Prime Productions Adds Board of Directors
Prime Productions has taken the next step in its journey by forming a board of directors. The six-member board elected officers in July: Chair is Susanne Egli; vice chair, Anne Marie Gillen; secretary, Nancy Monroe; and treasurer is Kim Greene. Prime Co-founders Alison Edwards and Shelli Place are also on the board. As of June 2021, Kim Greene has left the board to pursue other passions. Below are the bios for the four original PRIME officers.
CHAIR Anne Marie Gillen
Anne Marie Gillen, CEO of Gillen Group, is an independent producer, consultant, lecturer and corporate/executive coach experienced in content development, financing and worldwide distribution. Her projects have premiered at the Cannes Film Festival, New York Film Festival San Francisco International Film Festival and been nominated for Academy Awards, Golden Globes, Emmys, Independent Spirit Awards and DGA Awards. She is a member of the Producers Guild of America and serves on its education committee and Social Impact Entertainment Task Force.
Currently Ms. Gillen is in development with ABC Network for a limited TV series with Lionel Richie, and in winter 2019/2020 commences production on her next film, the sci-fi action adventure Persephone. In 2018/2019 Ms. Gillen executive produced and won an Emmy for the documentary, Charlie’s Place.
Ms. Gillen is the co-author of the 4th edition of The Producer’s Business Handbook, published by Focal Press and co-branded by American Film Market (AFM). The AFM is produced by the Independent Film & Television Alliance.
Gillen Group’s consulting division was established in July 2006, after purchasing Entertainment Business Group’s clientele and proprietary models and databases. The division’s motto is “Fusing Business and Creativity,” and offers business planning, script analysis, worldwide distribution consultation and internal greenlighting services to independent film producers and investors.
Vice CHAIR Susanne Egli
Susanne Egli is the owner of Communication Navigation, a training company enhancing work environments through leadership development, communication effectiveness, presentation coaching and client/customer/patient satisfaction training.
Her clients are legal and medical professionals, high-talent executives, middle managers and technology leaders, serving 150 organizations nationwide, including more than 15 of the Fortune 500 companies, as well as medium and small companies and firms, partnerships and non-profit organizations.
Ms Egli is an associate professor at St. Mary’s University where she teaches several classes, including oral communication, communication strategies for executives and communications for the cultural manager. She is certified in business etiquette and international protocol from The Protocol School of Washington, D.C
SECRETARY Nancy Monroe
Nancy Weingartner Monroe has been a writer/editor for more than three decades, first in California as a news and features reporter for newspapers and then as an editor/writer for magazines. She was the editor for a series of magazines for Franchise Times Corp in Minneapolis, MN, including Foodservice News, which covers the restaurant and foodservice business in the tri-state area. Her expertise also extends to writing and designing the magazine’s house ads and campaigns.
In addition. Ms. Monroe was the producer of the Charlie Awards, a local People’s Choice Awards-style production, where she also writes the script and promotional materials.
She is in the third year of her board term at the Jungle Theater, where she serves as the chair of the annual fundraiser. She is a volunteer for Prime Productions, and along with her husband supports a number of nonprofits in the Twin Cities, with the arts at the top of their list.
TREASURER SUSAN EDER CUNNINGHAM
ORIGINAL BOARD MEMBER (retired) Kim Greene
After graduating from the University of Minnesota Law School in 1981, Kim Greene worked as law clerk to Minnesota Supreme Court Justice John Simonett, as an associate attorney at Gray Plant Law Firm and as an assistant attorney general for the state of Minnesota.
In 1996, Ms. Greene changed careers and spent the next 20 years as an innovation and creative process consultant with Ideas To Go and with the company she founded, Greenelight Consulting. She facilitated the development of new product and services ideas for Fortune 500 companies such as Starbucks, Microsoft, Amex, Procter & Gamble, and General Mills. She received the Deinard Award and the Hannah Solomon Award for distinguished and inspirational leadership and service for her community board work.
In 2016, Ms. Greene returned to her first love, acting, and has appeared in lead roles in local theaters and independent films. Ms. Greene brings her passion for theater—in particular for theater that illuminates the stories of woman over 50—to her work on the Prime Productions board.