Tobi Elliott is a young producer and filmmaker based on Gabriola Island, B.C. She attended Montreal’s Concordia University originally to study print journalism, but came out the other side with a passion for documentary film. Returning to B.C., she and Charlotte Gentis set up Blue Cyrus Media to showcase non-profit groups and ordinary heroes with extraordinary stories.
Tobi is currently producing her first feature documentary, The Trapper of Peace River, about a trapper and wildlife advocate who faces a rapidly diminishing animal habitat due to heavy shale gas development in northern B.C. Previously, Tobi assisted renowned activist documentarian Magnus Isacsson on his final film, the as-yet unfinished Granny Power, a documentary about activist Grannies. She worked in Nunavut last spring coordinating production for the Watchers of the North series for Picture This! Productions. Her latest project in development is Between Wood and Water for Arise Enterprises, about the restoration of Dorothy, Canada’s oldest sailboat.
Charlotte Gentis is a professional videographer who has freelanced for CBC TV News Vancouver for over ten years, shooting local and national news, current affairs, and documentary work. She holds a technical degree in Television Production from British Columbia’s Institute of Technology (2001), and a Bachelor of Arts in Communications from Trinity Western University, specializing in professional writing (2009).
Charlotte has a passion for telling true to life stories of ordinary people doing extraordinary things that make their world a better place. With a background in horsemanship as well as having a heart for orphaned children, the ‘Horses for Orphans’ project was a perfect fit for her first independent short film.