Mo Bradley (formerly Maureen Bradley; born 1967) is a
Canadian
Canadians () are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of their being ''C ...
film director, producer, screenwriter, media artist, professor, and curator. They have produced over fifty short films and their work has been recognized internationally.
Early life and education
Bradley was born and raised in
Montreal, Quebec
Montreal is the List of towns in Quebec, largest city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Quebec, the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-largest in Canada, and the List of North American cit ...
. They grew up with a love of music and sound, and in their early years, pursued this love as a
bassist
A bassist (also known as a bass player or bass guitarist) is a musician who plays a bass instrument such as a double bass (upright bass, contrabass, wood bass), bass guitar (electric bass, acoustic bass), keyboard bass (synth bass) or a low br ...
in the underground music scene in Montréal, in the band "Sons of the Desert". Later, Bradley discovered their interest in editing, film, and media art. Since then, Bradley has played an active role in the Canadian independent film community. Their work has been featured in major venues, including the New Gallery and the
Museum of Modern Art
The Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) is an art museum located in Midtown Manhattan, New York City, on 53rd Street (Manhattan), 53rd Street between Fifth Avenue, Fifth and Sixth Avenues. MoMA's collection spans the late 19th century to the present, a ...
.
Bradley attended
Concordia University
Concordia University () is a Public university, public English-language research university located in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. Founded in 1974 following the merger of Loyola College (Montreal), Loyola College and Sir George Williams Universit ...
for Communications and Media Studies. Upon their relocation to
Vancouver
Vancouver is a major city in Western Canada, located in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia. As the List of cities in British Columbia, most populous city in the province, the 2021 Canadian census recorded 662,248 people in the cit ...
, they furthered their education at the
University of British Columbia
The University of British Columbia (UBC) is a Public university, public research university with campuses near University of British Columbia Vancouver, Vancouver and University of British Columbia Okanagan, Kelowna, in British Columbia, Canada ...
. There, Bradley received a
Master of Fine Arts
A Master of Fine Arts (MFA or M.F.A.)
is a terminal degree in fine arts, including visual arts, creative writing, graphic design, photography, filmmaking, dance, theatre, other performing arts and in some cases, theatre management or arts admi ...
degree in Film Production.
Career
During their career as a Montréal-based bassist, Bradley received a VideoFACT production grant to create a music video. From there, Bradley became interested in filmmaking and media studies and later became an assistant professor of film production at the
University of Regina
The University of Regina is a public university located in Regina, Saskatchewan, Canada. Founded in 1911 as a private denominational high school of the Methodist Church of Canada, it began an association with the University of Saskatchewan as a j ...
. During their time in Regina, they were the Saskatchewan District Council of the Directors Guild of Canada's first female director in 2002. Bradley then returned to British Columbia and became an associate professor at the University of Victoria's Writing Department. In 2017, they became a full professor at the University of Victoria, where they continue to teach film and video. Using a grant they received from the
Canada Foundation for Innovation The Canada Foundation for Innovation (CFI; , ''FCI'') is an independent corporation created by the Government of Canada to invest in research facilities and equipment in Canada's universities, colleges, research hospitals, and non-profit research in ...
, Bradley brought the Hi-Def Story Incubator Lab to life at the University of Victoria.
Bradley has been active in the film community across
Canada
Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...
since 1988. Their work in the Canadian film scene has been focused on challenging typical gender norms and
binaries
A binary file is a computer file that is not a text file. The term "binary file" is often used as a term meaning "non-text file". Many binary file formats contain parts that can be interpreted as text; for example, some computer document files ...
. While directing and appearing in the series ''
Road Movies
A road movie is a film genre, genre of film in which the main characters leave home on a road trip, typically altering the perspective from their everyday lives. Road movies often depict travel in the hinterlands, with the films exploring the the ...
'' in 1992, Bradley became one of the first people ever to publicly come out on a network Canadian television series.
Bradley has contributed to various film associations within Canada, including Queer City Cinema, Video In, and the Independent Media Arts Alliance of Canada. They are also the former president of the Board of Directors of CineVic Society of Independent Filmmakers.
Personal life
Bradley is queer. They reside in
Victoria
Victoria most commonly refers to:
* Queen Victoria (1819–1901), Queen of the United Kingdom and Empress of India
* Victoria (state), a state of Australia
* Victoria, British Columbia, Canada, a provincial capital
* Victoria, Seychelles, the capi ...
