Bio & Press

Grace is a first-generation Filipino-American writer/director and award-winning filmmaker from Newark, New Jersey. They have been a director's assistant and shadowed on Aquarius (NBC). Grace's short film, Halcyon Days, is a part of Film Independent's Artist Development program. Their short film, Lola, was featured at UTA / Gold House for Filipino-American History Month. Their work has been shortlisted for competitions at Sundance Sloan, Disney, and Sony. In 2022, Grace was a runner-up for Sony Talent League, and in 2017 was a finalist for Ava DuVernay's A Wrinkle in Time Contest. 


Grace loves exploring different genres in their work — finding beauty in tragedy and magic in the mundane is at the heart of who they are and the stories they tell. A graduate of AFI and NYU, Grace received the Alan J. Pakula and Henry Hathaway awards. Their shorts have premiered at multiple festivals around the globe, like Athens Film Festival and Last Frame in London. Grace had a media fellowship with ArtsConnection in NYC; was selected for the Can Serrat Writer Residency in Catalonia, Spain; and was mentored in Manila by F. Sionil Jose.


VoyageLA - Check Out Grace Hanna’s Story
GMA - Gold House Showcases Filipino Filmmakers