NAVIGTORS
Jacek Strek
Director / Cinematographer
Empirical, insightful, and positively rebellious, Jacek Strek is an award-winning Director and Cinematographer with an uncompromising vision. He holds an MFA in Cinematography from renowned film academies in Europe and North America.
His body of work spans six continents, from the Arctic to the Arabian Peninsula, from the steppes of Central Asia to the jungles of the South Pacific… directing and shooting award-winning documentaries, feature films, war reportages, and TV commercials.
With a deep understanding of diverse cultures and a sharp cinematic eye, Jacek brings life to his work through emotional intensity and bold visual style. His credits include international projects for clients such as Armani, CBC, BBC, PBS, Discovery, and National Geographic.
Whether in the freezing Arctic wind, the heat of the desert, under the sea, or amidst the fires of war, Jacek doesn’t just film. He translates vision into art. Across land, water, air, and fire… in those four elements… he brings the most essential one: the fifth element — the spark of inspiration.
Where convention ends, Jacek begins…
“The camera itself had always fascinated me: I had an urge to see life through the lens, to capture its moments, its images, and keep them in the camera obscura of my mind…”
Jacek Strek
Ron Ireland
Editor Par-Excellence
Ron is an editor par-excellence and likes to cut, with surgical precision. He cuts film as well as video, including the ground breaking 128K liquid fusions TRSV (True Reality Subliminal Video) format. As a seasoned professional with years of experience, Ron exemplifies superb storytelling with an insatiable desire to get to the “heart” of any tale.
Ron’s muse is his impeccable attention to detail, resulting in a tapestry that keeps the viewer enthralled. So sit back, relax, and let Ron do his work.
and yes… Ron is an undisputed pillar of CoolMix...
Tony Ramdall
Musical Director
Where life and art intersect is where this soul exists. Tony’s palette encompasses a wide range of influences which converge into audio that captivates the imagination and creates an emotional connection between the film and the audience.
Tony’s work has been broadcast in over 50 countries and at the film festivals of Cannes, New York, Rio de Janeiro, Hollywood, Yorkton, and Vancouver. Credits include 80 TV episodes, 25 documentaries, 13 films and numerous commercials. Tony also served as Jury Chair and member for the Gemini, Genie and Leo Awards in both the music and sound divisions.
Breathe deep… deeper… there.
Terry Spring
Senior Writer
Stories can be told with pictures, with music, or with words alone. But combine pictures, music and words together and you have a powerful mix; a coolmix, that summarizes the cinematic experience. As a screenwriter, Terry is inspired by the collaborative effort of filmmaking, of working with other talented individuals to connect the hearts and minds of the audience to the story. A poet at heart, Terry’s minimalist writing is complementary to the visual medium of film:
Where a few simple words can convey more than a thousand pictures.
Scott Keary
Production Manager/Camera Operator
Scott’s been riding the winding line between hi-tech and art for 30 plus years. Scott majored in Electrical Engineering and Computer Science at the University of Victoria, with a minor in, quite strangely, Creative Writing. And it was his love of the story that drew him first to the darkroom, then digital imaging, and finally into the blinding light of film and video production. It’s the challenge of capturing that infinitesimal moment, when the softly beaming ray meets the rustling leaf, scatters the water vapor, and then lights the story, that keeps him in love with camera work.
And he will tell you, well before any wine, that although the technical challenges are manifold and always shifting, it is worth it because we are building a beautiful trap to catch an even more beautiful bird and then give it away.
… and Yes I can fix it… One moment, please … Voila
Carey Linde
Legal Adviser/Producer
Carey Linde was born in New York City and grew up in Vermont. Before pursuing law, he briefly attended the Berklee School of Jazz in Boston, then left to seek his fortunes in Canada. During the social upheavals of the 1960s, Carey enrolled at the University of British Columbia. A self-proclaimed radical, he may have failed to start a revolution, but he did earn his law degree — albeit, as he jokes, at the bottom of his class. After practicing family law in the remote Haida village of Skidegate, Carey returned to Vancouver, where he became one of the country’s most unconventional lawyers, dedicating his life to helping people.
A journey to Cuba sparked a deep fascination with the island’s spirit and culture, a place he now calls home. His passion for film, photography, and human stories ultimately led him to cross paths with Coolmix.
Our Coolmix legal counsel par excellence, Carey Linde.
Nathalie Strek
Art Director
With a harpist mother and a film director father, it is quite evident that Nathalie possesses unique genetic artistry. As our Art Director, she is not very organized, nor is she hard-working, but she is very talented. However, Nathalie has an absolute qualification for this position. Her primary advantage is to be the daughter of the CoolMix President. She, therefore, creates the best art (as is often the case in the real world).
Just don’t ask Nathalie to make you a cup of coffee – it’s terrible. The photo was taken by paparazzi.
Nathalie in an… overwhelmed state.
CREATIVES
Bilko Cuervo
Director / Cinematographer
Bilko Cuervo, is a Cuban. In addition to good cigars, Bilko Cuervo is one of the country’s finest exports. His mesmerizing works of art have a refined, aromatic tone and a long burn. These unique qualities have made him one of the most sought-after Directors. Bilko possesses a MFA degree from the world-renowned Institute of High Arts in La Habana in Film and has won numerous prestigious awards.
Bilko loves taking risks, his penchant for skydiving says it all. Leaving behind one’s comfort zone is Bilko’s way of defying gravity and breaking free from mediocrity in art.
The edge is the definition of cool.
Karel Tupy
Photographer
Born in Prague, Czech Republic. Grew up in Prague, Czech Republic. Working anywhere, with anyone, not just as an interest, but a lifelong passion. An artist of the still image camera. Self-taught. Self inspired. Immersed in sport, to fully understand the essence of sport. Living it, to capture that raw human experience where the body does what it almost cannot do… a coolMix sport photographer, without attitude and seventy two more years to became a perfect photographer.
Karel Tupy … perhaps thoroughbred Bohemian.