Charise M. Studesville

 Writer / Director / Founder

 Charise Studesville was nine-years-old when she got her first job as   a professional dancer as the only child in an adult dance corps.   That same industriousness has driven her professional life since   then.  In 2007, Charise jumped into the production side of the film   business with Martin Chase Productions, headed up by Debra   Martin Chase. This included a weekly commute between Chicago   and Los Angeles, working at Martin Chase during production of   Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants 2 and The Cheetah Girls: One   World.

 In 2008, Charise attended the USC/Warner Brothers Directing &   Producing Summer Program at the University of Southern   California, and finished up the summer by directing her first   independent and award-winning film, The Hands. In 2010, Charise   directed and produced a feature documentary on the organization   Common Threads, and the impact of “food deserts” on the health   and welfare of inner-city children in American cities.

 She founded Hollywood Chick Mafia, "a community of creative   rebel chicks in Hollywood, supporting each others' badassery," and   hosts rooms on Clubhouse and local events in support of women in   the industry. Currently, she has several projects in film, television,   and publishing, in development, as well as a women-driven   creative venture with business partner, Ananda Lewis.

 Charise was chosen as a 2022 WIF Multi-Hyphenate Mentee,   under mentors Marta Cunningham and Alissa Bachner. In 2023,   she was honored as a featured artist in Kente Royal Gallery’s Black   History Month art show in Harlem, released two new books, and   co-founded theBUBBLY.Life, a lifestyle brand for women over 40   that. In 2024, Charise was chosen as a fellow in the Stowe   Narrative Lab with her feature screenplay, THE WAVES. And in   2025, she was chosen as an esteemed fellow in the HerArts Film   Lab in Paestum, Italy, a program focused on "empowering women's   voices in cinema" in the international marketplace.

 In all of her creative work, Charise uses truth to illuminate darkness   within the human experience, and loves stories and characters that   speak to the human capacity to rise above the murkiest of waters   in life without losing sight of the beauty that can bloom—like her   lotus flower logo of Lotus Girl Films.

 As a fierce advocate for women, Charise is a proud member of   WIF, Film Fatales, Women In Media, and Alliance of Women   Directors, and is the founder of Hollywood Chick Mafia, "a   community of creative rebel chicks in Hollywood, supporting each   others' badassery."