Traci Hays is a DGA Award-nominated director. Her feature directorial debut, TANGLED, based on the New York Times Best-Seller premiered this February on Amazon. The Hollywood Reporter named it a must-see romantic movie to watch this year. Prior to this, Traci directed FREDERICK which premiered at Dances with Films and won 20 awards including Best Director at the LA Film Awards and Best Picture at the NYC Film Awards. Traci partnered with Women’s Weekend Film Challenge to direct the thriller, DISCONNECTED with an all-female cast and crew. It won Traci Best Director at the Independent Short Awards, Top Shorts, and Indie Short Fest. Her short, 40ISH, won numerous accolades including Best Director and Best Short at the International NY Film Festival, an official selection at the Rhode Island International Film Festival, and showcased at the Short Film Corner at the Festival De Cannes. An alumna of Chapman University’s film program, Traci was awarded an apprenticeship with Randal Kleiser who continues to be an active mentor in her career. She is proud to be a part of Free the Work, a curated talent discovery platform that connects underrepresented creators. When she’s not directing, you’ll find Traci hiking in the Glendale mountains, listening to classic jazz, and making mouth-watering cheeseboards.
Caitlin ('cRc') followed an academic route pursuing her dream of acting. She scored a scholarship to California Institute of the Arts which brought her West from WVU, and later took her East to Russia/MXAT. Before, during and in between the academic pursuits and stage productions in LA & NYC, cRc worked as an Assistant to an Agent (Sean Perry), Assistant to Prod/MadAboutYou , as a recurring nurse on One Life to Live and a ton of other support jobs along the way including as a transcriptionist for the writer, Sidney Sheldon, and lab assistant for the notorious, Anthony Pelicano . . . ever gathering material for her personal story. Then the business grew into a new dimension - the digital world. No longer waiting to be hired, we were creating our own content. Thus, cRc became an actress/producer, and focused on producing theatre and film. For the last six years, she has been the Festival Director of the WV FILMmakers Festival. http://wvfilmmakersfestival.org "What I realized arriving at 40ish . . . is, I stopped trying so hard. I had all the academia, experience, crap jobs, good jobs, almost-got-the-part moments that are all tying together into the adventure of my life.
