Lauren Merage

Simbelle Productions

BIOGRAPHIE

Lauren Merage is a second-generation Persian-American filmmaker, mixed-media artist and mother of two. Her work explores issues of feminine identity and perception, while critiquing the forces of culture and circumstance that shape the roles assigned to women. As a mixed-media artist, Lauren’s video installations have been commissioned by galleries, museums, and private collectors from North America to the Middle East. Her photographs have been sold to major collections around the world. Seeking to further push the limits of art as a means to shine a light on culture, identity, and society, Lauren expanded into filmmaking and immediately fell in love with the craft and its transformative potential. She has so far written and directed three short films that have screened in 45 festivals on nearly every continent – garnering the top prize at six of them. Beyond her art, Lauren has traveled the country and the world to advocate for women’s rights and empowerment through grassroots organizations including ONE, Reform Alliance, and Planned Parenthood. As a mother of two young girls, Lauren’s passion for women’s issues only continues to grow in depth and perspective. In 2023, Lauren founded Simbelle Productions, which is a non-profit company named for her daughters, whose mission is to create empowering content that steers their world towards mutual validation, greater awareness, and hope. Lauren received a dual Bachelor’s degrees in Fine Arts and Art History from the University of California, Los Angeles, and a Masters of Fine Arts from the University of California, Irvine. She is based in Los Angeles.

FILMOGRAPHIE