Title: Filmmaker
Company: Master Productions Unlimited
Location: Victoria, British Columbia, Canada
Barbara Borenstein, Filmmaker at Master Productions Unlimited, has been recognized by Marquis Who’s Who Top Arts for dedication, achievements, and leadership in documentary filmmaking and fundraising.
After obtaining a Bachelor of Arts in cultural anthropology in 1978 from York University in Toronto, Ms. Borenstein later acquired a Master in Environmental Studies, Social and Philosophical Foundations of Education from the same school in 1998. From 1980 to 2000 and 2009 to 2011, she excelled as a fundraiser for the United Jewish Appeal (UJA) Federation of Greater Toronto and from 2004 to 2008 in business development for Index Media. In 2010, she formed her own production company, Master Productions Unlimited Inc.
In 2015, Ms. Borenstein, inspired by the return of a wallet she had lost, founded Everyday Heroes, an interactive community that shares short films, pictures, links and written stories that publicize ordinary people who carry out feats of heroism that include ordinary acts of kindness, caring and love. The initiative seeks to change the paradigm of what “hero” means from something untouchable to a quality that everyone can find within themselves. Ms. Borenstein has been honored for her work with awards such as the Global Excellence Award: Best Impact Documentary Series, LUX Life Publications in 2021 and 2022 and Best Interactive Community Heroism Documentary from Canadian Corporate Vision in 2022.
Ms. Borenstein’s journey in filmmaking began in In 2009 when she produced a film about her beloved father Moshe, who passed in 2008. She also worked with a group called Youth Empowering Youth and founded a filmmaking and storytelling workshop in which young people talked about their struggles with being LGBT, dealing with racism, and suicidal thoughts. It was done in the memory of her brother, who had tragically committed suicide. Ms. Borenstein also worked with her local rabbi and created David’s Shield, a program where they sent teams on a mission to befriend their at-risk peers.
Ms. Borenstein considers her notable achievement her ability to see missing pieces and take actions on what is missing. When she lived in Vancouver in the 1990s, she started her own business called the Partnership Project where she was the intermediary for nonprofit and for-profit organizations. She realized that those two sectors actually needed each other and strived to bring those two sectors together for the betterment of the community. She is also proud of the children saying that they love the idea that they could have heroes in their lives which did not have to be Superman or other known heroes.
Ms. Borenstein’s goal in the next five to ten years is to bring Everyday Heroes out into the world in a way that helps people, youth in particular. She wants to help the youth feel supported and be able to share their skills to the world.
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