Marielle Heller is an award-winning director, writer, actor, and producer who has built an impressive and multifaceted career carefully constructing a unique and compassionate voice that has earned her critical acclaim. She most recently wrote and directed NIGHTBITCH, starring Amy Adams, which tells the story of a woman thrown into the stay-at-home routine of raising a toddler in the suburbs, who slowly embraces the feral power deeply rooted in motherhood, as she becomes increasingly aware of the bizarre and undeniable signs that she may be turning into a canine. Heller’s screenplay is an adaptation of Rachel Yoder’s acclaimed debut novel of the same name.

Previously, Heller directed A BEAUTIFUL DAY IN THE NEIGHBORHOOD, starring Tom Hanks as Mr. Rogers, which earned him a Best Supporting Actor Oscar nomination. She previously directed the three-time Academy Award-nominated film, CAN YOU EVER FORGIVE ME? starring Melissa McCarthy and Richard E. Grant, just three years after the release of her highly lauded directorial debut, THE DIARY OF A TEENAGE GIRL, which earned her an Independent Spirit Award for Best First Feature as well as a DGA nomination for First Time Feature Film. As an actor, she starred as Alma Wheatley in director and writer Scott Frank’s critically acclaimed Netflix limited series “THE QUEEN'S GAMBIT” alongside Anya Taylor-Joy. 

Heller is also the founder of Defiant by Nature, a production company focused on telling stories that uplift, inspire, and entertain while simultaneously shining a light on women and non-binary creators. The company’s first release was a filmed version of the Pulitzer Prize winning and Tony nominated play WHAT THE CONSTITUTION MEANS FOR ME, written by and starring Heidi Schreck and directed by Heller, for which she received a DGA nomination.