Maddie Gwinn - Class of 2015
One of the coolest job titles certainly must be “Nomadic Filmmaker.” And it’s a title that Maddie Gwinn, graduate of the Class of 2015, gets to claim. “Sometimes it’s hard to believe there’s a name for what I do” shares Maddie. “Documentary filmmaking isn’t just a career but a life path that challenges me to become immersed in unfamiliar worlds, to collaborate with people from all different cultures, languages, circumstances, and backgrounds to observe, research, document and reflect on the common human experience,” shares Maddie who is currently finishing her debut feature documentary. Her film follows the lives of three young musicians in Prishtina, Kosovo.
“I don’t think it’s possible to follow such a nontraditional path without an all-consuming love for it” reflects Maddie. And living abroad is just one of the perks. Currently based in Kosovo, the newest country in Europe with the youngest population (over 70% of residents are under the age of 30), Maddie is filled with hope and purpose with the energy of place. “Sometimes I joke that Kosovo is like the Overlake campus – small, densely diverse, genuinely supportive – a community where everyone knows each other but also has their own ‘thing’” she muses.”
So how did Maddie get into the world of filmmaking? Her passion dates all the way back to her childhood. “I started filming with my family’s camcorder and editing on iMovie” relays Maddie and then in her first year at Overlake as a ninth grader she founded the school’s first film club and launched Overlake’s inaugural Film Festival. Maddie went on to study directing and philosophy at Chapman University where a study abroad program in the Czech Republic made her fall in love with the European industry of cinema. Since her Chapman days, Maddie attended two international post-graduate programs for documentary filmmaking, one in Bologna and one at the Filmakademie Baden-Wurrtemberg in Germany. During these programs Maddie was concurrently freelancing as a film editor to gather experiences and street cred to eventually pursue her own directing work. In fact, it was in a solo backpacking trip across the Balkans after graduating where she serendipitously had a meet-cute with the city of Prishtina, Kosovo where she eventually moved.
Maddie also dabbles in other arts, including language and music. Maddie speaks Slavic and German and is currently learning Albanian. Because she’s working on a music documentary, she has the good fortune to attend weekly concerts resulting in a deepened and refined personal appreciation for music.
Maddie’s first film is set to debut in 2025. Catch it at film festivals and stay tuned for more from this rising star on the international film scene!