ABOUT
Marissa Velez is a Director and Creative Producer living in Brooklyn, NY. She was born in Miami, Florida to Puerto Rican parents whose love for movie-going and travel inspired her from a young age and remain her greatest influences in her work today.
Much of Marissa’s childhood was spent either drawing or shooting music videos–of her siblings–on her parent’s VHS Camcorder, and renting classic 80’s films from Blockbuster (Milos Forman’s 1984 Amadeus was and still remains her favorite film). With an undergraduate degree in Art History and free “standby” travel as a pilot’s kid, Marissa spent much of her early 20’s in Europe finessing her French and hopping from one art museum to the next.
The first chapter of Marissa’s career was spent as an in-house Creative Director, working for brands such as Diane von Furstenberg, kate spade, Oscar la Renta, and rag & bone New York. Throughout this time she brought her love of art and her passion for cinema into the world of fashion by advocating for moving image, which led her to producing and creative directing some of the first film-film brand campaigns. Marissa is perhaps best known for creative directing the rag & bone New York films HAIR (2017), WHY CAN’T WE GET ALONG (2017), TIME OF DAY (2018) and A LAST SUPPER (2019).
As a Director, Marissa’s work is infused with her passion for European and American cinema from the 60’s and 70’s, and her own life experiences. The texture of memories from her childhood and her Puerto Rican roots are always woven into her narrative approach and she seeks out stories that allow her to explore and build from themes of identity, community, and connection in her work. Marissa’s aesthetic has a proclivity for traditional celluloid filmmaking, whenever possible opting to shoot on 8mm, 16mm or 35mm film. In her personal work, Marissa recently wrapped a personal short film, EYDIE (2022), that she wrote, directed and shot on 16mm film in Brooklyn. She is currently in development of a feature film based on her family in Puerto Rico.
As a Director, Marissa’s commercial films have received Webbys, Clios, and One Show Awards. As a Film Producer, Marissa’s films have been featured as Official Selections at the Tribeca, Milan, Athens, Armenian and New York Film Festivals. In 2020, amidst a pandemic, Marissa produced an Emmy-winning PSA about Mental Health Awareness directed by Ezra Hurwitz titled INSIDE & OUTWARDS (2020), and a short film in Armenia, ORPHANHOOD (2020), by Ovsanna Gevorgyan. In 2021, she produced a film by acclaimed artist and director, Philippe Parreno, titled LA QUINTA DEL SORDO (2021), currently on display at the Museo del Prado in Madrid. Marissa is currently in post production on a feature she produced in 2021, a noir-inspired heist film set in Brooklyn. She is also in development on a narrative television series based on the ex-CEO of Chanel, Maureen Chiquet, and her revolutionary career as a fashion executive in Paris.
Marissa has an Undergraduate degree from The University of Georgia in Art History and Spanish and a Graduate degree in Art Direction and Graphic Design from The Portfolio Center in Atlanta.
