Knights of the Dragon
Dylan Alsop – Creative Lead
Dylan Alsop is a creative lead at Burgundy Dragon. He is a York University Film Production graduate, With a robust filmmaking career of award-winning fiction films and documentaries. His directorial projects include "Emergency Contact," "Carpe Diem," and "Succubus," with a fourth project, "Moving on Up," in progress. List of Film projects that Dylan has worked on.
He is a neurodivergent English/Canadian in Toronto currently pursuing a Master's in Communication & Culture (ComCult), focusing on climate crisis media and youth studies. His thesis, mentored by Professor Jody Berland, investigates youth-created Geo-Docs, a form of GIS activist climate crisis media. In 2023, Dylan presented his research at five conferences, including the Communication Congress, covering topics like youth climate Geo-Docs and metonymic representations of children in the Pedagocene.
Zachary Barmania – Creative Lead
Zachary Barmania is a versatile storyteller with experience ranging from print publishing to film. His work as a writer brought about his anthology of short stories, The Birch Cycle. Now, he writes and directs unique short films that speak to a post-modern audience. His work in radio and sound-art gives him a valuable perspective on the importance of sound in film and all media art.
Zack shows his leadership capabilities by putting trust and collaboration at the forefront of every project. He brings all these skills together in his work as an editor, bringing a touch of quality and narrative clarity to every project he works on.
As a queer POC, Zack knows how important art is to contributing towards a sense of inclusion and community, and does everything he can, from preproduction to post, to ensure that he is telling an authentic story that speaks to his diverse audience of Toronto, and the world.
Ethan Ryckman – Creative Lead
Ethan Ryckman is a talented young Canadian director, known for his strange and thought provoking work both on stage and screen. With over five years experience directing, he’s established himself as a creative force, distinguished by his ability to infuse quick, smart, emotional storytelling with nuance and social commentary. Background: Ethan began his journey in the entertainment industry almost a decade ago, initially working as an actor before expanding the scope of his work. He discovered his passion for storytelling early on and developed his craft alongside some of the best young artists of our generation. He studied scene work under Melee Hutton and Ben Ratner, classical text with David Matheson, script work with Rosamund Small, and Improv at Second City, to list a few, before eventually breaking into the world of directing through the Toronto Fringe Festival with the premiere of his play, Wanda.
For the first half of his career his primary focus was on performance, during which time he was able to explore a wide range of artistry and style. He starred as Jay in the second run of Mark Crawford’s, Stag and Doe, Ebeneizer Scrooge in the LOT’s annual production of A Christmas Carol, and most recently as Malvolio in Twelfth Night, with Shakespeare in the park. Although, his favourite role to date would be that of Captain Drakken, in Pirate Life TO’s childrens show. Throughout his directorial career, Ethan has been fortunate to head projects for a number of festivals and forums, including: The Paprika Festival, The Erindale Beck Festival, The One Night Only Festival and The Toronto Fringe.