Chris' Open Road

CHRIS KRAUS

Writer/Filmmaker

LEADER INFO:

INTERESTS:

Film Writing

THEMES DISCUSSED:

Confidence Struggle Transitions

TAGS:

acting, actress, directing, feature film, journalism, New York, new zealand, odd jobs, play, theatre, wrong idea

BIOGRAPHY:

After graduating from Victoria University in New Zealand and then landing a big job as a journalist there and working her way to the top ranks at only 21, Chris Kraus decided she wanted more than just a cushy career and a nice apartment. Still a young twenty something, Chris made a drastic move across the world to New York City to chase her artistic ambitions in writing and filmmaking. She spent the next several years writing, producing, and directing several experimental films; one of which she hired about 70 people to help her and because of that, nearly drained her bank account. After much blood, sweat, tears, and hard work, Chris' film was never shown at any of the major independent film festivals. Chris was disappointed and in despair over what she saw as a failure. To cope, Chris began writing love letters to a man named Dick, which turned into her first autobiographical novel in 1997 about her exploration of failure, feminism, the institution of marriage, and the nature of privacy. Her book was then produced into a film, and since then Chris has directed a number of other films including Gravity & Grace, The Golden Bowl or Repression, and Traveling at Night. Chris has also published a number of works on different subjects from feminism and gender politics to philosophy and love.