Michelle Steffes, director of “Driftwood”
Michelle directed her first non-student short film, Say It Again, Sam, while she was the Director of Development at Larger than Life Productions, the production company of Gary Ross (Seabiscuit, Hunger Games.) Later, she wrote the short script Driftwood, which led to her acceptance into AFI’s Directing Workshop for Women, where she directed the film. In 2011, she directed the comedy short film The Interview, which won at festivals such as the Oscar-qualifying USA Film Festival and was picked up for distribution on iTunes by Shorts International.
Michelle’s short films tend to be fantastical, whimsical twists on reality (Driftwood, Say It Again, Sam, The Interview, and her soon-to-be-completed comedy Witches) but she is also drawn to tell stories about people trying to find hope and peace amidst adversity. She produced the short film Day Labor, which tells the story of a Columbian day laborer in the US and his battle to provide for his family. Day Labor went on to become a student Oscar finalist. She also produced the short film Short Term 12, about worker at a juvenile facility in Southern California struggling to connect with his troubled charges. Short Term 12 went on to become a student Oscar finalist, an Academy Award short list selection, and the US jury prize winner at Sundance. Recently Michelle directed the short film Refuge, about a single father in Iraq grappling with the ghosts of his past. Refuge was completed in early 2013.
Michelle was the only live action short filmmaker invited to join the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences in 2012.
Michelle trained at AFI’s Directing Workshop for Women, Judith Weston’s directing labs, and iO West. Michelle teaches workshops on the art of the short film for iO West, Chicago’s Story conference, and Alberta’s Reel Shorts Film Festival and has served as a screenwriting/producing mentor for non-profits such as Cinestory, Act One, and WriteGirl.