Mari Walker
Mari Walker | |||
|---|---|---|---|
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| Nationality | American | ||
| Citizenship | United States of America | ||
| Education | BA in film | ||
| Alma mater | Emerson College | ||
| Occupation |
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Mari Walker is an American film director, screenwriter, producer, and editor.[1] Much of her work focuses on lived experiences of LGBTQIA, and explores themes of gender and race identity.[2][3][4]
Walker is a frequent collaborator with the Los Angeles-based production company, Vanishing Angle,[5][6] where she wrote, directed, and edited her first narrative feature, See You Then.[2]
She is a transgender woman[7][8] of Japanese-American descent[1] from Vancouver, Washington.[9] She currently resides in Los Angeles, CA.[9]
Early Life
When Walker was 14 years old, she was in a surfing accident. During her recovery, her parents gave her a camcorder. Walker says the gift gave her life direction.[10] Throughout the course of her high school career, she created over 60 short films, PSA's, commercials, and promotional videos.[10]
Walker graduated from Emerson College in 2008 with a BA in film.[11][12]
Career
Immediately following college graduation, Walker began working on a documentary film about the experiences of her family members in Japanese-American in internment camps.[13]
Her short documentary, The Soul of a Tree, won Best Short Documentary at the Kerry Film Festival in 2016.[14] Her semi-autobiographical[4] narrative short, Swim, played at over 30 film festivals[15], including the LA Film Festival, where it was awarded the Audience Award in 2017.[16]
Following the success of Swim, Walker co-wrote, and co-directed her first feature film, See You Then. The LGBTQIA+ and Asian-American narrative centers on Kris, a transgender Iranian woman and Naomi, a cisgendered Asian-American woman over the course of one evening. A decade after abruptly breaking up with Naomi, Kris invites her to a dinner to catch-up on their complicated lives, relationships, and Kris' transition. See You Then was selected as part of the Atlanta Film Festival 2021[17], and South by Southwest Film Festival 2021[18].
Select Filmography
| Year | Film | Director | Writer | Producer | Editor | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| TBD | Nekropolis | Co-director | Co-writer | Yes | ||
| 2021 | See You Then | Yes | Co-writer | Yes | Yes | |
| 2020 | Beast Beast | Additional | ||||
| 2019 | Greener Grass | Additional | ||||
| 2018 | Alone in the Game | Yes | Yes | |||
| 2017 | Swim | Yes | Yes | Executive | Yes | |
| 2016 | The Soul of a Tree | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Animator, Digital Effects |
| 2016 | Her Story | Assistant | Visual Effects, Joanna (Ep 1.1 and 1.6) |
Awards & Nominations
| Year | Festival | Film | Award | Result | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2018 | Idyllwild International Festival of Cinema | Swim | IIFC Award - Best Short Film | Nominated | |
| The Mary Austin Award - Excellence in Producing- Short Film | Nominated | ||||
| The Mary Austin Award - Excellence in Directing- Short Film | Nominated | ||||
| 2017 | Columbia Gorge International Film Festival | Jury Award - LGBT Advocacy Award | Won | ||
| Long Beach QFilm Festival | Jury Award - Best Director | Won | |||
| LA Film Festival | Audience Award - Best Narrative Short | Won | |||
| 2016 | ReelHeART International Film Festival | Soul of a Tree | Festival Prize - Short Documentary | Won | |
| 2016 | Kerry Film Festival | Soul of a Tree | Best Short Documentary | Won |
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 "The Soul Of A Tree". We are moving stories. Retrieved 2021-01-19.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 Rubin, Rebecca; Rubin, Rebecca (2020-06-24). "Vanishing Angle Sets Jim Cummings Thriller 'The Beta Test' as Next Film (EXCLUSIVE)". Variety. Retrieved 2021-01-19.
- ↑ Contributor, Russ Pirozek, Fanbase Press. "Fanbase Press - HollyShorts 2016: Documentary II Block - Film Reviews". www.fanbasepress.com. Retrieved 2021-01-19.
{{cite web}}:|last=has generic name (help)CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) - ↑ 4.0 4.1 "Queer-Themed Films Win Big at the L.A. Film Festival". www.advocate.com. 2017-06-22. Retrieved 2021-01-14.
- ↑ "Vanishing Angle - Client & Contact Info | IMDbPro". pro.imdb.com. Retrieved 2021-01-19.
- ↑ Stories, Local. "Meet Mari Walker of Vanishing Angle in Atwater Village - Voyage LA Magazine | LA City Guide". voyagela.com. Retrieved 2021-01-19.
- ↑ "Transgender People Talk About Coming Out #TransStories - YouTube". www.youtube.com. Retrieved 2021-01-19.
- ↑ "Diversity Speaks at the 2017 LA Film Festival: Underrepresented Voices Push for Greater Visibility". Film Independent. 2017-06-20. Retrieved 2021-01-27.
- ↑ 9.0 9.1 Stories, Local. "Meet Mari Walker of Vanishing Angle in Atwater Village - Voyage LA Magazine | LA City Guide". voyagela.com. Retrieved 2021-01-19.
- ↑ 10.0 10.1 "Bits 'n' Pieces: Filmmaker toasts transition on return to festival". The Columbian. Retrieved 2021-01-14.
- ↑ "Cast and Crew | Her Story". www.herstoryshow.com. Retrieved 2021-01-14.
- ↑ "Sundance Spectacular: Plethora of Emersonians Involved in Festival Films". Emerson College Today. 2020-01-28. Retrieved 2021-01-27.
- ↑ Staff, The Wenatchee World. "Filmmaker hopes to document Idaho internment camp". The Wenatchee World. Retrieved 2021-01-14.
- ↑ "Winners of the 17th Kerry Film Festival | The Irish Film & Television Network". www.iftn.ie. Retrieved 2021-01-19.
- ↑ "SWIM". Mari Walker. Retrieved 2021-01-19.
- ↑ "Los Angeles Film Festival 2017 Winners List". The Hollywood Reporter. 2017-06-22. Retrieved 2021-01-19.
- ↑ "ATLANTA FILM FESTIVAL + CREATIVE CONFERENCE ANNOUNCES FIRST WAVE OF FILMS FROM 2021 LINEUP". Atlanta Film Festival. Retrieved 2021-02-11.
- ↑ Erbland, Eric Kohn,Kate; Kohn, Eric; Erbland, Kate (2021-02-10). "SXSW 2021 Announces Full Feature Film Lineup, All Available for Online Viewing". IndieWire. Retrieved 2021-02-11.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
External links
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