EMILIA

Dividing her time between the bustling city and the peaceful countryside, Emilia straddles the worlds of equestrian, music and cooking. An expert at home-made granola, Emilia will soon be opening a joint in St. Lazare to go buck-wild on this passion. You might run into her at one of the various show venues of Montréal supporting her man whose musical magic carpet takes him from sea to shining sea, or on horseback in the off-island pastures.

BERSON

Santropol 2007. Temperature -25ºC. Looking for warmth on a frigid February Sunday night, Berson and I crowded around a table of twelve. Sandwich: Killer Tomato.

An ambitious student climbing Jacob's ladder to the McGill Medical School, avid tennis player and first chair violinist in the university orchestra, Berson doesn't stop for anything less than best. His aesthetic taste is impeccable, mirroring that of an Oxford schoolboy. Waiting for his long trousers, Berson spends his days at the Montréal General Hospital meeting with patients and crossing paths with the big guns.

"Can I get a physician? Paging Dr. Augustin."

www.imedici.mcgill.ca/Pub/Pub Front.asp

ZOË

Daughter of a Montréal writer, Zoë devours books. Faithful to 20th Century American authors, she's been straying towards Japanese novels as of late. The Montréal frontier, AKA the Fringe Fest, brought her to an "I Like Cowboys" cast party. Drinking wine under the misty rain, we met on the rooftop of a loft in the Village. Drawn to her naturally platinum locks, I gave her a business card and told her to get in touch. Voici Zoë!

RALITSA

Contorted over an analog camera on my stoop one lazy Sunday evening, this was my introduction to Ralitsa. Born to a family of doctors, Ralitsa deviated from the medical tradition to follow the road less travelled: experimental film. Creating scenery in which documentary and fiction meet, Ralitsa weaves together the images. She's soon off to Bulgaria, her home country, to mingle with film gurus and attend the world-renowned Kosovo Film Festival.

JOZEF

Web designer. Videographer. Musician. Songwriter. Slovak.

A man of many abilities, Jozef exercises his creative muscle along the tree-lined streets of Montréal's Mile End District. The neighbourhood furnishes all his needs, from footwear to FIFA updates. His espresso joint: Café Olimpico, where you will find Jozef cheering on the Slovaks for this year's World Cup.

www.vimeo.com/jozefracek

www.flickr.com/jozefracek

www.myspace.com/weatherweather

VANESSA

It was a late winter day. So cold I could still see my breath, I approached Vanessa on des Pins near University Ave. Removing our gloves just long enough to fumble through bags and exchange coordinates, it was not long before the biting chill of winter set in upon fingertips.

Though there was an immediate connection, it was not until recently that Vanessa swung by the studio, having been swamped with the Lasalle Fashion Marketing workload. We managed to squeeze a shoot in, only just before Vanessa flies across the ocean to Paris, to pursue her dream of promoting French fashion houses.

AMÉLIE

Raised by a hardy woman in Lachine, Amélie was spotted eating a hearty vegan lunch on the 7th floor of Concordia's Hall Building at the People's Potato. An arts and culture scholar in training, Amélie breaks from the books to release CEGEP angst by pumping avant-punk tunes. A stylish sweetheart, Amélie was never without a smile for the duration of this early spring shoot!