,
British Columbia
British Columbia is the westernmost Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada. Situated in the Pacific Northwest between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains, the province has a diverse geography, with rugged landscapes that ...
.
Growing up, Bradley most identified with the label
androgynous
Androgyny is the possession of both masculine and feminine characteristics. Androgyny may be expressed with regard to biological sex or gender expression.
When ''androgyny'' refers to mixed biological sex characteristics in humans, it often r ...
, finding that they did not fit into the typical categories of male or female. In their 20s, Bradley identified as
third gender
Third gender or third sex is an identity recognizing individuals categorized, either by themselves or by society, as neither a man nor a woman. Many gender systems around the world include three or more genders, deriving the concept either from ...
, as that was the current term to describe people outside of the
gender binary
The gender binary (also known as gender binarism) is the classification of gender into two distinct forms of masculine and feminine, whether by social system, Culture, cultural belief, or both simultaneously. Most cultures use a gender binary, ...
. In ''Queer Across Canada'' (1993), Bradley depicted how different regions of Canada use conflicting language to describe Bradley's gender identity and sexual orientation, becoming the first person to come out as queer on Canadian network TV.
Since 2015, Bradley has used they/them pronouns.
Filmography
Additional works
* ''Burning Down My House'' (2013)
* ''Waylaid'' (2013)
* ''Beyond the Pale'' (2010)
* ''Pants on Fire'' (2009)
* ''Gullible'' (2008)
* ''Self-storage'' (2006)
* ''sisyphus'' (2005)
* ''Stranded'' (2004)
* ''My Heart the Historian'' (2001)
* ''Birthday Suit Management: a 21C Homage to Lisa Steele'' (2001)
* ''Erased'' (1999)
* ''Go Dyke! Go!'' (1998)
* ''What I Remember'' (1998)
* ''Tainted: Christopher Lefler and the Queer Censorship Chill'' (1997)
* ''Forever'' (1997)
* ''HER'' (1996)
* ''Forever'' (1996)
* ''Reframing the Montreal Massacre: A Media Interrogation'' (1995)
* ''Losing It'' (1995)
* ''Not Like That'' (1994)
* ''The Weight of Women's Eyes'' (1994)
* ''Defiance'' (1993)
* ''Queer Across Canada'' (1993)
* ''She Thrills Me'' (1993)
* ''Road Movies'' (1992)
* ''Safe Sex is Hot Sex'' (1991)
* ''We're Here, We're Queer, We're Fabulous'' (1990)
* ''Briser lâisolement: le SIA et les femmes au Québec'' (1990)
Awards and nominations
Bradley has received recognition for their work in the film industry in numerous film festivals. Their web series, ''Freshman's Wharf'', received a
Leo Award
The Leo Awards are the awards program for the British Columbia film and television industry. Held each May or June in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, the Leo Awards were founded by the Motion Picture Arts and Sciences Foundation of British C ...
Vancouver International Film Festival
The Vancouver International Film Festival (VIFF) is an annual film festival held in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, for two weeks in late September and early October.
The festival is operated by the Greater Vancouver International Film Festi ...
. Lead actor Gavin Crawford received the
ACTRA Award
The ACTRA Awards are Canadian accolades presented since 1972 to celebrate excellence in cinema, television and radio industries.
Additionally, artistic
retrospective
A retrospective (from Latin ', "look back"), generally, is a look back at events that took place, or works that were produced, in the past. As a noun, ''retrospective'' has specific meanings in software development, popular culture, and the arts. ...
s based on Bradley's work have been created in cities across Canada. These retrospectives include ''Making Scenes (1999)'' and ''Out on Screen (1998)'', hosted respectively by
Ottawa
Ottawa is the capital city of Canada. It is located in the southern Ontario, southern portion of the province of Ontario, at the confluence of the Ottawa River and the Rideau River. Ottawa borders Gatineau, Gatineau, Quebec, and forms the cor ...
's Gay and Lesbian Film Festival and Vancouver's Queer Film and Video Festival.
See also
*
List of lesbian filmmakers
This is a list of lesbian filmmakers. The names listed include directors, producers, and screenwriters of feature films, Television film, television movies, Documentary film, documentaries and short films; and have received coverage or been recog ...