I was born in London only to be immediately removed by my parents and flown around Europe. My childhood, and in fact most of my life was spent that way which accounts for my speaking a number of languages. My parents divorced when I was very small. First I lived with my Russian grandmother in Nice, then I lived with my father in various luxury hotels in London, Paris and Rome. My father, being a white Russian, was certain the communists were on their way to take away any real estate he may consider, and kept acquisition to a minimum. I went to school from hotels. First in England, graduated in the French system and finalized in Rome where the Italians perfected the inherent streak of mischief-making in my character. My father was a film producer, he produced films with Errol Flynn, Hedy Lamarr, Simone Signoret and others: he was also in inveterate gambler which added the element of constant financial suspense to my existence... While I am describing my family -- my mother, Erica Vaal, is a writer and speaker of radio programming (03) for all German speaking countries, and one of Europe's foremost authorities on all South American cultures.  

I was living in LA, when my father died.  I was very young, and Alexander Salkind (who was a friend of my fathers) had me move to Europe in view of working with him. So there I was, back in the hotel lobbies (it seems all deals in the film festivals and markets are in fact conducted in lobbies and corridors), this time selling films (Superman, Supergirl etc.). That was a lot of fun and lasted for a few years. After "Santa Claus," Salkind retired (or so he threatened), however, the moment was propitious as I had just met the man I was to marry and moved with him to booming Tokyo.

There I had a lot of fun. I was Representative Director of Atalanta Films Japan BV, Tokyo branch. The company's function was to process, sell and distribute films for the territory of Japan, for most major independents in the film business such as Carolco, Vision, and Arnold Kopelson's company. On a more personal note it was quite a challenge;  I had always lived in a country where I could manage linguistically, or learn very rapidly to communicate -- I was also a total extrovert. For the first time, I could not understand a word of what was said and had to let others control my daily life. I learned to observe and began the inner journey. I had always desired to be in an atmosphere conducive to a comprehension of Buddha, and there it was.

I started working on my Buddha dream, raised some money and the development of the script and the research began. I worked and worked and wrote and wrote and finally, with the help of many, a script emerged and was greeted with appreciation.
 
I must add a funny anecdote: just to remind one how very multi-faceted life can be. When I was a child, my mother, who was brought up in the Christian faith -- but is not a firm believer, would tell me tales about Buddha and the Dalai Lama as bedtime stories. When my father died, I was "adopted" for a period of time by a lady who was half Filipino - half Chinese. She was a fervent Christian, and had me accompany her to Catholic church. Throughout my life, I was exposed to just about every major faith on this earth. My real mother, Erica, is now immersed in the study of the Afro-Brazilian-Cuban beliefs. 

The script finished and a deal with Cinergi (a major production company at the time) under my belt, I left Japan for Los Angeles, dreaming of the film I was going to get made. No sooner did I land, that my dreams were shattered by Bertolucci who was proclaiming on every roof top that he was making "Little Buddha." I was very upset, to say the least. Nonetheless, the idea stayed with me, and before I knew it, I had decided to write the book. So I did just that, then set out to sell it. My friends and family were quite astounded at my gall, but were very amused when the book sold.

By now I was back on the road, shuttling between Europe and the US.  An important event had taken place, I knew that I had the ability to write (not that it is well reflected in this passage as I hate to write about myself directly..) so I put that skill to use and wrote "Emperor",  a script based on the life of Toussaint L'Ouverture and his struggle against Napoleon. "Emperor" speaks of raw power, a certain dark energy: it is very masculine material. It tells the story of the man who founded the first Independent Black Republic in the world: Haiti. At the time, the French under Napoleon and the Spanish under King Ferdinand divided the island. An unprecedented battle of wills took place between the black Man in Haiti; and Napoleon, flushed with the power of his conquests. Yet David won against Goliath. This very dynamic story line is made even more compelling by the clash between Catholicism and Voodoo; inspired warfare; the treachery of Toussaint's generals; the conflict between every shade of color on the island; international politics; and the eternal love triangle. I also adapted Shakespeare's "Taming of the Shrew" which is currently with Rhino films in LA, while the "Siddhartha, the Warrior Prince"  script is in the hands of Robert Watts.

An interesting episode interrupted the writing.  I was lured by the "wild west" idea of doing business in Russia, that had opened her doors. I founded in partnership with ARF Corporation, a US-Russian joint venture (RAMFI) on the Island of Sakhalin, to exploit fishing (mostly salmon and salmon eggs ) and mining, this was in June 1993.  Yes, I had found nothing better to do than to go into the fishing business in the ice cold island of Sakhalin. Just the sort of context to suit a small, rather fragile health-wise female -- me. Well, that turned out to be quite a project. I was working with a Japanese man who was involved with a Japanese company. We succeeded in setting the business up, and even witnessed our first harvest. Then, the usual problems that happen on that side of the world occurred and our partner ran away with the company money. Being fed up with the non-tropical ambiance, frozen to the bone and head spinning from jet lags, I took my share of the company and left in search of a warm five star hotel lobby.

Back in the easier world,  over the past two years, my partners and I founded The Archivum Limited, a UK based company created to produce a series of audio-visual recordings featuring world personalities who have influenced the 20th Century. Today, the company includes  Pierre Salinger, Pascal Drouhault of Jacques Chirac's Ministere des Affaires Etrangeres, and others. Affiliates of the Archivum Limited are Lloyds of London, Christies UK, Simmons & Simmons and Brinks. This company is now partially funded by Jane Chaplin, daughter of Charlie Chaplin.

I am usually described as an artist and an astute business woman. Very intelligent -- without a shred of diplomacy or patience: very amusing, which buys me forgiveness for all the disasters I inadvertently create because of my lack of diplomatic skills.