Lillyann goldstein @Wallace Studios. (Industry).

Lillyann Goldstein is a busy woman, yet somehow she makes it look as though she has all the time in the world. When asked how she manages to do everything she does in the minimal number of hours that most people are awake in a day, the very articulate CEO, legal consultant and vice-president of marketing for @Wallace Studios is rendered speechless for a moment. The answer to this question is probably not something she thinks about while reading contracts, planning launches and, more recently, producing films. But it soon becomes clear to her as she sits behind her desk watching her employees bustle around. "No one can do everything on her own," she says.

@Wallace Studios is a busy studio-rental facility in the west end of Toronto. Since taking over the reins 18 years ago, Goldstein has brought in a number of tenants she hoped would be complementary to the studio and each other. With catering services, scenery builders, production companies and editors all under one roof, the studio has become more than just sound stages. Working in the same space as many different media companies has proven to be beneficial to Goldstein in more ways than one. Over the years she has made allies who have helped her to expand her horizons.

In partnership with Dante Entertainment Group, a film, television and Web site development company, Goldstein is developing something called MyMediaBiz.com. The plan for the site is to connect individuals in the film, television and new media production industry by supplying chat rooms and forums to facilitate networking and interaction. There is also a plan to incorporate e-learning into the site so that busy people, like Goldstein, can find the time to learn skills that they just don't have time to attend courses for. "I believe you learn until you die," she says. "You can learn anything if you have the right attitude or the interest and keen observation."

That was her method when learning how to be a producer. Working in partnership with some of her tenants, Goldstein has produced a number of shows such as a documentary on the teen perspective of 9/11, a 13-part sex-magazine talk show and a reality show following young people who are trying to become professional athletes. So why did a woman, who started out as a lawyer, jump into the uncertain shoes of a producer? "It's my personality," she says. "I just enjoy challenges."

Her love of challenges started early in life. Growing up and attending school in Quebec, Goldstein decided in her second year of high school that she would try to graduate early. Despite a car accident that caused her to miss a month-and-a-half of school, she graduated at 15 years old. She continued on to finish CEGEP (university preparation) in one year instead of the usual two, and went on to McGill law school where she graduated with two law degrees and the title of youngest student ever to graduate from the program at the age of 21. Her love of a good challenge is also what got her into the entertainment industry in the first place. After all, she didn't have any experience running a film studio when she took it on.

What she does have a lot of experience with is real estate. Co-owner of the Massey Estates and a number of other properties in Toronto, Goldstein has recently become involved in the redevelopment of the old Gooderham & Worts site near King and Parliament streets, one of the most active filming locations in Canada. Now called the Distillery, the site will be a pedestrian arts complex with film screenings, art exhibits and an organic beer distillery. It's scheduled to open in May 2003.

In the past two years, Goldstein has begun to get recognition for her continued commitment to the film industry. Last year she was presented with the first ReelWorld Film Festival Industry Angel Award for all the work she has done in support of independent film and video. Canadian Women in Communication also honoured her with the title of "Trailblazer of the Year" for 2002 in a tie with Linda Hughes, editor of The Edmonton Journal.

"You live in this world once and when you go you want to say, 'What have I accomplished? What have I left behind?'" Right now Lillyann Goldstein has a list longer than most people will have when they're looking back at the end of their days.

Lindsay Gibb is a freelance journalist and assistant to the editor-in-chief of Take One.