Biography

William Wayne (director) is an American filmmaker and actor best known for his award-winning feature film Lost Angelas and as Festival Director of the Seattle Film Festival in 2022 and 2024.

William grew up on a farm in Illinois. He studied acting at the University of Washington and after graduation, acted with a repertory theater. During this time, he acted in several indie features, one of which was nominated at the 2005 Tribeca Film Festival.

His first directing project was the award-winning documentary short film Honor Flight.

William Wayne's Lost Angelas is his directorial feature film, a psychological thriller which premiered at The Method Fest Film Festival in Beverly Hills on March 26, 2019. He was nominated for the Maverick Filmmaker Award.

Lost Angelas opened theatrically in LA on June 14, 2019, and played for a week at The Laemmle Theater in Pasadena, CA.

The South American premiere was at the Cinefantasy Film Festival in São Paulo, Brazil on September 3-8, 2019.

Lost Angelas opened in Seattle for a week's engagement at The Grand Illusion Cinema on November 22, 2019.

William Wayne won both Best Director and Best Indie Film (Made for Under 100K) at Film Threat's Award This! 2020 event.

The Amazon Prime Video premiere for 'Lost Angelas' was on June 9, 2020.

William directs and edits commercials for advertising campaigns.

In 2024, William returned for his second year as Festival Director of the Seattle Film Festival, presenting one of the largest festival lineups, with over 450 independent films screened digitally and in theaters. Film Threat described it as "a five day celebration of indie cinema."

(See: Film Threat, July 12, 2024)

In 2025, William returned for his third year as Festival Director as the festival celebrated its 10th anniversary. FilmSpeak reported that the event presented more than 400 films across its in-theatre and online programs for the second straight year.
- IMDb mini biography by: JD Arthur