Inside this hard-looking, sculpted exterior is a man who saw everything as art. From a young kid seeing shampoo bottles as toys, to winning the school flag contest as a kid… The world was his playground. Graduating with accolades at School of Design GBC. In his travels to Europe, he immersed himself in the Berlin art scene where he gained more experience which later evolved into the stories he wrote. Capturing his audience always with suspense and shock of colour and sharp sounds. He’s utilized his life experiences to tell his stories which explores the depths of art he is trying to convey.

Now Francis is set to release his first feature documentary “Alone Across the Arctic” which propelled him into the long format world; paving the way for future adventure projects waiting to be told from his perspective.

A beloved man by many and a true artist at heart.

— written by J. Robinson

What ‘hood are you in?

I’m at the cusp of Regent Park and Corktown. A very quiet pocket of Queen East that have seen the very definition of gentrification. Our building is rich in history; you might’ve heard of it: the old CBC building — the stomping grounds for many influential directors, crafts people, builders and costume designers just to name a few. MY stomping grounds was Scarborough — represent!

What do you do?

I’ve been recently told by a producer at a film industry event that I need to start calling myself a Documentarian. So that is what I do. I document, produce, direct, edit. I tell stories through moving pictures in an artistic, thoughtful and compelling way to the very best of my abilities. I do what I would watch myself for fun.

What are you currently working on?

I am currently in the process of promoting my first feature documentary Alone Across The Arctic — based on the best-selling book Beyond The Trees: A Journey Alone Across Canada’s Arctic. Next up, I’m in the early stages of a new adventure documentary about the first-ever Canadian women’s team to cross the Atlantic ocean. The last four years and counting I’m still in the process of another documentary about a legendary gay porn star with a story unlike any other… In terms of scripted, I’m developing a feature that was born out of the Arctic experience that would be epic in its own right.

Where can we find your work?

Vimeo | Instagram | Website

The post “A Day in the Life” with Toronto documentary filmmaker Francis Luta appeared first on Toronto Guardian.

Since I could remember, Samantha has always been creative. Whether it was drawing, doing different accents as a kid, or acting. As her sister, I’ve seen her go through her many awkward stages, odd jobs, and fleeting passions. I knew she would be doing something creative, I didn’t know acting would be the one. It wasn’t until I eventually saw her absolutely commit to the craft; studying her lines when she was half asleep and waking up at odd early hours catching the bus to Toronto for an audition.

I’ve seen her career slowly grow over the years beginning to act alongside actors whom I’ve watched on TV growing up myself. I recently just watched her latest TV Series: V Wars on Netflix. I was not only impressed with the importance of her role and how well she did, but was also excited about the fact that she has more things in the pipeline such as her upcoming role in DC legends where she’ll play a villain. As well as a movie coming to the big screen titled Coffee and Kareem, acting along side Tarji P Henson.

I’m quite proud of all her current and future accomplishments, and ecstatic to see where she will go next.

– Denika “Big little sister” Lewis

What ‘hood are you in?

Right now I live in downtown Vancouver. I lived through part and past my adolescents In Ajax Ontario which I always return to when visiting my family or working in Toronto but originally I’m from Scarborough.

What do you do?

I’m an ARTIST exploring various aspects of artistry such as: Singing, Rapping, Writing (Music and Scripts), Dancing, Painting, Sketching and my #1 Profession is ACTING for TV & Film

What are you currently working on?

I just wrapped a super cool episode on DC Legends of Tomorrow before the Holidays and may go back as a recurring character later on. At the moment I’m back in Acting classes, Singing lessons and starting Martial Arts training. All while auditioning for some really amazing projects in BC, Toronto and LA.

Where can we find your work?

You can check me out in a series called V Wars on Netflix, I play Ian Somerhalders right-hand woman as a Scientist. I also have a site with some of my work

The post “A Day in the Life” with Toronto artist Samantha Liana Cole appeared first on Toronto Guardian.

What is your business called and what does it do?

Both: Our business is called Ivy. It’s a mobile app that helps people practice mindful productivity. Our goal is to help people combat the effects of burnout, by making everyday to-dos (like doing laundry, taking the garbage out) exciting and rewarding.

What made you want to do this work?

Tucker: After dealing with the effects of burnout in my personal and professional life, I quickly realized that there are no fun tools to help make mundane everyday to-dos approachable. So many of the solutions that existed before Ivy were productivity tools that were focused on squeezing more productive hours of people, rather than help people focus on the few things every day that are important to them.

What problem does this solve?

Evan: So many people today – no matter how old they are – are faced with the problem that their to-do list seems so overwhelming, to the point of it feeling like a constant burden on their life. This is a clear sign of burnout, and our hope is that we can build tools that help people overcome that.

Who are your clientele/demographics?

Tucker: The majority of our customers are women. Some are new mothers who are going through a significant lifestyle change and need something that can help them prioritize their day and to keep them grounded. Others are students or young professionals that need a tool that helps them distance their personal life from work life.

How does your business make money? How does it work?

Evan: At the moment, Ivy is completely free to use. If Ivy delivers on its promise of helping people combat the effects of burnout, we hope people will consider it valuable enough to pay for sometime in the future.

Where in Toronto can we find your profession?

Tucker: You can visit getivy.co

What is the best question a prospective customer could ask a member of your profession when comparing services?

Evan: What’s different about Ivy compared to other productivity tools?

Our app is based off a 100-year-old productivity method called The Ivy Lee Method, where we encourage people to work on up to six things per day, and no more than that. This is why the method works:

– It’s six things. So you’re never really biting off more than you can chew. No more endless to-do lists to work through every day.

