Cast and crew
it has been a privilege for Sidelong Glance to work with a fantastic team on Whose History?, without whose creativity, dedication, and talent the project could not have been realised. We thank them all warmly. You can read more about their work, achievements and expertise below.
Core team
Harriet Bell
Communications and Social Media Assistant
“Hi! I’m Harriet a third year film Studies Student at the University of Liverpool. I do the social media for the Whose History? project and am loving it. I’ve been involved in theatre since I was 13, and have been in three professional productions at Hull Truck Theatre in my home city. I’ve also written articles for the University as well as Mindless Mag., about everything from red carpet feminism to TikTok! In the future I’d love to pursue a social media role, as I have with Sidelong Glance, surrounding theatre and film ideally. After my degree I’m planning on moving to York with my partner of 3 years and doing anything and everything to do with film and theatre - especially social media!”
Jenny Collins
Videographer
Hi, my name is Jenny Collins. I am a filmmaker based in the Northwest of England. I have over 15 years of experience in creating short format films. I create content for corporate clients and smaller community-based organisations. I find great joy in collaboration with organisations producing creative and meaningful work that tell stories. Whether through performance or documentary, I find the process of bringing these stories to fruition in a final film hugely rewarding.
If you would like to discover more about my work…
Please look at my Vimeo site: vimeo.com/jencollins.
You can drop me an email at: jennycollinsfilms@gmail.com
You can also find me on Linkedin at https://www.linkedin.com/in/jencol/
I am also a part of the filmmaker network Shooting People at: https://shootingpeople.org/cards/JennyC
I am always open to collaboration and creating new and engaging films that tell your story. Thank you.
Rosie Lavan
Writer, Producer, and Director
Rosie was born in Truro in 1984. She studied English at St Anne’s College, Oxford, and subsequently worked for two years at The Times. She has also worked for a London MEP, House of Lords Hansard, and as a freelance writer. In 2014 she completed her PhD at Oxford, where she also taught, and since 2015 she has been a lecturer in the School of English at Trinity College Dublin. Her first book, Seamus Heaney and Society, was published by Oxford University Press in 2020, and she is now co-editing, with the poet and critic Bernard O’Donoghue, the collected poems of Seamus Heaney, for Faber. With Sidelong Glance, she is a producer of theatre and film.
Eleanor Lybeck
Writer, Producer, and Director
Eleanor was born in Truro in 1987. She studied English at King’s College London before becoming a Fulbright scholar and moving to New York in 2010. After a year as a press officer for the British Bankers’ Association, she completed her PhD at the University of Cambridge in 2015. She taught English at the University of Oxford for three years and now lectures in the Institute of Irish Studies at the University of Liverpool. Her first book, All On Show: The Circus in Irish Literature and Culture, was published by Cork University Press in 2019. In 2017, Eleanor was named an AHRC/BBC Radio 3 New Generation Thinker and has published both journalism and creative writing. With Sidelong Glance, she is an actress and producer of theatre and film.
Tim Thompson
Production Assistant
I’m Tim, I just finished my degree at the University of Liverpool studying history with politics. In my final year I ended up studying a lot of queer German history and even wrote a blog post for the university’s LGBT History Month page! Whilst at university, I have been a secondary maths tutor and president of People and Planet. I have been the production assistant for Whose History? and it has been a lot of fun! I’ve loved being on set and helping behind the scenes as well as getting to read and feed back on scripts. I am starting an internship in October doing events and communications in London but hope to move back north again afterwards. I hope to do something culture related in future, but who knows!
Let Her Witness It
Adrianna Edwards
Mary E. Webb
Adrianna Edwards is an actor originating from Victoria, Canada. Her family background is Scottish and Trinidadian. She began performing at four years old, with dance, voice training and music. Growing up she worked on many Hollywood productions filming in Vancouver, and graduated from film and television school in 2012. Soon after she moved to the UK and has had lead roles in feature films such as Mannequin and Adharva. Aside from acting, Adrianna has worked as a model, DJ, singer and dancer in Japan, Mexico, South Africa, China, India, and Australia to name a few. She currently lives in London and is focusing on her music label and production house.
