Team
IAN TOEWS CSC
Producer, Director, Cinematographer, Writer, Co-Creator
(Seasons 1-4)
Ian Toews has been making films and television series since 1996. His works are primarily concerned with the natural environment. He is the producer, director, and DOP of more than 100 television episodes, 7 short films, and 8 full-length documentaries, including the Gemini Award winning series Landscape as Muse and the Canadian Screen Award nominated theatrical feature and digital media project Bugs on the Menu. His productions have been nominated for 10 Gemini/Canadian Screen Awards (Etthén Heldeli: Caribou Eaters, Untamed Gourmet, Saskatchewan River Delta), including a 2024 CSA nomination for Ageless Gardens (Rob Stewart Award for Best Science or Nature Documentary Program or Series). The second season of his series Visionary Gardeners will premiere on VisionTV in 2024.
Toews is a producer on the international co-production Soviet Bus Stops, a documentary feature that premiered to sell-out audiences at the Vancouver International Film Festival, and has screened internationally at CPH:DOX, Docville, and Millennium Docs Against Gravity, among others. It was nominated for a 2024 Danish Academy Award (“The Robert Prisen”).
MARK BRADLEY
Producer, Writer, Picture Editor
(Seasons 1-4)
Canadian Screen Award-nominated producer Mark Bradley has worked in the television industry for over 25 years. He has produced award-winning broadcast television series and one-off arts and nature documentaries for major Canadian broadcasters. Projects have included the Gemini Award-winning Landscape as Muse, The Nature of Inspiration, Grasslands, Great Minds of Design, and Leo Award-winning series Visionary Gardeners. His productions have been nominated for seven Canadian Screen Awards (Bugs on the Menu, Untamed Gourmet, Etthén Heldeli: Caribou Eaters), including a 2024 CSA nomination for Ageless Gardens Season 4 (Rob Stewart Award for Best Science or Nature Documentary Program or Series). He has been nominated for five Leo Awards as producer and editor.
CAROLYN THOMAS
Narrator (Season 1-4)
After surviving a heart attack in her 50s, Carolyn Thomas has spoken to thousands of women (and a few men!) at her "Heart-Smart Women" presentations. Her Heart Sisters blog has had over 17 million views from 190 countries, and her book "A Woman's Guide to Living with Heart Disease" was published by Johns Hopkins University Press. Carolyn lives in Victoria, BC where she gardens on her tiny but beautiful balcony, ably assisted by her young granddaughter.
AMY WALKER
Co-Creator, Writer, Researcher (Season 4)
Amy Walker has been a long-time contributor to concept and story development at 291 Film Company. Credits include the documentary feature Bugs on the Menu, Ageless Gardens Seasons 1-4, and the series Visionary Gardeners. Her beliefs around respect for elder wisdom plus heath and food security in urban communities continue to guide her. Ultimately, she feels that working together and learning from one another is what is needed to advance the health and well-being of people and our planet. She has a professional background in software engineering. She holds a BCS from the Engineering Department at the University of Melbourne.
DAVID SPRINGBETT
Co-Creator, Producer, Researcher (Season 1)
David brings decades of documentary experience (and gardening know-how!) to the series Ageless Gardens Season 1. David's company Asterisk produced the series Ways We Live: Exploring Community, Reinventing the World, and Finding the Future, followed by the award-winning The Man We Called Juan Carlos and Hell: A Survivor’s Guide.
JASON NIELSEN
Picture Editor (Seasons 1-2)
Jason Nielsen is a versatile and experienced visual storyteller who edits multi-genre MOWs, scripted series, and documentaries for international broadcast. Jason was honoured with a Gemini Award Nomination for Best Editing (Dramatic) in 2004 and is the recipient of various Directors Guild of Canada Awards. Jason is proud to have his work in the collections of The National Gallery of Canada and The National Archives in Ottawa.
DAVID J. TAYLOR
Audio Post & Mix, Music Editor (Seasons 1-4)
David j Taylor is a highly respected record producer/mastering engineer and mixer. He's the 2007 Western Canadian Music Awards "Producer of the Year" award winner and multiple WCMA nominee with over 120 album credits. David is also dynamic audio post professional. He’s a Gemini Award nominated re-recording mixer and dialogue editor (Saskatchewan River Delta). He’s also worked as a music supervisor and foley recordist on Corner Gas, The Nature of Things, and Wild Life (2012 Academy Award "Best Animated Short Film" nominee).
MARJORIE HARRIS
Writer, Researcher (Season 4)
Marjorie Harris is one of Canada’s leading garden writers. She was the gardening columnist for Canada’s national newspaper, The Globe and Mail; makes speeches across the country; was the Editor-at-Large of Gardening Life magazine. She has been an editor at Chatelaine and Maclean’s; and written fifteen gardening books. She currently lives in Toronto and runs Marjorie Harris Gardens, a plant consulting business.
aMANDA CAWLEY
Composer (Seasons 1-4)
Amanda Cawley is an award-winning orchestral composer known for crafting fantastical themes for film, TV, and video games. Her portfolio includes a variety of media including over 85 episodes of the globally distributed animated TV series Fireman Sam and 20 episodes of the documentary series Ageless Gardens, for which she received nominations for Best Original Music, Non-Fiction at the 2022 Canadian Screen Awards and Canadian Screen Music Awards. She has been nominated for six Leo Awards and was recognized by the SOCAN Foundation with two Emerging Screen Composer Awards in 2022 for Best Original Score, Non-Fiction (Ageless Gardens: Sacred Spaces) and Best Original Theme (Visionary Gardeners). She has a classical education in music from the University of Victoria, and a contemporary education in composition from Selkirk College. She holds a diploma in Contemporary Music and Technology as well as a Film and Game Scoring Certificate of Excellence from the Screen Composer Academy.