Maanasi Patel

I'm a Writer, Director, Producer, Storyteller, Artist, Meditator, Timeline Jumper/Traveler, Space and Alien Lover, Clean Freak, Highly Organized, Strong-Willed, Problem Solver, Very Patient, Calm, Extremely Focused, and possess a superpower to turn anything negative into positive.

Fun facts about me - I have never ever had any caffeine in my life – no tea, no coffee, no soda, no alcohol either, I barely sleep, and I do not like hugging or being hugged (except for about 5-6 people who are my tribe).

I have always been fascinated with the magical world of story-telling and cinema. I believe that stories are blueprints of one’s life experiences in the form of language of - art, music, cinema, and imagination. Ever since I was a kid, I was very interested in listening to the life experiences of people around me and watching films from all around the world. Growing up in India, where parents mainly pushed their children to pursue a degree in engineering, medicine, or business, I am fortunate to have parents who gave me the freedom to choose, and live my dreams and passion regardless of societal pressures and norms.

I was born and brought up in India, and have been in Los Angeles, CA for over 2 decades. I moved to Los Angeles at the age of 19, to pursue my education in film at Otis College of Art and Design. Right after I graduated, my short documentary film “Anuttara” was selected at various film festivals across the USA. Being an immigrant is not easy in this country with so many immigration laws that restrict you from moving further at a consistent pace. I was no exception and when the roadblock hit, I deviated a bit and went to India to work on a Bollywood film as a 1st AD, until my visa situation was sorted. Once my work visa was approved, I came back to LA and was hired on Avatar as an assistant to an assistant VFX Coordinator. I was hired for 5 weeks and I ended up working on the film all the way till the DVD release (for approx. 2 years). After Avatar, there was no looking back. I then worked as a VFX coordinator on other A-list films like Knight and Day, Life of Pi, The Darkest Hour, and Looper.

Almost a decade later, I took a break from working to start a family, and after 2 kids and 7 years later, I decided to make a short film and also kept at my writing. My short film (currently in the festival circuit) "Taken for Granted" is screened at more than 30 festivals and has won 15 awards so far. The short film is a small section of this feature film that I am currently working on.
The majority of my stories are female-centric, they are all culturally diverse and have a social message of how powerful women are and can be. I would like to take the themes of my films beyond the big screen and bring whatever change I can, to the lives of many women and children across the world.