After reading newspaper articles about Greg Louganis’ return to diving, Producer Will Sweeney knew that Greg’s story would make a great film. He thought of Director Cheryl Furjanic immediately. Cheryl is no stranger to making films about decorated Olympians. Will and Cheryl reached out to Greg in the spring of 2011 and they began shooting with Greg in May 2011.
CHERYL FURJANIC (DIRECTOR) is an award-winning filmmaker whose films have screened at 100+ festivals worldwide and on television. Her first feature documentary, Sync or Swim (2008), received numerous awards including a Billie Award for Journalism from the Women’s Sports Foundation. Cheryl holds a BFA in Film & Television production from NYU’s Tisch School of the Arts and a Masters from NYU/Tisch’s Interactive Telecommunications Program (ITP). She has been teaching documentary production at New York University for over a decade. She has yet to attempt diving or synchronized swimming.
WILL SWEENEY (PRODUCER) is a writer, producer and director based in New York City. Will was a producer on the award-winning The Royal Tenenbaums and has worked in production and development at Miramax Films and Walt Disney Pictures. With an emphasis on story and character development, Sweeney has worked on dozens of major motion pictures including Rounders, Cider House Rules, and The Squid and the Whale. Will also is active in several progressive and grassroots political campaigns in New York City including marriage equality, expanding open space, and reforming immigration. Will graduated from the New York University-Tisch School of the Arts with a degree in Film & Television production.
AMANDA KEROPIAN (CO-PRODUCER) a Southern California native, graduated from NYU’s Tisch School of the Arts in 1998. Since then, she has worked with actor, director/producer Rob Morrow at his film and TV production company Bits & Pieces Picture Co. Amanda has worked on such projects as the feature film Maze (directed/produced by Rob Morrow and starring Laura Linney) as well as the CBS series Numb3rs (starring Rob Morrow, David Krumholtz and Judd Hirsch). Most recently, Amanda produced, with fellow NYU Alum, Cheryl Furjanic, the award-winning feature documentary Sync or Swim, an inspiring behind-the-scenes look at the Olympic journey of the U.S. Synchronized Swimming Team.
KAREN K. H. SIM (EDITOR / CO-PRODUCER) began her documentary filmmaking career as an editor on Maro Chermayeff’s Juilliard, a 2-hour special for the PBS series American Masters. She then further honed her skills in storytelling by working with Frontline producer/director Ofra Bikel, editing a number of her films, including the Emmy award winning An Ordinary Crime and The Burden of Innocence. Since then, she’s edited Saint Misbehavin’: The Wavy Gravy Movie and has worked with Liz Garbus as her producer and editor on a number of projects, including Shouting Fire: From the Edge of Free Speech which premiered at the Sundance Film Festival and most recently, a Focus Forward Films short documentary, Robot which premiered at the Los Angeles Film Festival.
