PJ Raval
Born1974
EducationMFA Film Production, University of Texas Austin
BA Visual Arts Media, University of California San Diego
Occupation(s)Filmmaker, Director, Cinematographer, Producer

PJ Raval is a queer first-generation Filipino-American filmmaker known for his documentary films about underrepresented subcultures and identities within the LGBTQ+ community.[1] Raval is a Guggenheim Fellow, a Robert Giard Fellow, a member of the Producers Guild of America, and the Academy of Motion Picture Art and Sciences.[2][1] Raval was named one of Filmmaker's 25 New Faces of Independent Film in 2006 and was a featured creator in the 2010 Out 100.[3] Today, he lives in Texas and is an associate professor of the Department of Radio-Television-Film at the Moody College of Communication in the University of Texas at Austin.[4]

Early life

PJ Raval was born on April 15, 1974, in Princeton, New Jersey, but was raised in Clovis, California.[5] Raval lived in San Diego for 10 years, then obtained an MFA in Film and Media Production at the University of Texas at Austin.[3]

Career

In 2008, PJ Raval co-directed the documentary film TRINIDAD: Transgender Frontier with Jay Hodges. TRINIDAD focuses on Dr. Marci Bowers and two of her patients undergoing sex reassignment surgery in Trinidad, Colorado.[3][6]

Raval's 2013 documentary Before You Know It focuses on the different narratives of three gay seniors. He was inspired to create the work after meeting a group of gay retirees at a screening of TRINIDAD at the Hudson Valley LGBTQ Community Center.[7]

Raval is the director of CALL HER GANDA, a 2018 feature documentary about Jennifer Laude, a Filipina transgender woman from the city of Olongapo murdered by a 19-year-old US marine.[8][9][10] The film addresses the topic of transphobia and how transgender individuals are being targeted and eliminated by the Catholic Church and organized religion.[11] In addition to Laude's murder case, the film confronts issues with imperialism, poverty, and the tense relationship between the United States and the Philippines.

Raval centers community voices, including those of activist attorney Virgie Suarez, transgender journalist Meredith Talusan, and Julita Jaude, Jennifer Laude's mother.[12] The film has received dozens of awards and nominations, including winning documentary categories at the 2019 Boston LGBT Film Festival, the 2019 Houston Asian American Pacific Islander Film Festival, the 2018 Inside Out Toronto LGBT Film Festival, 2018 L.A. Outfest, the 2018 New Delhi Film Festival, and the 2020 NLGJA: The Association of LGBTQ Journalists Excellence in Documentary Awards.[13] The production was supported by the Ford Foundation, Arcus, Bertha Foundation, Sundance Film Institute, Fork Films, and the Tribeca Film Institute.[14]

Raval's short films have won many awards, including “Best Narrative Short” at the Chicago Gay and Lesbian Int’l Film Festival, “Best Screenplay” at the Cinematexas Int’l Film Festival, the “Betty Nowlin Award for Excellence in Filmmaking”, and the “Director’s Visionary Award” at the Santa Cruz Film Festival.[9] Raval has also directed music videos for various musical performers and bands, including Wild Beasts, The Sword, and Mistress Stephanie & Her Melodic Cat.

Raval is an associate professor at the Moody College of Communication in the University of Texas at Austin.[4]

Filmography

Features

Year Title Contribution Notes
2002 The Politics of Fur Associate Producer
2003 Girl Wrestler Additional Camera Operator
2005 Room Cinematographer Won – Woodstock Film Festival Haskell Wexler Award for Best Cinematography
2005 Troop 1500 Cinematographer
2006 The Cassidy Kids Cinematographer
2006 Slam Planet Additional Camera Operator
2006 When the Road Bends: Tales of a Gypsy Caravan Additional Camerawork
2006 Gretchen Cinematographer
2007 The Devil Came on Horseback Additional Cinematographer
2008 Trouble the Water Cinematographer
2008 Critical condition Additional Camera
2008 Dirt Cinematographer
2008 Trinidad Director/Producer/Cinematographer Won – Cleveland International Film Festival Award for Best Documentary
Nominated – Los Angeles Film Festival Award for Best Documentary
2009 The 2 Bobs Cinematographer
2009 Along Came Kinky ... Texas Jewboy for Governor Camera Operator
2009 Winnebago Man Additional Photography
2009 Sunshine Additional Cinematography
2011 Slacker Director (segment: "Rantings") Nominated – Sundance Film Festival, Grand Jury Prize

