© Robert A. Ripps

ABOUT THE EDITORS & PHOTOGRAPHER

AMY SEWELL is a writer and filmmaker with a passion for creating books and documentaries that are hopeful and inspirational. After writing and producing Mad Hot Ballroom (Paramount, 2005), Sewell made her directorial debut with the 2008 documentary What’s Your Point, Honey?, about the current state of gender inequality at a pivotal time in political history. As a writer, she motivates others to leap into the world of filmmaking with her book, The Mad Hot Adventures of an Unlikely Documentary Filmmaker (Hyperion, 2007). Sewell is also the founder and director of Give It Up for the ARTS!, a nonprofit organization with the primary goal of exposing at-risk kids to the arts.

HEATHER L. OGILVIE has edited collections of essays by political, business, and financial leaders, for such publishers as Bloomberg Press and Thomson. She has edited books and periodicals in the fields of education, health, and business, and has an A.B. from Vassar College. Her 20-year career in publishing also includes considerable writing and ghostwriting experience, which she hopes will someday serve groundbreaking filmmakers, photographers, and future U.S. presidents.

ROBERT A. RIPPS has been shooting portraits and lifestyle images for magazines and corporate clients, as well as for advertising, for over 20 years. He has photographed over a thousand personalities including world leaders, actors, authors, business leaders, musicians, artists, and sports figures. He has won awards from both the PDN Photo/Design Awards, and the PDN/Nikon Self Promotion Awards. Robert has exhibited his work nationally, and his stock is licensed worldwide by Photonica/Getty, UpperCut Images, and Workbook Stock/Jupiter. Robert is a National VP of Advertising Photographers of America, and is a member of ASMP (American Society of Media Photographers), EP (Editorial Photographers), SAA (Stock Artist Alliance), and the PLUS Coalition. He has a BFA in photography from Rochester Institute of Technology (RIT).