Creative Team
Kate McKenzie
Co-Director, Executive Producer & CAST MEMBER
Kate McKenzie is Director & Founder of Worldviews Productions, a digital media production company specializing in stories of hope and innovation through a constructive journalism approach. Her most recent project is the feature length documentary film The Secret Marathon which premiered at Cinéfest Sudbury to a sold our crowd, followed by the Edmonton International Film Festival, also to a sold out crowd, where it won the Audience Choice Award for best documentary. The film has also inspired The Secret 3K, an annual run/walk in multiple cities across Canada and around the world to promote gender equality and safe and inclusive spaces. Kate is also the Manager of ATB X a business accelerator where Kate helps businesses achieve growth. As a published author, exhibiting fine artist and professional public speaker, Kate is passionate about sharing meaningful stories across a variety of mediums. Her TEDx talk about the Power of Positive News has had over 11,000 views. Kate has a Masters in Digital Media from Ryerson University and a Bachelors in Education with a specialization in experiential learning from the University of Lethbridge.
Martin Parnell
EXECUTIVE PRODUCER & CAST MEMBER
In 2010, following a 25-year mining career, Martin Parnell started his Quests for Kids initiative. Over the next five years he completed ten quests. These included running 250 marathons in one year, setting five Guinness World Records in endurance events and summiting Mount Kilimanjaro in 21 hours. At the end of 2014, he had raised over $1.3 million dollars for the humanitarian organization Right To Play and 27,000 children had been given the gift of hope. Martin is a keynote speaker, workshop facilitator and author, His first book Marathon Quest was published by Rocky Mountain Books and CBC Radio listed him as one of Alberta's top five authors, for 2014. His second book, Running To The Edge, was released in November 2016. The final book of The Marathon Trilogy, The Secret Marathon - Empowering women and girls in Afghanistan through sport was published on October 30th 2018. Martin is also Executive Producer of The Secret Marathon documentary which had its World Premiere screening on September 22nd 2019 at the Cinefest Film Festival in Sudbury, Ontario to a sold out crowd, and a standing ovation.
Scott Townend
CO-DIRECTOR, EXECUTIVE PRODUCER & EDITOR
We all have a story to tell. For Scott Townend, his just happens to be about telling stories. He may not have known it early on, but he’s been a filmmaker his whole life. What started off with the family VHS camera and the magic of capturing a moment in time, eventually became a decision to go to film school, followed by a career working as a writer, director, producer and editor. He’s worked on feature films, television, music videos and commercials, most recently completing the feature length documentary The Secret Marathon, which premiered at Cinefest Sudbury to a sold our crowd, followed by the Edmonton International Film Festival, also to a sold out crowd, where it won the audince choice award for best documentary. Both screenings ended in with an overwhelming standing ovation. Scott has completed hundreds of productions over the past 15 years working as a professional filmmaker, and after all that time, he still feels that there is magic in telling a good story. For that reason, this is most likely just the beginning of his.
*Scott Townend has left The Secret Marathon for personal reasons. We greatly appreciate all of his contributions to the film, and we wish him the best of luck as he moves on to new projects.
COLIN SCHEYEN
Lead Camera Operator, Afghanistan
Colin Scheyen is a documentary filmmaker based in Toronto. His films focus on issues of community, identity and social issues. His recent documentary feature film, Nuclear Hope, focuses on Canada's nuclear waste issues and screened at festivals throughout North America, South America, and Asia. It also won the Rising Star Award at the Canada International Film Festival.
Liam Kearney
Lead Audio & Second Camera, Afghanistan
Liam Kearney is the director and producer of production and post production at Liam Kearney Media where he has worked with clients including Bell, Globe and Mail, Sustainable Design Awards, Toronto Luxury Rentals and the NXT City Awards. He is also the director and producer of the short documentary “This Job Saved My Life” and the series "Convenience Stories", currently streaming on Bell Fibe TV1.
Kamala Parel-Nuttal
Researcher
Kamala Parel-Nuttal is an experienced researcher and freelance filmmaker who has worked with a variety of clients including Carya (formerly Calgary Family Services) and Pulse Studios, Calgary. She has produced several independent short films, and was Production Assistant, Researcher on the feature documentary film “Elder in the Making”(Winner, Best Documentary 2016 AMPIA Awards).
William Baird
Composer
McBaird Studios represents Film and TV composer, William Baird. William, has written original music for successful TV Documentaries and Short Films, including the award-winning TV Series “Time Team’ and the British two-part series ‘Winston’s War’. He is currently working on several North American feature length documentary films, slated for release in 2017/2018. His personal recording studio is based in Calgary. He uses a recording facility based in Calgary, called OCL Studios, for recording live musicians and for mixing the final film score.
Kendyl Lauzon
Artist
Kendyl Lauzon is an Edmonton based artist and illustrator. She owns and operates the Breakfast Jones store (named after her dog) and has worked on a variety of projects including animation, children's books, and personal portraits. Kendyl has been drawing for as long as she can remember, taking inspiration from artists like Mary Blair, Chuck Jones, and Bill Watterson. She graduated from the Alberta College of Art and Design's Visual Communications program, in 2007. One of her coolest achievements is having one of her drawings on the Conan O'Brien Show.
Murwarid Ziayee
Cultural Advisor
Murwarid Ziayee is an advocate for women’s rights and for girls’ education in Afghanistan. She is the Senior Director for the charity, Canadian Women for Women in Afghanistan and is responsible for program management and support for public engagement outreach and fund development. She maintains strong connections between the country office in Kabul and the Canadian board, executive team and membership. Murwarid has a BA in Political Science and Law from Kabul University. She has worked in women’s rights issues with different organizations including United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) and Office of the President of Afghanistan.
Pippa Johnstone
Voice-Over Audio Technician
Pippa is a theatre-maker and audio-producer hailing from Vancouver BC. Since moving to Toronto a few years ago, Pippa has completed her MA in Media Production at Ryerson, and created a podcast with TVO called Word Bomb about the evolution of words. She also works for CBC’s PlayME Podcast, which records new Canadian plays to podcast form. (Photo Credit: Ingrid Forster)
Afghan Woman
Cultural Advisor
This information has been removed to protect the safety of Afghan women.
Hosai Zurmati
Cultural Advisor & Narrator
Hosai Zurmati is a graduate from the University of Guelph where she received an Honours in Political Science and minor in International Development.
“I enjoy working with youth and participating in cultural events to learn and be exposed to diverse lifestyles. I'm grateful to be a part of The Secret Marathon, I view this project as the most dignified way to make people aware of their human rights, especially for Afghan girls or youth, who wish to take part in a run. In a region where several constraints prevent girls from tasting freedom, running and participating in a marathon can reignite that feeling of freedom. As a narrator, I do not speak with my own voice, rather I have tried my best to make the audience hear the 1000 unheard voices of girls of Afghanistan in the native languages of Pashto and Dari as well as English. And I hope that is exactly what your hear, for they want you to empathize with them not just sympathize.”
Hirra Farooqi
Production Assistant
Hirra Farooqi is an aspiring Journalist currently studying her last year of undergrad at Ryerson University. Hirra is a first generation immigrant of Afghan-Pakistani parents. Currently, Hirra is the general assistant of Ryerson’s Transmedia Zone, an incubator for digital media, creative industries and storytelling. Hirra hopes to produce her own documentaries focusing on marginalized communities within Central and South Asia.
We are thankful to all who have assisted us in making this project, some of whom cannot be credited here to protect their personal safety. We are deeply grateful for your contributions.