Marquise Mays

Documentary Filmmaker & Educator

Marquise Mays (b. 1996, Wisconsin) is an award-winning filmmaker and media scholar living and working in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Experienced in an array of media and arts practices—from cinematic storytelling to exhibition curation—Marquise brings imagination, technical expertise, and cultural awareness to entertainment productions, journalistic undertakings or media-rich events and civic engagements.

He holds a M.A from the University of Southern California (USC) and a B.A from the University of Wisconsin-Madison (UW-Madison). As an independent filmmaker and film studies scholar, both Marquise's films and research are careful renderings of individual Black life on and off screen. 

Whether it be a sweeping study of one woman’s blindness and insight (Blindspot, Director, 2020); or surveying the intimate history of Latasha Harlins, an often-overlooked figure in the L.A. riots depicted in the Student Academy Award Winning Film, The Dope Years (Associate Producer, 2019); or interrogating the unrequited love between Black kids and the city of Milwaukee (The Heartland, Director, 2021), Marquise seeks to capture the humanity of individual subjects with precision and integrity. Indeed, Marquise’s films and multimedia work evince a sympathetic depth and clarity of voice.

Adding to Marquise’s abilities as a media practitioner is his experience working in studio settings. He has held a number of coveted internships that have provided him with an enviable skill set that includes media curation, research, development, and documentation at Franklin Entertainment, State Street Pictures & Red Wagon Entertainment. 

Marquise has enormous creative energy, technical expertise, and critical insight—all of which are indispensable for working effectively and innovatively in media and entertainment industries.

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Presently, Marquise is an Associate Lecturer at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee teaching the Foundations of Nonfiction. In addition, he co-teaches for an after-school program presented by Milwaukee Film, titled the Take 1: Teen Filmmaking Lab. Outside of instruction, Marquise is currently working on his next short documentary film,  BLACK STRINGS, slated to release later 2022 on PBS, presented by Firelight Media.