Fawzia Mirza

Fawzia Mirza is an artivist, an actor, producer, writer who believes in the power of comedy to tackle divisive topics and breakdown stereotypes. She was named one of '10 Filmmakers to Watch' by Independent Magazine, a White House ‘Champion of Change’ in Asian American Art & Storytelling, a 3Arts Acting Grant Recipient, a ‘Top 10 Creative’ by Indiewire magazine, a Djerassi Program Writing Resident, an SFFILM Society Rainin Fellow and '100 Ladies We Love' by GO Magazine. Her short films have screened at festivals all over the world. She's made award-winning web series and documentaries including a mockumentary The Muslim Trump where she plays the illegitimate Muslim daughter of Donald Trump. She's featured in the acclaimed Emmy-nominated and Gotham, Peabody and GLAAD-Award winning web series Her Story. She's adapted her one-woman play, Me, My Mom & Sharmila into a screenplay with screenwriter Terrie Samundra. Her first film Signature Move, which she co-wrote, produced and stars in and starring Indian film legend Shabana Azmi, world premiered at SXSW and was in the Tribeca All Access Program and named one of the "Most Anticipated Films of the Year" by Filmmaker Magazine. This award winning first feature has screened at over 150 film festivals around the world, won 14 awards including the Grand Jury Prize for Best US Narrative at Outfest and available on Amazon Prime, itunes and on DVD. Fawzia emceed the Chicago Women’s March in 2017 and 2018 with crowds of over 250,000 people, has hosted The Moth storytelling, spoken at Chicago Ideas Week Edison Talks, Tedx and Nat Geo and her first short story appears in the South Asian anthology Good Girls Marry Doctors. She was the featured Canadian artist in the Chicago episode of the Canadian-Emmy winning doc series Interrupt This Program on CBC. Her latest short, Saya, which she wrote, co-directed and stars in, shot entirely in Pakistan, is a story of a woman who, through conversations with her driver has an encounter with the supernatural (world premieres 2019). She’s currently writing on the new CBS hour drama series, The Red Line, executive produced by Greg Berlanti and Ava Duvernay.