Nominated – Film Independent Spirit Awards, Independent Spirit Award

2011 Habibi Rasak Kharban Cinematographer
2012 Wonder Women! The Untold Story of American Superheroines Additional cinematography
2012 Sunset Stories Cinematographer
2012 Foreplay Cinematographer
2012 The Bounceback Cinematographer
2013 Before You Know It Director/Producer Won – Dallas Asian Film Festival Best Documentary
Won – Austin Gay and Lesbian Film Festival Audience Award
Nominated - Austin Film Critics Association Austin Film Award
2018 Call Her Ganda Director/Producer Won – Inside Out Toronto Film Festival Award for Best Documentary

Won – Los Angeles Asian Pacific Film Festival Grand Jury Prize for Outstanding North American Documentary Feature

Television work

Year Title Contribution Notes
2004-2010 Independent Lens Camera Operator/Sound Season 6, Episode 6: "Girl Wrestler"
Season 7, Episode 17: "Troop 1500"
Season 11, Episode 24: "Sunshine"
Season 11, Episode 25: "The Horse Boy"
2008 POV Camera Operator Season 21, Episode 9: "Critical Condition"

References

  1. 1 2 "John Simon Guggenheim Foundation | PJ Raval". Retrieved 2021-03-31.
  2. ↑ Whittaker, Richard (July 1, 2019). "Austin Filmmakers PJ Raval, Andrew Bujalski, Leah Marino Join the Academy". www.austinchronicle.com. Retrieved 2021-03-31.
  3. 1 2 3 Hassan, Joseph (6 May 2010). "Need To Know: PJ Raval". Out. Retrieved 15 March 2013.
  4. 1 2 "PJ Ravel Faculty Profile". Moody College of Communication, University of Texas at Austin. Retrieved 5 January 2021.
  5. ↑ "2008 LA Film Fest - Trinidad". Los Angeles Film Festival. Retrieved 15 March 2013.
  6. ↑ "LAFF '08 INTERVIEW "Trinidad" Co-Directors Jay Hodges and PJ Raval". IndieWire. 26 June 2008. Retrieved 15 March 2013.
  7. ↑ Raval, PJ (8 March 2013). "PJ Raval Explores Being Gay and Retired in 'Before You Know It'". Tribeca Film Institute. Retrieved 15 March 2013.
  8. ↑ Jaworowski, Ken (20 September 2018). "Review: 'Call Her Ganda' Explores the Murder of a Transgender Woman". The New York Times. Retrieved 2018-11-02.
  9. 1 2 "Biography | PJ Raval". Retrieved 2021-03-29.
  10. ↑ Whittaker, Richard (July 11, 2018). "PJ Raval's Call Her Ganda Will Open aGLIFF 2018". www.austinchronicle.com. Retrieved 2021-03-31.
  11. ↑ Nepales, Ruben (May 11, 2018). "Call PJ Raval's 'Call Her Ganda' riveting". Philippine Inquirer.
  12. ↑ "PJ Raval Brings Philippines Transgender Case to the Big Screen". CAAM Home. 2018-09-19. Retrieved 2021-03-31.
  13. ↑ Call Her Ganda - IMDb, retrieved 2021-03-31
  14. ↑ "Tribeca Film Institute". www.tfiny.org. Retrieved 2021-03-31.
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