Biographies of Journeys Below the Line Production Team
Bruce Bilson – Executive Producer and Director of Journeys Below the Line
As a past governor of the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences and past 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 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 additional 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.
Stephen R. Fisch, Esq. – Legal Advisor for Journeys Below the Line
Steve is a Business and Legal Affairs Executive with Starz Media (“Simpsons,” “Rob Zombie ‘El Super Beasto’”) focusing on Digital, Anime, Live Action and Animation for television, direct-to-video, home video, internet, wireless and theatrical. He also has worked on over 60 television motion pictures and many series for units of CBS/Viacom and Fox. His first network job was on the NBC series “Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In.” After graduating UCLA School of Theater, Film and Television, he was a segment producer/researcher on the ABC series “Ripley's Believe It or Not!” and produced both the syndicated television documentary “Doomsday Chronicles” and Peabody Award-winning “Snippets” spots before attending Loyola Law School. For the past nine years Steve has explored legal issues in student films for ATAS Foundation's faculty seminar.
Jack Foster – Editor for Journeys Below the Line
Jack Foster has an editing career that spans four decades. In 2000 he won a Los Angeles Emmy for “Everlasting Spring,” a documentary he directed and edited. He was also nominated for an Emmy for his 2002 documentary “Youth Opportunities Unlimited.” His other credits include “Face to Face with Connie Chung,” ten episodes of the History Channel’s “Modern Marvels,” two episodes of A&E’s “Biography,” and four episodes of “Intimate Portrait” covering Estelle Getty, Diahann Carroll, Geraldine Ferraro, and Joan Rivers.
Michael Gallant – Producer for Journeys Below the Line
Michael Gallant’s producing credits include over 25 features, movies-for-television, and mini-series. He was the line producer of “The Perfect Game,” an indie fe
ature about the 1957 Monterey Mexico team that won the Little League World Series. He also line produced David Mamet’s “ Edmond,” which received rave reviews and a five minute ovation at the Venice Film Festival. Michael made his directorial debut with “10 Attitudes,” which won
awards in film festivals from Auckland to Barcelona. He produced ESPN’s critically lauded movie “The Junction Boys” as well as the highest-rated cable movie, “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,” and “War and Remembrance.” His films have won 11 Emmys, 6 Golden Globes, and 3 DGA Awards. He also 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 with the school yearbook 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. Crossing over to film 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. Gallo divides his time between documentaries and commercials and shot his first feature narrative last year. To view his work please visit www.gallodp.com.
Lynne Gross – Associate Producer for Journeys Below the Line
Lynne Gross has taught TV production at a number of universities including Cal State Fullerton (where she served as Vice Chair of the Communications Department), Pepperdine, Loyola Marymount, and UCLA. 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.
Lynne Gross (second from right) producing the music series “From Chant to Chance” at KCET.
