Biographies of Journeys Below the Line Staff
Bruce Bilson – Executive Producer and Director of Journeys Below the Line
As a past governor of the Television Academy and Chair of its Educational Programs and Services Committee, Bruce has been the main creative force behind Journeys Below the Line. In his professional career he has directed almost four hundred television shows and developed a strong respect for and many lasting
friendships with his fellow crew members. Along the way he won an Emmy for "Get Smart" and was nominated for the DGA Award in Comedy Directing for his work on "The Odd Couple."Early in his career he was an assistant film editor for "You Bet Your Life" and then worked as a first assistant director on "The Andy Griffith Show." Some of his directing credits include "Hogan’s Heroes," "Barney Miller," "Life With Lucy," "The Love Boat," "Hawaii 5-0," "Spenser for Hire," "Fall Guy," "Touched by an Angel," and "The Flash."
Ray Colcord – Composer for Journeys Below the Line
Ray Colcord is a film and TV composer who is a current governor of the Television Academy and a past president of the Society of Composers and Lyricists. He has written the music for more than 700 television shows and feature films including "Family Affair," "Lost at Home," "Big Brother," "Boy Meets World," "Promised Land," "Dinosaurs," "The Facts of Life," "2-2-7," "Silver Spoons," "
Touched by an Angel," and "The Simpsons." He signed Aerosmith to their first record deal, co-produced their second album, "Get Your Wings," and played keyboards on albums such as Don Maclean’s "American Pie" and Lou Reed’s "Rock ‘n’ Roll Animal" and "Lou Reed Live."
Steve Fisch – Legal Advisor for Journeys Below the Line
Steve Fisch, Esq. is a legal and business affairs executive, having worked on over 60 produced television motion pictures and numerous series for units of Viacom and Fox.
Earlier he was on the production side of the house, getting his start on the NBC series "Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In," and later as a segment producer/researcher on the ABC series "Ripley's Believe It or Not!" He also produced the syndicated television feature length documentary "Doomsday Chronicles" and the Peabody Award winning "Snippets" spots before attending law school. Steve has been a guest speaker for the past seven years at the Television Academy Faculty Seminar discussing legal clearances in student productions. He is a graduate of UCLA film school and Loyola Law School.
Michael Gallant – Producer for Journeys Below the Line
Michael Gallant’s producing credits include over 25 features, movies-for-television, and mini-series.
His recent film, "Adam and Steve," screened at the Tibecca Film Festival and has a 2006 theatrical release date. He was the Line Producer on David Mamet’s "Edmond," which screened at the Venice and Telluride Festivals and will have its theatrical release in mid-2006. He
produced ESPN’s critically lauded movie "The Junction Boys" as well as the highest-rated cable movie in history, "First Daughter." Prior to his career as an independent producer, Gallant served as production executive for ABC Circle Films where he supervised film and television projects including "Attica," "Inside the Third Reich," "The Day After," "Baby M," and "War and Remembrance." His films have won 11 Emmys, 6 Golden Globes, and 3 DGA Awards. He teaches the Master Class in Line Producing at UCLA Extension.
Christopher Gallo – Director of Photography for Journeys Below the Line
A black and white photography class that he took at age 14 and a job at a local newspaper launched Christopher Gallo on his career. He studied art and filmmaking at Virginia Commonwealth University then honed his photography skills at the Art Institute in Fort Lauderdale. He moved to Los Angeles and worked under such legendary feature D. P.s as Michael
Chapman ("Raging Bull") and Andrzej Sekula ("Pulp Fiction"). Branching out on his own, he lensed his first feature documentary, "Full Tilt Boogie," which was acquired by Miramax and premiered at the Venice Film Festival in Italy. He speaks three languages and has the ability to crossover from film to HD to 24p to still photography.
Lynne Gross – Associate Producer for Journeys Below the Line
Lynne Gross is currently a professor at California State University, Fullerton where she teaches radio-television-film production and theory courses. She has worked in the television business as program director for Valley Cable TV and as producer for several hundred television programs, including the music series "From Chant to Chance" for public television and "Effective Living" for KABC. She has taught and consulted in many countries including Australia, Malaysia, Swaziland, Guyana, Russia, and Estonia. Author of eleven books and numerous magazine articles dealing with media, she is also the recipient of the top educational awards given by the Broadcast Education Association and the International Radio and Television Society.
Jody Leggio – Editor for Journeys Below the Line
Jody Leggio grew up in Long Island, New York, where he became interested in editing when he was an eighth grader. He attended Southern Illinois University in Carbondale and there worked on a student project called “alt.news 26:46” that won three Academy of Television Arts & Sciences College Television Awards. The producer of that show, Michael Cioni, came to Los Angeles and became involved with
PlasterCITY Digital Post. He brought a number of SIU alums, including Jody, to Hollywood to work for that company. Jody says, “Many people have the dream that they want to work with college friends when they get out of school. Our dream came true.”
