About the Filmmaker​

Joseph Shawyer is an English documentarian based in New York City who creates documentaries exploring rituals of belonging and community. His MFA thesis project ‘The Saltiest Chips’ explores a modern rites of passage retreat for teenagers in rural Vermont. He has also completed principal photography for ‘Running with Tito,’ a feature-length documentary on the Yugoslav national celebration, the Relay of Youth. Before enrolling at City College of New York, Joseph spent ten years working in media production for humanitarian-sector NGOs across Asia, Africa, the Middle East and Europe.