Mary Katzke's Crusade For Social Change

Mary Katzke founded Affinityfilms, Inc. in 1982 as an Alaska-based nonprofit committed to addressing social issues and instigating change. Along with a dedicated volunteer staff and crew, Mary seeks out the abused, the disenfranchised, the suffering… and weaves stories of redemption and hope meant to inspire audiences from all walks of life.

Mary’s undergrad education in Radio Television and Film at the University of Texas at Austin, along with her MFA in Writing and Directing Film and Television from NYU’s Tisch School of the Arts, were the launching pads for her life mission to tell meaningful and compelling stories through film. She has so far produced over thirty documentaries and feature films.

Originally from the farmlands of Minnesota, Mary migrated to Alaska in the early ’80s and found herself at home among the local people and settings. She has made it her calling to tell the stories of those who have suffered in the face of such odds as illiteracy, mental illness, cancer and abuse and hopes that in telling these tales, Affinityfilms will affect a greater change.

Affinityfilms won its first grant to film About Face from the Alaska State Council on the Arts back in 2004 and Mary is honored to have been given the opportunity to tell the heartbreaking and poignant saga of Gwendellin Bradshaw. The film was completed in January 2009 and Mary looks forward to sharing her film and Gwen’s story, with audiences worldwide so that public stigma surrounding mental illness can be alleviated. "It is an illness, not a character flaw and should be treated as such."

Get more insight through: Mary's Personal Statement.

Visit Mary's production company: AffinityFilms, Inc.

Notable Documentary Films by Mary

About Face Screening at Hot Docs 2009
The story of Gwendellin Bradshaw, a journey of healing and redemption.

The Power of Intuition
About the use of intuition in medicine, business and education.

The Quiet War Reel Women Film Festival 2007, Best Documentary
Profiles of Women Facing Advanced Breast Cancer.

Sea of Oil Sundance 1991
A film about the 1990 Exxon Valdez oil spill’s impact on small community of Valdez, AK.

WIP
Survive to Thrive. Nine long-term breast cancer survivors gather to share their wisdom with newbies just about to be treated for breast cancer.

Gwen & Mary