Cindy Baer is an award-winning film and stage actress, director, and producer who resides in Los Angeles, California. She specializes in independent and often female-centric films. Baer made her feature debut as both a director and producer with the ground-breaking, micro-budget, independent film, Purgatory House which was written by 14-year-old Celeste Davis. Baer had been mentoring in the Big Sisters of Los Angeles program for several years prior. A postmodernist, art film revealed in four timelines, Purgatory House explores the themes of teen spirituality, addiction and suicide, as if chronicles the afterlife journey of Silver Strand, a troubled teen who abandoned her life of turmoil in search of unconditional love. Ground-breaking in 2001, the movie was shot in the mini-DV format, created with digital cameras and home-based computers, and incorporated extensive blue and green screencompositing and visual effects. Purgatory House marked the beginning of the Democratization of Film. Resonating with audiences and critics alike, the movie went on to win a dozen awards, two Prism Award nominations, critical acclaim and was distributed by Image Entertainment, one of the largest distributors in North America, in 2007. Baer's second feature Odd Brodsky had similar success, screening in 29 film festivals and winning 20 festival awards. A quirky, offbeat, comedy, the story line follows 30-something Audrey Brodsky aka "Odd Brodsky" who quits her dreary desk job to pursue her childhood dream of becoming an actress. A departure in genre from her debut Purgatory House, many of the same themes prevail, such as isolation, media/TV influence, and the longing for a deeper connection. It also dabbles in postmodernism, and has elements of magical realism. Odd Brodsky premiered on iTunes in November 2016, and then expanded to a wider VOD release roll-out in 2017 including Amazon, Hulu, Google Play and others. In addition to her stage and film work, Baer is a self-made entrepreneur who has founded four companies, including the two non-profit organizations The Mosaic Theatre company in 2000 and Patron of the Arts in 2009. She founded the production company Free Dream Pictures in 2001, and the successful children's entertainment company Daizy the Clown & Company at the young age of 22, which she later sold. Baer started her career as an actress at the age of 14 at the Boston Children’s Theatre and went on to perform in over two dozen plays. She starred in and produced the 30th Anniversary production of the stage playButterflies Are Free, which was written by Leonard Gershe, at the Matrix Theatre in Hollywood, California. She often appears on filmmaking panels at filmmaker organizations and film festivals all over North American speaking about low budget filmmaking.