– It encourages optimism. With only six things every day, you can look forward to getting all (or most) of the things on your list done.

– It encourages you to get things done sooner. Because you’ll be thinking about how great it will feel to get all six tasks complete by the end of the day.

– It’s simple! The simpler the method is, the more likely you’ll be to stick with it.

What is the best part about what you do? What is the worst part?

Tucker: The best part is knowing that we have the opportunity to help people build new positive habits in their lives. The worst part is staying motivated and optimistic through all the ups and downs of building a business.

Evan: When you’re working on your own business, every idea that pops into your head needs to be treated with a little bit more respect and thought. The decisions you make right now have big implications on what your life will look like weeks or months from now — which can be good or bad.

What is your favourite joke about your own profession?

Tucker: People think starting a business is glamorous because you are your own boss. It’s really tough!

PAY IT FORWARD: What is another Toronto business that you love?

Tucker: Give – you can make an impact in all the causes you care about with just one monthly donation.

Evan: Flexday — we use them all the time. It lets us work in a variety of different locations around the city for a great price.

The post Homegrown Business: Tucker Schreiber and Evan Cloutier of Ivy appeared first on Toronto Guardian.

Mussels in White Wine Sauce

Ingredients

– 1 1/2 pounds fresh mussels, cleaned with beard removed
– 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
– 1/2 cup shallots, minced
– 4 garlic cloves, minced
– 3/4 cup roma tomatoes, 1/4 inch dice
– zest of one lemon
– 2 tablespoons lemon juice, divided
– 1/2 cup white wine, chardonnay or dry white wine
– 4 wedges lemon
– kosher salt, to taste
– black pepper, to taste
– 2 tablespoon chopped parsley

Directions

1. Wash mussels under cool running water, scrubbing the outside and debarring the mussels if present, pull fibrous beard towards the hinge of the shell to remove, discard.

2. In a large shallow stock pot heat butter over medium-high heat.

3. When butter starts to foam, add shallots and garlic. Stir and cook until shallots are transparent and garlic is soft, about 2 to 3 minutes.

4. Add tomatoes, stir and cook, about 2 minutes.

5. Add wine, lemon zest and 1 tablespoon lemon juice, stir to combine.

6. Quickly add the cleaned mussels to the pot, cover, and steam for 3 minutes. Carefully open the lid and stir mussels.

7. Cover and steam until mussels are opened up and cooked, 2 to 3 minutes.

8. Taste sauce and season with remaining lemon juice, salt, and pepper as desired. Top mussels with parsley and serve with lemon wedges.

Avocado and Artichoke Salad

Ingredients

– 2 artichokes, cooked
– 50 g watercress, lightly rinsed
– 2 avocados, stoned and halved
– 6 spring onions, roughly chopped
– extra virgin olive oil, to drizzle
– salt and freshly
– ground black pepper

Directions:

Halve the artichoke hearts lengthways and toss with the watercress. Spoon the avocados from their skins and add to the salad.
Scatter the spring onions and olives on top. Serve drizzled with a little olive oil and a squeeze of lemon juice and season to taste.

The post Elias Theodorou’s Mussels in White Wine Sauce + Avocado and Artichoke salad appeared first on Toronto Guardian.

Co-working is increasing in popularity, and to accommodate this a number of co-working spaces have sprung up in Toronto. These shared offices and creative studios allow for travellers outside of the city to experience Toronto, and have also allowed residents to see their home from a new angle.

Here we bring you some of the finest co-working spaces to visit in the coming year. Whether you are a long term resident, or a short term visitor, they will plug you into valuable work communities and productive spaces.

Acme Works – Located at 229 Niagara Street, Acme Works is a recently renovated co-working space that was once an industrial textile works. Now it has had a major facelift, and welcomes co-workers to use shared or private desks, as well as hiring out boardroom and meeting rooms. The facility includes an open kitchen for lunch, snacks and coffee, and access is available 24 hours a day. It’s pretty simple, but if you want to get stuff done in a collaborative environment, Acme Works is perfect.

Creative Blueprint – Creative Blueprint hosts one of its co-working spaces right here in Toronto, at the Foundery Buildings at 376 Bathurst Street. The work studios are designed specifically for artists, making them a very different type of environment to the usual office setup. Painters, drawers, sculptors and digital media entrepreneurs will all feel right at home here. Creative Blueprint also hosts a number of events, including Canada’s first co-working conference. They also hold meet-ups, networking opportunities and offers great resources for aspiring artists.

Bright Lane – Some people like privacy while they work, and you still get that at Bright Lane, but everything about this co-working space is based around collaboration and members are actively encouraged to work with one another to help each other grow and prosper. Located on Kings West Street, Bright Lane has all of the usual co-working space offerings. What makes this place stand out, is the sociable element. You can enjoy a large community kitchen, shared terrace, afternoon snacks, BBQs and beer keg Fridays, all of which will help you to meet the right people, fast. Great if you are new to the city or prefer to work with others.

Workhaus – No co-working list would quite be complete without mentioning Workhaus, one the of the largest and most successful spaces in Toronto, and not to be missed for the serious entrepreneur. There are locations at the Financial District, St Lawrence Market and the latest addition opening in April on Bay Street. Membership is available for dedicated desks, private offices and shared lounges. There are plenty of corporate events going on around Workhaus, as well as seminars, shows and social gatherings. This is a space for anyone who wants to knuckle down and be the best, from professional online poker players to young and sprightly business owners, but it especially known for accommodating startups.

Verkspace – We covered Verkspace in this article.

The post Top Co-Working Spaces In Toronto appeared first on Toronto Guardian.