a self portrait 1998
I was born in Sweden and grew up in Toronto, Canada. I was definitely an unusual child. I could dance before I could walk and I could sing before I could talk. I was always in a hurry and got into a lot of trouble because I took excursions around the neighborhood in search of friends. When I found these "friends", I would create characters for them, make up a story, and insist that they play out their roles. Needless to say, I lost a lot of friends that way and often had to go on these "casting searches" to find more players.
Much later, I discovered that what I thought of as "playing with friends" was actually called DIRECTING! I wrote and directed my first official stage play "Jinx", in the 8th grade. It was then that I knew I wanted to become a filmmaker.
I pursued that dream by first becoming a teen actress/model/singer. I starred in commercials such as Heinz Ketchup, Secret Deodorant, Diet Cola and many others I can't remember. I walked on the runway displaying knee socks and mini skirts and saw my face in many newspapers and magazines. For some reason, I just took it for granted. The best part of it all for me was collecting residuals and buying mystery books and clothes with the money.
The highlight of my career was the day that I was sitting on the subway under a poster for Tamblyn Drugs with a picture of "guess who" on it, and the two girls across the aisle started looking up from me to the poster and down to me again, then whispering between themselves. I had a sudden urge to offer them an autograph but they got off at the next stop. Oh, well.
lee in college
I majored in film (and beer) in College, won a scholarship for, and sold my student film, "The Little Hunter", to the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC Television). Degree in hand, I went looking for my first Directing Job! Unfortunately, women directors were not much in demand those days. I was told to apply for work as a script supervisor, make-up artist or wardrobe assistant. I was arrogantly insulted! Not that I didn't respect the talent it took to do that work, but because that's NOT what I had studied so hard in College all those years to do!
After many slammed doors from Toronto's Film Industry, I finally gave up and settled for another of my talents, art. I became a freelance graphic artist, later to open up my own business "The Creative Approach". There I exhibited and sold my paintings, designed business forms, brochures, cards and newspaper ads for small businesses, taught art to children, wrote a bi-weekly column on art for the local newspaper and...again became a minor celebrity as a painter/columnist. For awhile, I even had my own comic strip, "castles", based on the humorous aspects of being an artist.
lee's "bon voyage" art exhibit in Canada
In 1989, the climate beckoned me to Southern California, in particular, Hollywood. I thought I could sell my unique paintings to eccentric rich people, make a bundle and retire to live on the beach. Fate, however, took an unexpected twist. In need of money, I started doing "extra work" for the Hollywood Film Industry. On my first day on the set of "Eternity", starring Jon Voigt, I was hooked on film again! There was now absolutely no turning back, especially when Jon kissed me on the cheek!
After doing literally hundreds of films and television shows as an extra or a stand-in, I finally got the opportunity from a writer/producer/extra to direct my first Hollywood project, "Fade Out Inn", a one hour pilot for a television sitcom. It never sold, but I now had "real" directing credentials! Immediately, I tried my hand at screenwriting, wrote three in a creative burst of energy, worked hard at getting an agent and two years later discovered that the "slamming door" had followed me from Toronto to Hollywood.
Since I needed an income again (as always), I started working three days a week as a "sales representative" at a major department store. My creativity suddenly took a vacation. Because I worked the weekend shift, that left me four days to write, or something. Wrong. I was so tired by Sunday, midnight, that I fell into a coma until Tuesday. Then, I had the week's worth of dishes and laundry to do. Get the picture? On Wednesday I would dabble on a painting or write a couple of pages on one of my works in progress. On THAT day I felt the most like the REAL me, but on Thursday morning, the anticipatory fear set in, and I was paralyzed the whole day knowing I had to go work again on Friday. I got physically sick, couldn't eat or sleep, and cried a lot. After almost a year of this, my doctor finally diagnosed me with AD/HD, a learning disorder and put me on government disability, giving me a small but temporary income.
lee directing at Century
Cable 
Now that I had money without "a day job", and always looking for new experiences, I started interning at Century Cable Public Access Television. There, I learned the basics about lighting, audio, camera and editing for video. I even produced, directed and starred in my own mini series, "Wednesday of my Real Life", about myself as a struggling artist in Hollywood. It got unexpected recognition. You'd be surprised how many people actually watch Public Access!
After I shot the final episode of Wednesday of my Real Life, called "fun with ADD", I needed cash again and started my two year career as a Production Designer for low budget films. At first it was fun shopping for the furniture and decor, designing and supervising the building of the flats, making unusual props like plastic, but real looking guns and fake joints, but towards the end, I got tired of packing and unpacking boxes and decided to concentrate on writing again. Fortunately, being a professional Production Designer/Art Director finally gave me legitimate experience in the Film Industry and two, much needed sponsors to join Women in Film (WIF). This winding road eventually led me to do what I'm doing now, running my own editing boutique "Starstrom Productions".
To find out more about my editing, click the next picture link:
