He was inspired at a young age by visual storytelling in many different mediums.  Turner headed off to the Art Institute of Pittsburgh in 1995 to develop his artistic abilities in hopes of using them to get into the film industry.  Turner began his career working in special effects in 1997 after graduation.  Since then, he has worked in independent film, commercials, themed attractions, theater and as a freelance artist.  His credits as special effects and make-up effects artist on feature films include the Hallmark Channel film “Moonlight & Mistletoe” (2008), the internationally released horror films “Zombie Town” (2007) and “Ice Queen” (2005).   Since 2005, Turner has taught an annual Special Effects workshop for the film department at Burlington College located in Burlington, VT.  It has given him a chance to help many young, aspiring filmmakers.

The independent spirit and natural beauty of his native state of Vermont has always been an inspiration.  The landscapes serve not only as beautiful backdrops to his films, but nearly as characters themselves.  The haunting forests and wetlands of Vermont were integral to the creation of his most recent film “Dead Creek.”   His previous award-winning short film, "Primevil" (2007), a revenge film set in the year 25,000 B.C., has played film festivals in the US, Canada and the UK.

"Primevil is well structured-the creative artistry in the fusion of the story elements to tell a primitive and evolutional struggle to survive, is well executed in the imagery and sound track. This film is truly an example of independent filmmaking talent at its best, meaning, it has the look and style of a film with high production value."
Grace Peters, Terror Film Festival

Travis J. Kehoe: Writer, Producer, Assistant Director

Prior to founding ill-Co. Productions in 2006, Travis J. Kehoe received a certificate in Media Production from Burlington Technical Center in 1999 before joining the Vermont Air National Guard in 2001. Kehoe has served in the Air National Guard as an Armament Specialist since, earning an Associates Degree in Military Science and attending Airmen Leadership School where he went on to win the Leadership Award, and the Academic Excellence Award. Kehoe then attended Burlington College where he earned his Bachelors of Art in Cinema Studies and Film Production in 2006.

In 2006, Kehoe accepted an assignment to the Vermont Air National Guard Alert Detachment where he took on the added responsibility of Assistant Training Manager in charge of assisting with the training of 31 airmen from various career fields. In 2007, Kehoe moved from the Assistant Training Manager of the Alert Detachment to the Training Manager of the Armament Section of the 158th Fighter Wing, now in charge of the training of 59 Armament airmen. In 2008, Kehoe continued his education in military training, taking Plans of Instruction and Information Systems Design courses to allow him to better lead and educate the airmen below him.

In 2009, Kehoe completed his Master’s Degree in Entertainment Business. With his military experience and training and his education background, he brings a strong leadership ability coupled with an education in both the creative and business side of the entertainment industry. He is in charge of all business functions of ill-Co. Productions, legal, financial and business decisions. He represents the vision for the future of ill-Co. Productions.

Sandra Gartner: Associate Producer

Sandra Gartner of Rutland, Vermont serves as one of the producing directors of Vermont Actors' Repertory Theatre and as a board member of the Vermont Film Commission. She was last seen as Olive Madison in The Odd Couple, as Sara Goode in The Sisters Rosensweig, as Mrs. Webb in Our Town and as the Narrator in A Christmas Carol (2006 and 2007) all with ART. She made her theatrical debut with Inn One Theatrics as an ensemble member of The Laramie Project. Sandra studied acting with William H. Macy and Felicity Huffman of the Atlantic Theatre Co. A freelance writer for magazines and newspapers she specializes in personal profiles of artists and also performs on television and in film. For five years Sandra served as production coordinator for international art photographer Gregory Crewdson. Their photos have appeared in the New York Times magazine and are part of the permanent collection at the Guggenheim Museum in NYC.  She will next be seen in “Twelve Angry Jurors” with ART.

Justin Bunnell/Red Turtle Studios: Associate Producer

Justin Bunnell and his Red Turtle Studios has come on board as the supporting production company and post-production studio.  Red Turtle has provided camera and sound equipment to the production of "Dead Creek."  Please visit his website for more information on this full-service production company.

Georgia Pantazopoulos: Cinematographer

Georgia Pantazopoulos is an aspiring cinematographer from Boston, MA.  A recent graduate of the film program at Burlington College, Georgia has worked in several departments on a wide number of films including the Sundance Grand Jury prize winning "Frozen River" and the new Martin Scorsese film "Shutter Island."  Here is a link to her work listed on IMDB.  More info coming soon right here.

Mark Covino: Cinematographer

Mark was born in Queens, NY and spent much of his youth throughout Long Island. After deciding to be a filmmaker at the ripe young age of 9, he has made it his life long ambition to produce creative films with original stories. He used his artistic abilities in high school to fulfill academic goals and objectives, including studying television production at Eastern Suffolk Board of Cooperative Educational Services (B.O.C.E.S.). He furthered his education after graduating high school by working on the feature film In Jest, produced by Kingdom County Productions and directed by noted Vermont filmmaker Jay Craven. Soon after, he enrolled at Burlington College (VT) as a Cinema Studies and Film Production major, creating and working on many films while earning his Bachelor of Arts degree in 2006. After graduation he decided to reside in Essex, VT with his wife Jennifer while working on many projects, both personal and professional. He was the Associate Producer on Unless a Death Occurs: Hazing Examined, a documentary broadcast nationally on PBS. Additionally he co-edited the pilot episode of Rally-Nation, a television program focusing on off-road rally car racing that was optioned for ESPN2, as well as several segments of the highly acclaimed Black Panther documentary What We Want, What We Believe, now a top seller on Amazon.com.

 Recently, he teamed with Travis Kehoe for the successful short film "Lucid" which was one of the top fan favorites on Ourstage.com.






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