BIOGRAPHY - FILMMAKER AND PHOTOGRAPHER
Photo by Aleksandra Dubov
Julia Maryanska is a Polish-American filmmaker and photographer. Julia’s directorial work blends visual poetry with raw, personal reflection, drawing from her background in both International Affairs and Fine Art at Skidmore College, as well as her extensive training in group facilitation and Neuro-Linguistic Programming (NLP). Her deep understanding of cultural nuances and commitment to social impact shine through her work, which often addresses issues of identity, gender dynamics, and community.
Her experience spans roles in editing, directing, and producing, with a focus on intimate, transformative storytelling. She was an editing assistant on the award-winning films MY REINCARNATION and REGARDING SUSAN SONTAG, both of which received critical acclaim for their powerful narratives. Julia also served as Co-Director and Producer on THE VILLAGE OF LOVERS, a celebrated feature documentary currently making its festival rounds.
In 2023, Julia was selected for the prestigious CIRCLE Women Doc Accelerator, where she joined a cohort of 10 international women and non-binary filmmakers, further refining her storytelling and production strategies.
Julia’s current film in production, a deeply personal documentary, Intimate Revolutions, chronicling her journey examining social norms of womanhood and motherhood across her cross-cultural upbringing, has garnered significant early support, including crowdfunding, development mentorship within CIRCLE, and collaboration from industry figures such as Marc J. Francis (Walk With Me). She has showcased her work-in-progress at key industry events like When East Meets West and Berlinale, seeking partnerships to bring her story to a broader international audience.
She is in the research phase of a new feature doc about an Israeli-Palestinian duo, two men who are confronting power dynamics, cultural differences and a shared mission toward brotherhood and peace.
Julia’s films invite viewers to engage with life's complexities, blending documentary realism with experimental elements that highlight her unique voice in contemporary cinema.
More of my story…..
As a young adult, I learned analog photography on the same Canon SLR that my dad used to take childhood photos of me.
Growing up as a millennial and coming-of-age facing mass extinction, climate change, #MeToo, and general systems collapse, I have found inspiring solutions on the fringes of the dominant culture. The camera has been my ally and tool to share the stories I have found there, stories that examine and contradict the narratives that no longer serve.
I come from a lineage of political activists – people who organized, fought or risked their lives to refuse participation in corrupt systems.
That’s my great aunt, who together with my Grandfather, were part of the resistance army in the Warsaw Uprising.
My father was an organizer in Poland’s Solidarity movement to end communism. In my teens you could find me and my family at war protests, marching on Washington against the Iraq War.
In my 20s, I moved to California from NYC and dove into explorations of human development, spirituality, and sexuality. I sought out consciousness-shifting practices, experienced plant medicines, orgasmic meditation and became certified in Neurolinguistic Programming (NLP). I poured energy into community building and ancestral research. All paths were leading to healing. Now in my mid 30s, I am a co-founder of the media collaborative Re/Culture Media and find myself living in community, growing food on a farm, lovingly partnered and a mother of a young child. I spend my days crafting films and images with regenerative narratives that support system change.
As a female and a mama, I see the deep need to uplift female voices and feminine perspectives to help society rebalance in the time of this great turning (ref. Joanna Macy). I hear the cry of outrage, within me and from those around the globe, for the mistreatment, control and exploitation of the female body as well as the Earth body. As a photographer and filmmaker, I feel committed to maintaining a close level of intimacy with my subjects. I aim to evoke the purity of sensuality and a love for connection to the natural world.
My practice is devotion to being part of painting a humane world, one in which vulnerability is seen as strength, where beauty is unassuming and in the everyday, where love rules over fear and where humans are part of nature.
In peeling back the onion layers of toxic imagery and outdated narratives by which we have been societally programmed, I have found there is a great need for healing images and stories to bring us back to life.
Film & Work:
I have worked on award-winning feature documentaries such as My Reincarnation (2011), Regarding Susan Sontag (2014) and was assistant to Academy Award nominated director Judith Ehrlich on her forthcoming film, The Mouse that Roared (still in production). These and other film I’ve supported have aired on PBS, ESPN, A&E, CBS, ARTE, in cinemas and festivals around the world. I co-directed The Village Of Lovers which toured international film festivals in 2023-34.
I have worked all aspects of production from hiring crews, coordinating shoots, cinematography, editing, and more. I have traveled globally to produce many videos for consciousness shifting organizations such as the Shift Network and UPLIFT Connect TV.
I have been a freelance photographer for over 10 years and my offerings range from intimate documentary style to sensually surreal photo journeys. You can look at some of my portfolio at the pages on this site.
This website is an evolving and alive body of my work, here to inspire, engage and provoke our understanding of what it is to be alive, how to thrive together, and how to serve life.
THE GOOD WORD
"Julia has an uncanny knack for finding the interior motive within the most unassuming and even every-day acts. Her Minds eye is well coupled with her keen storytelling skill and her sharp insistent approach to get the cam where the viewer wants it."
- Mark Anton Read, Award-Winning Director of Photographer, Visual Effects Director & Producer.
"Julia is incredibly easy and fun to work with. She has a really positive vibe during shooting, flexibility in scheduling and super professional. She just nailed our video. She captured exactly the mood and feeling that we want to convey to our clients while also touching on every single one of a dozen or so points that we wanted to convey. It's amazing she pulled it all off and made it look totally natural."
- Andrei & Renata Stoica, Tiny B Chocolate (www.tinybchocolate.com)
Julia bathes everyone in her field with warm approval and evocation of our best selves. In our photo shoot, she immediately soothed my anxiety and welcomed a comfortable embodiment. She held my intentions throughout the session, reminding me of my own bigger picture and desires. She moved nimbly and thoroughly, offering a steady stream of creative guidance. She was also graciously responsive to my ideas, though I only wish I had let go and followed her lead EVEN MORE, because all of the shots that were her suggestions turned out to be the best ones! I would (and did) recommend her to all my friends!"
~Kait Singley, Sexological Bodyworker
"I want to thank you for showing up yesterday. Not just showing up in order to gather info for the film, but for "showing up”. Clearly, this is how you do your life and your work. There is no separation. Your work is the movement of your essence in life. I see this. It is what I was drawn to about you, even if I could not have articulated it initially. Now that I have spent time with you, it is so evident. And this is where my adoration arises from. You are, on all levels, simply adorable."
- Sarah Marshank, Founder of Selfistry and Author of "Being Self-ish"
LOLO BROWN
"David Whyte writes, "To be human is to become visible while carrying what is hidden as a gift to others." Julia's work brings that most hidden jewel of authenticity and beauty out to become visible as a gift to the world. Her warmth and curiosity made the vulnerable experience of being seen easeful and transformative."