The Production
Englishman Melvyn Hopper has worked in the media field for more than 30 years. His endeavors have taken him around the globe: from South Africa to Oman, from New Zealand to Hong Kong. He introduced the Harvard Business Review to China, combining Harvard content with original Chinese reports. He has met with leaders of Third World countries and with residents of their diverse populations. Witnessing firsthand the negative image that others have of Americans, he felt qualified and obligated to produce the film, Life with Principle.
Hopper partnered with the Thoreau Society to create Life with Principle. The intent was not only to show the world how true Americans think and live, but also to help young people understand the contemporary significance of Thoreau’s writings and philosophy. Thoreau Society executive director Jayne Gordon coordinated creation of the supplemental educational and historical materials for the DVD. A former history teacher herself, Jayne has 30 years of experience in crafting successful lesson plans and instructional guides that meet prescribed educational objectives at all student levels. She has since moved on to become the Director of Education for the Massachusetts Historical Society in Boston.
Andreas Kapsalis is a master of the two-handed technique on guitar. He has worked with Grammy award-winning producer Jimmy Tullio and received praise from Dave Brubeck for his version of “Blue Ronda a la Turk.” Together with Jamie Gallagher and Darren Garvey, he released a debut album of the Andreas Kapsalis Trio in 2004. He became involved in movie scoring at the Sundance Institute, where he worked with the music for the documentary Black Gold. It received the “Official Selection” Award at the Sundance Film Festival. Andreas composed the music for Life with Principle.
Rick and Hillary Wagner, a versatile duo known as Jim’s Red Pants, specialize in traditional and original folk music. They wrote and recorded “May 6, 1862: The Death of Henry David Thoreau.” Rick has been an avid student of Thoreau for many years. In a way, he had already experienced the scenes from Life with Principle during his studies and travels. The song was just waiting for the right scene to be put in front of it.
Morgan Peline is a French National who studied at the Northern Film and Television School at Leeds Metropolitan University as well as the National Film and Television School in England. He has worked in the film industry in England and plans to continue his career as a Director of Photography.
Lobitos Creek Ranch completed the Life with Principle post-production work.
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