April Wright is an American writer, director and producer. Her debut narrative feature as a writer and director, Layover, won the Silver Lei Award for Excellence in Filmmaking at the 2009 Honolulu International Film Festival.

Early life and education

Wright attended the Kellogg School of Management at

Northwestern University Northwestern University (NU) is a Private university, private research university in Evanston, Illinois, United States. Established in 1851 to serve the historic Northwest Territory, it is the oldest University charter, chartered university in ...

for her MBA, and Bradley University for her Bachelor of Science in Business Computer Systems. While at Northwestern University, Wright served as the Co-President on the board of directors of the Northwestern University Entertainment Alliance, and as Chair of the Advisory Board for

Sigma Delta Tau Sigma Delta Tau () is an American sorority and member of the National Panhellenic Conference. Sigma Delta Tau was founded on March 25, 1917 at Cornell University by Jewish women. However, there is no religious requirement for membership to the ...

sorority at the University of Southern California. Previously, April Wright worked in new media as an HR Business and New Media Consultant for Mattel Toys. Wright eventually moved to Los Angeles to pursue film.

Career

A member since 2011, Wright is currently the Foundation Manager of Women In Film-LA (WIF). In addition, April is an independent consultant for clients like Real D, and is involved with programming for the

Sundance Film Festival The Sundance Film Festival is an annual film festival organized by the Sundance Institute. It is the largest independent film festival in the United States, with 423,234 combined in-person and online viewership in 2023. The festival has acted ...

and

AFI Fest The American Film Institute (AFI) is an American nonprofit film organization that educates filmmakers and honors the heritage of the motion picture arts in the United States. AFI is supported by private funding and public membership fees. Lead ...

Killer Yacht Party

In 2006, April's film career began when she wrote and produced the horror film ''Killer Yacht Party'', which was later distributed by

Troma Troma Entertainment is an American independent film production and distribution company founded by Lloyd Kaufman and Michael Herz in 1974. They are the longest running independent film studio in the world. The company produces low-budget inde ...

Layover

April's first narrative film, ''Layover'', was the recipient of the Silver Lei Award for Excellence in Filmmaking at the 2009 Honolulu International Film Festival.

Rotten Tomatoes Rotten Tomatoes is an American review aggregator, review-aggregation website for film and television. The company was launched in August 1998 by three undergraduate students at the University of California, Berkeley: Senh Duong, Patrick Y. Lee ...

called it 'a lovely little gem'. The film premiered at the 2009

Cinequest Film Festival The Cinequest Film & Creativity Festival is an annual independent film festival held each March in San Jose, California and Redwood City, California. The international festival combines the cinematic arts with Silicon Valley’s innovation. It ...

and also screened at the Reel Women International Film Festival in Los Angeles.

Going Attractions: The Definitive Story of the American Drive-in Movie

The production of ''Going Attractions: The Definitive Story of the American Drive-in Movie'' was a lengthy process for Wright. Growing up outside of Chicago, Wright loved to go to the drive-in with her family in the summer. When drive-ins began to close down, Wright became fascinated with the abandoned structures. This motivated April to begin shooting the documentary, which took seven years to complete. During this time, Wright performed research on the history and cultural impact of drive-ins, including economic and sociological effects. She took cross-country road trips to every state except Alaska, and shot interviews with the people who were the most prominent in the drive-in industry. The documentary has been invited to festivals, such as the Independence Film, Art and Music Festival, Independence, MO, where it was the centrepiece film on August 9 and 10, 2013

Stuntwomen: The Untold Hollywood Story

Wright directed the feature-length documentary ''Stuntwomen: The Untold Hollywood Story'', produced by Cheshire Kat Productions, released on September 22, 2020. It won the award for Best Documentary By or About Women conferred by the

Women Film Critics Circle The Women Film Critics Circle (WFCC) is a film critics and scholars association in the United States. Founded in 2004, WFCC was the first all-women group of this type in that country. WFCC has 75 members from the United States and foreign cou ...

for 2020. The film is based on a non-fiction book by Mollie Gregory.

Filmography

* ''Killer Yacht Party'' (2006) * ''Layover'' (2009) * ''Beyond the Passion Pit'' (2010) * ''Going Attractions: The Definitive Story of the American Drive-in Movie'' (2011) * ''Stuntwomen: The Untold Hollywood Story'' (2020)

Awards and nominations

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Wright, April Kellogg School of Management alumni Bradley University alumni Living people Year of birth missing (living people)