Penny T. Hollis
Writer, director, editor, producer, professor, and storyteller. Penny T. Hollis is a complete talent and one of the film world’s rising stars. Growing up in Louisiana, she is a product of the South’s rich history of storytelling. Her writing boasts vivid descriptions and dialogue which intrigue audiences. Her words however are only rivaled by the images and moods that she is able to extract from her actors and cinematographers as a director.
Hollis began her formal training as a filmmaker at Grambling State University where she obtained a B.A. in Mass Communications and later at Howard University where she completed an M.F.A. Continuing in the noted tradition of African American filmmakers, she prides herself on working with other creatives and is dedicated to guiding audiences to realize the humanity in every character she creates. Hollis’ films highlight triumphs and tragedies in society and inspire audiences to ponder long after they would have experienced her films. Perhaps what makes Hollis exceptional as an artist is her ability to entertain audiences, while forcing them to think about the messages in her work, both blatant and implicit. Her work explores a range of themes, spanning reproductive rights, mental illness, grief, homelessness to love, and sexuality. As a woman and artist of color, Hollis understands her responsibility to give a voice to those characters and stories who would otherwise be silenced.
Hollis’ savvy as a post-production editor and storyteller has been recognized by many media entities. Her credits include work with Discovery Channel, National Geographic, Travel Channel, Smithsonian Channel, PBS among others. Hollis also worked in academia as an adjunct professor teaching script-writing, editing, and production courses at Howard University, George Mason University, and the University of the District of Columbia. Currently, Hollis teaches scriptwriting and post-production at Duke Ellington School of the Arts.