Frances Grace Mortel

BIOGRAPHIE

Frances Grace Mortel (she/her) is a photographer and filmmaker, born and raised in Manila, Philippines. She studied in University of the Philippines Film Institute (UPFI) and worked as art director/production designer for several film and television projects. She moved to Spokane, Washington in 2016 and completed the Digital Media Production program at Spokane Falls Community College (SFCC) in 2019. She graduated with a BA Film degree at Eastern Washington University (EWU) in 2021, receiving the Dean's Student Excellence Award, Social Justice Advocate of the Year Award, and Achievements in Screenwriting and Criticism. Frances currently works as a Communications Specialist for Asian Pacific Islander Coalition of Spokane and an Audio Video Assistant for Spokane Regional Health District while juggling other photography and film projects. A member of Brown Girls Doc Mafia, Filipino American Artist Directory, and Spokane Film Project — she has exhibited in Terrain, FemFest Art Festival, Spokane Arts’ Saturate, Pagdiriwang’s Larawan in Seattle Center, and other group shows with local collectives such as La Resistance and Shades of Me. She participated in Santa Barbara International Film Festival - Film Studies Program (2020), Telluride Film Festival - Student Symposium (2021), and is part of the pilot batch of WA Filmworks Media Mentorship Program (2021). Her short film, Dear Nanay, was an official selection and won the Honorable Mention award in Northwest Film Forum’s Local Sightings Film Festival 2021.

FILMOGRAPHIE