​MEET OUR FILM TEAM
Jill Orschel, Director/Producer/Cinematographer
Jill Orschel is an award-winning filmmaker whose projects give voice to women from the rural Mountain West and other underrepresented communities. Her breakout documentary short about a mother of twelve within an infamous polygamist sect, Sister Wife, premiered at the 2009 Sundance Film Festival, won a special jury award at SXSW, and went on to screen and win awards at festivals internationally. Jill’s non-fiction work has also premiered at DOC NYC, IDFA and other top tier festivals. She has an MFA in Film Studies from the University of Utah and continues to evolve her media-creating practices through organizations such as the Flaherty Seminar, Sundance Collab, and Creative Capital. Jill is also the founder/director of the annual Filmmakers Showcase, now in its 16th year, which highlights new work by emerging and established filmmakers throughout Utah. Snowland is Jill’s debut feature length project. She started filming Cora’s journey from Short Creek to Salt Lake City, then back, starting in 2013.
J.R. Hardman, Producer
J.R. Hardman is a documentarian, educator, and Civil War reenactress. She currently serves as Associate Producer at PBS Utah for the award-winning arts and culture program, This is Utah, and the weekly public affairs program, Utah Insight. J.R. previously served as Operations Manager for Sundance Institute Artist Programs; as Senior Tour Manager for Campus Movie Fest (CMF), the world's largest student film festival; and as Technical Director for Camp Flix, a summer filmmaking camp for kids ages 11-17. J.R. has produced several short documentaries and fiction films that have premiered at festivals across the country including the 25th Anniversary Outfest: Los Angeles LGBTQIA+ Film Festival and the Hot Springs Documentary Film Festival. She graduated from the University of Southern California in Los Angeles with a BA in Cinema/Television Production and Spanish. J.R. came on board with Snowland in 2020 when she led a resounding crowdfunding effort. Her enthusiasm and creative management on that campaign developed into a lead producer role on the film.
Jeremy Rourke, Animator
San Francisco-based artist Jeremy Rourke creates experimental stop-motion animations using hands-on techniques and an animation table full of paper, photo-puppets, clay, paint, pencils, lights, and flora. His animations in the award-winning film When We Were Bullies premiered at the 2021 Sundance Film Festival and were nominated for a 2022 Academy Award for Best Documentary Short. Jeremy also created animation for short films including Thanks to Hank which screened at the 2019 Frameline Film Festival. His work has also screened at Cine Palium Fest, DOK- Leipzig, It’s All True Documentary Film Festival, and the Montclair Film Festival. On Snowland, Jeremy layers clippings, fabrics, drawings, sketches and photos from Cora’s life with a textured and visceral aesthetic that celebrates Cora’s spirit and creativity.
Connor Cook, Composer and Musician
Connor Cook is a film composer and musician living in Los Angeles. She grew up in North Carolina, playing bluegrass and Irish music. Connor plays button and piano accordion, mandolin, banjo, DADGAD guitar, and piano. She received her BM in Music Theory and Composition from Appalachian State University and a MFA in Music Composition for the Screen from Columbia College Chicago. Connor is a 2020 Sundance Film Music in Animation Fellow, as well as a 2021 Sundance Interdisciplinary Program Art of Practice Fellow. She was a mentee in the inaugural 2019 Alliance for Women Film Composers Mentorship Program studying under Miriam Cutler.
Susan Metzger, Editor
An Atlanta native, Susan Metzger graduated from the University of Southern California’s School of Cinematic Arts with an MFA in Film Production, establishing herself as a film editor, director, and producer. Her most recent documentary editing credit, Manzanar, Diverted: When Water Becomes Dust, premiered in competition at the 2021 Big Sky Film Festival and won the Special Jury Award for Editing at the Los Angeles Asian Pacific Film Festival. Other feature documentary editing credits include Thank You for Coming, Right Footed, and Democracy at Work. She edited the PBS films City Rising - The Informal Economy and Mother X Artist, which were nominated for Emmy awards. Susan was an assistant editor at the Sundance Documentary Edit & Story Lab in 2007 and 2008. Her mentor, the editor Kate Amend, thought Susan would be an ideal lead editor on Snowland, and she has been cutting footage and shaping the story since early 2021.
Joanne Feinberg, Co-Producer
Joanne Feinberg brings over 30 years of film production experience, and decades of thoughtful film viewing, to her work as an award-winning producer, editor, consultant and film programmer. She served as Director of Programming at the Ashland Independent Film Festival in Oregon for 11 years and was instrumental in creating this nationally recognized and highly respected top regional festival admired by industry, filmmakers, and audiences alike. In 2022, she was the Senior Programmer at the Jewish Film Institute/San Francisco Jewish Film Festival. In 2020 and 2021, Joanne served as the Guest Director of Programming at the Big Sky Documentary Film Festival in Missoula, MT. She has programmed for Mountainfilm in Telluride, CO, and serves on many juries and selection committees including the Cinema Eye Honors. She graduated with honors from New York University’s Tisch School of the Arts with a combined degree in Cinema Studies and Film & TV Production. Joanne joined Snowland’s producing team in 2016, offering networking and business guidance.
Jayne Moyes
Campaign Coordinator
Kathleen Stone
Fundraising/Marketing Assistant
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Claire Wiley
Crowdfunding Cinematography/Editing
Advisors:
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Kate Amend, Creative Advisor
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Miriam Cutler, Music Advisor
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Karen Everett, Story Consultant
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Aaron Kopp, Animation Advisor
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Mary Kerr, Consulting Producer
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Diana Witten, Grant Writing Consultant