Annmarie Morais
Encyclopedia
Annmarie Morais is a Jamaican-Canadian screenwriter best known for writing the film How She Move
. She earned a BFA
from York University
in Film and Video in 1995.
Morais won funding for two Vision TV
Cultural Diversity Drama Competition movies: Hotel Babylon and Da Kink in My Hair
, which aired on Vision in 2004 and 2005. Hotel Babylon is the story of immigrants working in a hotel in Winnipeg, Canada. Kink was adapted from the Trey Anthony
play about a beauty parlour in a Jamaican-Canadian neighbourhood. Morais was also a writer and story editor on the television series adapted from the play, which aired on Global Television in 2007.
The prize, administered by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences, garnered Morais $25,000.
was accepted into the 2007 Sundance Film Festival
. At Sundance, a bidding war resulted in a $3.4 million offer from Paramount and MTV Films.
The film received wide release in the United States and Canada in January 2007.
and adapting Jane Finlay-Young’s novel From Bruised Fell.
How She Move
How She Move is a 2007 drama film directed by Ian Iqbal Rashid and starring Rutina Wesley, Clé Bennett and Romina D'Ugo. The film showcases the street culture of step dancing...
. She earned a BFA
Bachelor of Fine Arts
In the United States and Canada, the Bachelor of Fine Arts degree, usually abbreviated BFA, is the standard undergraduate degree for students seeking a professional education in the visual or performing arts. In some countries such a degree is called a Bachelor of Creative Arts or BCA...
from York University
York University
York University is a public research university in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It is Canada's third-largest university, Ontario's second-largest graduate school, and Canada's leading interdisciplinary university....
in Film and Video in 1995.
Morais won funding for two Vision TV
Vision TV
VisionTV is a Canadian English language Category A specialty channel that broadcasts multi-faith, multicultural, and general entertainment programming aimed at the 45 and over demographic....
Cultural Diversity Drama Competition movies: Hotel Babylon and Da Kink in My Hair
Da Kink in My Hair
Da Kink in My Hair is a play by Trey Anthony, which debuted at the Toronto Fringe Festival in 2001.The play's central character is Novelette, the Caribbean Canadian owner of Letty's, a Toronto hair salon...
, which aired on Vision in 2004 and 2005. Hotel Babylon is the story of immigrants working in a hotel in Winnipeg, Canada. Kink was adapted from the Trey Anthony
Trey Anthony
Trey Anthony is a Canadian comedian and playwright.Born in England, Anthony is a regular on the Canadian comedy circuit. She began doing stand-up comedy during African Nubian Comedy Nights at Yuk-Yuk's....
play about a beauty parlour in a Jamaican-Canadian neighbourhood. Morais was also a writer and story editor on the television series adapted from the play, which aired on Global Television in 2007.
Nicholl Prize
Morais was the first Canadian to win the prestigious Nicholl Fellowship in Screenwriting. She was also the first person to win the Nicholl with a resubmitted script. Bleeding was a finalist in 1998, and she resubmitted it without changes in 1999.The prize, administered by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences, garnered Morais $25,000.
How She Move
While at York, Morais had produced a short documentary Steppin on step-dancing in Toronto's Jane-Finch neighborhood. In 2004, she received Telefilm financing to produce a feature film based on the same concept. Originally titled Step, the film How She MoveHow She Move
How She Move is a 2007 drama film directed by Ian Iqbal Rashid and starring Rutina Wesley, Clé Bennett and Romina D'Ugo. The film showcases the street culture of step dancing...
was accepted into the 2007 Sundance Film Festival
2007 Sundance Film Festival
The 2007 Sundance Film Festival ran from January 18 until January 28, 2007 in Park City, Utah with screenings in Salt Lake City, Utah and Ogden, Utah. It was the 23-rd iteration of the Sundance Film Festival...
. At Sundance, a bidding war resulted in a $3.4 million offer from Paramount and MTV Films.
The film received wide release in the United States and Canada in January 2007.
Current projects
Splitting her time between Los Angeles and Toronto, Morais has created a television show for ABC Family about high-school cheerleaders, called The Flip Side. She is also writing a thriller set in London, The Collectors to be directed by fellow Jamaican-Canadian Clement VirgoClement Virgo
Clément Virgo is a Canadian filmmaker of international acclaim. His latest feature, the boxing drama Poor Boy's Game, stars Danny Glover and Rossif Sutherland...
and adapting Jane Finlay-Young’s novel From Bruised Fell.