Sarah-Jane Murray

Born in Ireland and based in the US, SJ Murray, Ph.D. (Princeton), is an EMMY®-nominated filmmaker and award-winning writer, producer, director, & educator. She studied screenwriting at UCLA and is a tenured member of the faculty at Baylor University. By combining her expertise and experience in education, filmmaking, and (social) entrepreneurship, SJ has established herself as one of the most connected executive producers and writers in independent film and media. A world-class expert in story and pioneer in the field of story design™, SJ is able to manage and speak into each stage of film and television development, from creative inception (research and story) to distribution and impact campaign, making her a talented showrunner in the truest sense of the word. Her work has played at major film festivals and has been acquired by PBS, LinkTV, and Netflix.

In 2018, she was recognized as part of the inaugural cohort of #50WomenCan Change the World in Media and Entertainment, celebrating rising women stars in the film and media industries. She is also an authorized executive and agent to major studios and distributors. Since 2014, her story-driven strategies and campaigns, developed with AnderImage, have won nineteen international creative, marketing, and branding awards, including the Silver Telly and Communicator Award of Excellence. She is the author of three books: From Plato to Lancelot: A Preface to Chrétien de Troyes (2008), Basics of Story Design: Twenty Steps to an Insanely Great Screenplay (2017), and Storytelling for Today (and every day) (due out in 2018). SJ has delivered keynotes and hosted high-profile conversations at venues including the University of Paris, Harvard, Microsoft HQ, the Royal Palace of Spain, the United Nations, the White House, TEDx, and during the SXSW and Sundance Film festivals.