Govindini Murty

Background

Murty"s father is Indian and her mother is Canadian of English descent.

Career

In 2013, Murty spoke at Social Media Week Los Angeles"s "Power Women in Entertainment" roundtable. As of 2016, Murty is producer and lead actress on the World World War II sci-fi short film unidentified flying object Diary, featured in the January 2016 issue of American Cinematographer. In recent years, Murty has focused in her writing on progressive women"s rights, human rights, science, and technology.

In 2013 Murty was selected to attend a National Aeronautics and Space Administration Earth Science conference at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory, and has since written on the need to support National Aeronautics and Space Administration and promote space science in movies.

Murty has also appeared on television to share her thoughts on Hollywood and popular culture. She has appeared on Cable News Network, Fox News, Microsoft and National Broadcasting Company, Administrative Management College, British Broadcasting Corporation, and in 2007 she cohosted an episode of At the Movies With Ebert & Roeper on American Broadcasting Company. Murty is also a public speaker and independent film-maker.

In 2013 she spoke at Social Media Week Los Angeles"s "Power Women in Entertainment" roundtable, which promoted women"s equality in media and entertainment. Murty is also the cofounder and coeditor with Jason Apuzzo of the on-line film magazine Libertas, established in January 2005, which has become a widely read and influential blog in the film world.

New York Times film critic A.O. Scott called Libertas "insightful as well as provocative," and Los Angeles Times film columnist Patrick Goldstein called Libertas "a must read." In 2007, Libertas was voted one of the top three culture blogs on the internet during the 2007 Weblog Awards.

Libertas went on hiatus in the summer of 2008, returning in its current form as Libertas Film Magazine (LFM) in the Spring of 2010. The new Libertas appears to have a different emphasis from that of its predecessor. Its stated purpose is to promote "films that celebrate freedom, democracy, and the dignity of the individual," and the new site routinely features short films, feature films, webisodes, trailers and reviews of what it terms "pro-freedom films" currently in theaters or on Digital Video Disc. Murty continues to be active in the film festival world, covering the Sundance Film Festival, the Tribeca Film Festival, Los Angeles Film Festival and related events.

In 2016, Murty produced and acted in unidentified flying object Diary, a World World War II sci-fi short film featured in the January 2016 print issue of American Cinematographer, as well as at The Huffington Post and The Alliance of Women Film Journalists" website.

The film is stated to be planned for release in 2016.

Achievements

• In 2013 Murty served on the Whistler Film Festival narrative jury for the AWFJ Event-driven architecture awards for outstanding achievements by women filmmakers, an event which received coverage in Variety when Melissa Leo personally offered to fund the winning woman filmmaker. unidentified flying object Diary was written and directed by Folio Eddie Award-winner Jason Apuzzo, edited by Emmy Award winner Mitch Danton, with special effects by artists from ILM, Weta Digital, and Digital Domain.

Membership

Murty is a graduate of Yale University, and has been published in The Atlantic, The Huffington Post, and is a member of the Alliance of Women Film Journalists and Indiewire"s Criticwire.