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Cast Biography
JOHN PETERSON – Main Subject.
Lifelong farmer John Peterson runs Angelic Organics, one of the largest Community Supported
Agriculture (CSA) farms in the United States. More than one thousand families in the Chicago area
receive a weekly delivery of vegetables and herbs from Angelic Organics. John brings the discipline
of farming in the Midwest to his winters of writing in Mexico—he plans to complete four books about
his life and farming in the next two years. John’s essays were featured prominently in Sharing the
Harvest (Chelsea Green, 1999). His articles have appeared in The Sun, Growing for Market,
Biodynamic Magazine, Lilipoh, and Community Farm News. John makes public presentations about
farming to groups such as the Michael Fields Agricultural Institute, Upper Midwest Organic Farming
Conference, and Northeast Community Supported Agriculture Conference. In winter of 2002 he
presented on organic agriculture to the Agricultural University of Novgorod, Russia. Peterson is
currently presenting The Real Dirt at various farming conferences, such as the Michigan CSA
Conference and the Asilomar Eco-Conference. He is co-producer of the cd, Lesley Littlefield Little
Songs and of Lesley’s three music videos. He co-directed and co-starred in two of her music videos:
The Bug Song and The Farmer John Song. John has written numerous short stories and plays. He has
acted in short fiction films and has done numerous performances of his life on stage.
Crew Biographies
TAGGART SIEGEL – Producer/Director/Director of Photography
Taggart Siegel has been producing and directing award-winning documentaries and dramatic films for
20 years. His new documentary, The Real Dirt on Farmer John, produced in association with ITVS,
captures the rise and fall of the Peterson family farm and the resurrection through John’s courage to
build a new form community. Prior to completing The Real Dirt on Farmer John, Siegel made The
Split Horn: Life of A Hmong Shaman in America, a sweeping story of a Hmong shaman struggling to
maintain his ancient traditions as his children embrace American culture. The Split Horn aired on The
Independent Lens PBS series and was funded in part by ITVS and NAATA. Siegel’s other social
documentaries Between Two Worlds, Blue Collar and Buddha, Heart Broken in Half and Bitter
Harvest, have aired on PBS, Cable Television, and are distributed worldwide. Siegel produced and
directed a theatrical feature film Shadow of the Pepper Tree and directed short dramatic films
including: Affliction, Ember Days and Body Memories. In addition, Siegel has produced many films
including Destroying Angel, The Beloved and The Disenchanted Forest for National Geographic
Television. He is the founder of Alchemy Films, an independent production company, and also the
President of Collective Eye, Inc. a non-profit media organization based in San Francisco.
TERI LANG – Producer.
Teri Lang is Vice President of Collective Eye, a non-profit media organization based in San
Francisco, and CFO of Cinefemme, a San Francisco based non-profit organization founded to
encourage and support women who want to pursue artistic careers in the film industry. Lang is the
producer of The Real Dirt on Farmer John, an epic tale of an eccentric Midwestern farmer. She has
produced and directed several short documentaries including Motorcycle Prayers, Bless Your Pets;
Evicting Johnny; and Karaoke, A Lifestyle. Lang was post-production coordinator for Siegel’s
documentary The Split Horn: Life of A Hmong Shaman in America and was Vice President of
Alchemy Films. Lang is currently producing Last of the Carneys, a vivid portrait of carnival life.
GREG SNIDER – Editor.
Greg Snider has been a professional editor for twenty years. Greg’s work includes the feature length
documentary, Ridin’ & Rhymin’, which he co-directed; The Disenchanted Forest, a feature
documentary about the plight of Borneo’s orangutans, which aired worldwide on the National
Geographic Channel and The Real Dirt On Farmer John, epic tale of an eccentric Midwestern farmer.
Greg is currently editing, Purvis – a feature length documentary about Miami outsider artist, Purvis
Young.
MARK ORTON – Composer.
Orton is a musician in the revered band Tin Hat Trio and a film and radio composer. He has written
scores for films including The Good Girl starring Jennifer Aniston. He is a composer, singer,
songwriter, and multi-instrumentalist. Orton's musical pedigree is quite impressive. As the son of a
conductor, he was immersed in classical music from before he could crawl. He started playing in rock
bands in 4th grade. Later, he attended the Hartt School of Music (West Hartford, CT) and the Peabody
Conservatory (Baltimore, MD), two of the premier music schools worldwide. While in college, Orton
was lead guitarist, singer and writer in a host of live bands that featured electronic gear, including
Monkfish and Gloryhog.
DIRTY THREE – Music.
Dirty Three, a trio from Melbourne, Austrailia consisting of Warren Ellis on violin, Mick Turner on
guitar and Jim White on drums, perform lengthy instrumental jam sessions filled with a seductive mix
of folk, blues, jazz and psychedelic rock. Led by classically-trained violinist Warren Ellis, who began
writing and performing music for art openings and plays, and also tenured in the groups The
Blackeyed Susans, Paranoid and the Nursing Mothers. After enlisting The Blackeyed Susans' guitarist
Mick Turner and drummer Jim White -- veterans of Melbourne bands including Sick Things,
Moodists, Fungus Brain and Venom P. Stinger -- Warren Ellis formed the Dirty Three.
BARNEY JONES – Sound Designer.
Barney was born in Istanbul, Turkey . His first ten years were spent in the Middle East and Africa,
including Nigeria, Syria, Lebanon, and Iran. His earliest musical memories include the Islamic Call to
Prayer, Humperdink's HANSEL & GRETEL, and The Peppermint Twist. In the 1980's he moved to
California, taking an MFA in Electronic Music and Recording Media from Mills College and
composing music for The Magic Theatre, American Conservatory Theater and Berkeley Repertory
Theater. He was commissioned to write the music and libretto for two operas by the San Francisco
experimental theater company SOON-3. With Jim McKee, he formed Earwax Productions and
received National Endowment for the Arts grants to create original radio works including SONGS
FROM THE TENDERLOIN and WAKE FOR TOM, both of which have been played all over the
U.S. as well as in Australia.
Lesley Freeman Littlefield – Story Consultant.
Due to Lesley’s role as Farmer John’s biographer and editor, she was well-suited to serve as story
consultant and narration coach for The Real Dirt on Farmer John. Additionally, Lesley's Bug
Song video appears in The Real Dirt. The Bug Song is from Lesley's recent cd Little Songs.
Lesley is the director of the Real Dirt Grass Roots Program, which makes The Real Dirt available
for community screenings.