For several years, Jim Vanden Bosch, founder and Executive Director of Terra Nova Films, and Rick Scheidt, Professor, Department of Applied Human Sciences,  Kansas State University, have been reviewing films for The Gerontologist, a journal of The Gerontological Society of America (GSA). More recently, Rose Capp, PhD., who teaches in Ageing and Dementia Care studies at Flinders University in Australia, has joined them as a film reviewer.  Through a special arrangement with The Gerontologist, this website is now able to provide free access to these reviews.

On Reviewing Films: 
“I believe films can have a lasting Impact on the way we view aging. I’m particularly interested in calling attention to the way that films either advance a more holistic and balanced perception of elderhood, or that, often unwittingly, promote an ageist perception of older adulthood. My hope is that the reviews I write will contribute to a healthier and more accepting view of elderhood.”

About Jim:
Jim Vanden Bosch is the founder and executive director of Terra Nova Films. In addition to producing videos, he presents multimedia workshops on caregiving, culture change, and film all across the country and abroad. He has been reviewing films for nine years.

In His Spare Time…
Jim can be found tending his two vegetable gardens, hiking in local forest preserves, and occasionally hiking coastal paths in Great Britain. He lives near Chicago on a small wooded acreage with his wife and their cat and bunny.

On Reviewing Films:
“I believe that films may serve as powerful case studies illustrating the diverse opportunities that aging affords each of us. As Neugarten noted, there is no “the elderly”. Lives fan out in later adulthood. People grow more different with age. Thus, I enjoy reviewing films that share examples of possible rather than probable life outcomes. Also, when I can, I like to use my reviews to link these filmic case studies to current issues in life course science and gerontological education.”

About Rick:
Rick Scheidt is a geropsychologist in the Department of Applied Human Sciences at Kansas State University. His research and scholarship focus largely on environmental gerontology and the ecology of aging. He has studied older rural residents of small declining communities (“ghost town project”) for more than 30 years. He has been reviewing films for the last nine years.

In His Spare Time . . .
Rick enjoys amateur archaeology, particularly visiting sites in Italy and the Southwestern U.S. He enjoys tending a small flower garden, especially watching the bees work the tiny blossoms of the Russian sage. As a professional in an instructional group, he teaches armed self-defense to civilians and government personnel. He lives with his wife, Mary, on a hilltop that overlooks the tall grass prairie in the scenic Flint Hills of Kansas.

On Reviewing Films:
“I have been a film critic and scholar for many decades and believe that popular culture functions as a mirror reflecting prevailing attitudes, but it can also suggest new perspectives and ways of thinking. Films, television series and other digital media forms offer us a rich source of images, characters, themes and narratives about older people and the experience of ageing. These can be a powerful and positive source of influence in shaping individual and collective attitudes and beliefs about a range of issues related to ageing.”

About Rose:
Rose Capp is a Policy Advisor for Dementia Australia, teaches in Ageing and Dementia Care studies at Flinders University, and has recently published a book, Demystifying Dementia. Her research focuses on how the representation of dementia in popular culture can offer insights and improve knowledge and awareness about the condition in the broader community and the aged care sector.

In Her Spare Time . . .
Rose lives in a bayside suburb of Melbourne, Australia with her cat, Gloria (named after the fabulous Gloria Grahame!). She is an avid walker, cinemagoer, and traveller. She also sings in and manages a 50-voice community choir.