Susan Henderson

Susan Henderson began her career as a documentary film producer and director after receiving her MFA in Film Production from the USC School of Cinematic Arts. Building on of her lifelong experience as a photojournalist and architect working in the public sector, Susan's films often focus on issues related to the disenfranchised.

 

Her early photographic essays include Zidul Mortii (Wall of Death), a portrait of  Bucharest, Romania as that city struggles to recover from the effects of the communist dictatorship and subsequent political and social unrest. Mandala, a film and multimedia installation, contrasts the opulence and splendor of sacred Indian monuments with the daily life of Indians living on the streets in shanties. Among her films are The Women's Building, which documents the devastating closure of the first women's art co-op in the US, and Art In Corrections, a profile of a woman artist teaching painting to female inmates at Norco Penitentiary.  

Chariot follows an African American cast and crew as they struggle to put-up one of the first plays to deal with the effects of the AIDS epidemic in their community. Susan is the recipient of the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation Science and Technology Screenwriting Award and the Scriptapalooza Screenwriting Award. Her work has been featured in major festivals including The Sundance Film Festival, The Los Angeles Film Festival, The Melbourne International Film Festival, and Outfest, among others. She served as Executive Producer of Transformations, a television series designed to give women artists a voice, and is a member of the Explorer’s Club.

 

Susan Henderson was awarded a Screenwriting grant at USC in 2000 for Forever Yours

SLOAN-AWARDED FILMS

2000