Tom Kimmance
Music
Tom was born in Liverpool. His musical career began as a self-taught pianist at thirteen years of age. Within months, his talent was evident to others, namely when he transcribed Mozart’s ‘Ronda Alla Turca’ by ear and performed the piece at a local festival from memory. In the years that followed Tom went on to study music full time and it was during his time at college that he made his debut as a professional soloist, performing concertos by Beethoven and Mozart and discovering his love for composition. Continuing his education at the University of Liverpool under the tutelage of John Gough, Tom continued to perform numerous concertos and recitals; he also had guidance from international concert pianists Gil Sullivan, Joanna MacGregor OBE and Stephen Hough CBE. He completed his BA Hons Music with the highest mark on record for a solo undergraduate performance. After gaining a first class masters degree in 2008, Tom has been in demand as a concert pianist for orchestras across the UK. His repertoire has included concertos by Mozart, Beethoven, Atterburg, Gershwin, Grieg, Rachmaninov, Tchaikovsky plus many more. Tom also performs as a chamber musician, solo recitalist and appears regularly as a duet partner with John Gough. Alongside his performing career, Tom teaches at the University of Liverpool. He is also an accompanist and keen composer and his works have been performed across the North of England.
eJoy of Cooking
Sam Butterworth
Animator
Sam Butterworth is an independent animator and illustrator living in the UK. Now graduated from the GD&I Ba (Hons) course at Liverpool John Moores University, she achieved a First Class Honours Degree and was awarded with the LJMU 2021 Graphic Design & Illustration award for moving image.
She is currently a studio assistant at Dorothy, whilst working on her own self-initiated projects. Her work is mainly focused on narrative driven moving image, creating short-films that are visually striking. The work can span from poignant animatics to comedic short-films such as ‘A Fistful Of Lint’. She works both digitally and traditionally using Procreate and Adobe software for her animations and printmaking techniques for her illustrative work.
She is inspired by popular culture including music, film and game, which plays a big part on the shot-types and character designs she creates. During her study she organised a trip to Arch Model Studio in which she was able to see behind the scenes of a stop-motion studio which affirmed her aspirations for working in a studio setting. She hopes to work on many collaborative projects in the future.
Website: sambutterworthillustrator.com
Instagram: @sambutterworthillustrator
Xiaoxiao Hou
Music
Xiaoxiao (筱潇 xiǎo xiāo) was born in China. She started playing piano at three years old and Guzheng at five. She passed the top-level performance examinations recognised by the top 4 conservatories in China (Central Conservatory of Music, China Conservatory of Music, Shanghai Conservatory of Music, and Nanjing University of the Arts) when she was 10 years old, earning a distinction grade. With strong interests in music and performing arts, she acquired her Bachelor in Music Education from Jiangnan University China, Masters in Musicology from Durham University and Applied Psychology from University of Leeds. She previously worked at the Business Confucius Institute at the University of Leeds, Harrogate Grammar School and Rossett School. She is doing a PhD project in the University of Liverpool located across the fields of Psychology, Public Health and Music with the working title of “Music in eldercare: Improving the well-being and quality of life upon people with dementia and their caregivers”.
Xiaoxiao has held many Guzheng concerts in both China and the UK. Performing in different venues for different themes and with musicians from different genres shaped her as a professional musician. She has unique insights in expressively performing on both traditional and modern repertoires. She has performed in various venues including Westminster Central Hall London, World Museum at Liverpool, Victoria Gallery and Museum, Manchester United Football Club, Liverpool Everyman Theatre, Leeds Millennium Square, Leeds Town Hall, Leeds Carriageworks Theatre, Royal Armouries Leeds, Bradford City Park, Newcastle Town Hall, Birmingham Town Hall, Hartlepool Town Hall, Durham University, University of Bradford, Northumbria University, University of Leeds, Liverpool Hope University, University of Huddersfield, and University of Sheffield.
Trev Neo
Richard
Trev is a Singaporean actor based in London.
Since moving to the UK in 2016, he graduated with an MA in Collaborative Theatre Making with Coventry University and Frantic Assembly.
Some of his notable works in the UK include playing Iggle Piggle in In the Night Garden Live, Secret Cinema’s Moulin Rouge, The Handmaiden, Blade Runner and Casino Royale.
As a voice-over artist, he has worked with companies such as JustEat, DHL, Shell, Nintendo Switch, Channel 5 and many more.
During the pandemic, he has been working mainly as a yoga teacher and sports therapist.
Website: http://www.TrevNeo.com
Instagram: @trevneo
Rachael Tse
Sherry
I am an actor, model and voiceover artist based in London who was born and raised in China. At the age of 5, I learned Chinese Dance and continued with performance skills until reaching the UK in 2008. Since I have been diagnosed with an invisible disability in 2015, dancing has become a hobby of mine.
I found my passion in acting through Outside Edge Theatre Company’s recovery drama. I truly believe acting is a great way for self-recovery.
I am currently working as associate producer for a short film called The Long Walk, this film is about raising mental health awareness.
I am on Twitter and Instagram at @rachealtse.
Hey Joe
Marvin Brown
Joe
With comedy and drama at the forefront of a lot of Marvin’s television roles, his film and theatre performances show a clear talent in demonstrating smaller, intricate, human displays.
His most recent work was in a TV show called The VAR Room (Amazon Prime).
Other TV credits include: The First Team (BBC), Accused (BBC), Fresh Meat (C4), Shameless (C4) and Coronation Street (ITV).
Film Credits include: Three Bull Mastiffs in a Corner Kitchen and Son of Ned (BFI).
Seamus Lavan
Assistant Director
Seamus Lavan graduated from Oxford University in 2017, where he studied English. Since that time, he has been pursuing a career in acting, performing on both screen and stage in projects that include fashion campaigns, music videos, and an outdoor production of Henry V in Florence scored by a full, live orchestra.
Seamus has been supporting the work of Sidelong Glance for several years now as a keen spectator and fan, so was delighted to have the opportunity to take an active role in Whose History?. ‘Hey Joe’ has been Seamus’s first foray into assistant directing; he has been thrilled to be involved in such an important, timely project, and feels fortunate to have worked alongside such a talented group of people. As an actor, he has also relished the opportunity to experience filmmaking from the other side of the camera.
Jack O'Hanlon
Music
I’m from Co. Down, Ireland. I moved to Liverpool to study music five years ago, I’ve stayed ever since and have been playing gigs across the city with my band Green Tangerines, as well as further afield. In addition to this, I teach guitar in a few different schools in the area.
Sarah Sands
Music
I’m originally from Co. Down, Ireland, but have been based in Liverpool since moving over to study at the university four years ago. Currently, I’m an active musician and music teacher. I play saxophone and write for jazz-fusion band Green Tangerines playing across the UK, as well as working with other bands and singing in function bands.
2600
Musicians
Jennie Nolan (button accordian)
John Chandler (guitar)
Mike Hogan (flute and whistle)
Mike Grisenthwaite (bodhrán and low whistle)
A group of local musicians who have played Irish traditional music together and individually going back to the days of the old Liverpool Irish Centre in Mount Pleasant in the 70s and 80s and beyond. Regularly playing at local Irish music sessions, ceilis and functions, they are involved in keeping the Irish tradition alive in Liverpool, and involved in the Irish community in different ways, such as the Liverpool Irish Festival, Liverpool Irish Centre, and through studying, teaching, and charitable and cultural events.
Megan Grisenthwaite (flute and low whistle)