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Marcelle Abela, a Maltese filmmaker, composer, and writer, is the founder of Avinu Films, its visual effects division Avinu Studios, and Sergius Records.
Her debut feature film, Mikha'El, earned Best Picture, Best Director, and Best Original Score at numerous international film festivals. Her short film Ukraine's Soul received widespread critical acclaim and her science documentaries are permanently archived by the European Space Agency, highlighting her distinctive ability to fuse artistic storytelling with scientific rigor. In music, Abela has been recognized with Best Music at the Tracks Music Awards and both Silver and Bronze Medals at the Global Music Awards. Abela’s second feature documentary, America's Woman, premiered at Hollywood’s TCL Chinese Theatres as part of the 2025 Golden State Film Festival, where it won Best International Feature Documentary. The film went on to collect multiple awards around the globe for Best Picture, Best Director, and Best Original Score, including eight honors at the 2024 Mei International Film Festival. Her latest narrative short, Whispers From the Core, had its premiere at Hollywood’s legendary Chinese Theaters in March 2026. The film began its festival run with an American premiere at Culver City’s historic Kirk Douglas Theatre as part of the 2025 Culver City Film Festival. It was also an Official Selection at the 21st Festival Autour de l'Europe, a renowned festival dedicated to arthouse and auteur cinema, where new European works meet classic European value-keeping cinema. Abela has also created and produced the visuals for the innovative 4-minute music short Rita's Song, a biographical work documenting the true story of Rafaela Amrita Crevoshay’s late-life gender transition, with original music by Michael A. Levine. Notably, the film's raw footage was created using generative AI technology from Grok Imagine. Rita's Song won the Grand Prize Music Video during its premiere in Hollywood on March 3, 2026, at the 9th Golden State Film Festival held at the TCL Chinese Theaters. Currently, Abela’s third feature documentary, Urakami, is in pre-production. It is slated to be released in 2027. Abela is also completing the short family-friendly film Punch's Journey, which is going to be released this summer, in addition to Running, a music short featuring Grammy® award winner Roberta Flack and music by Michael A. Levine. Drawing inspiration from Ken Burns, Werner Herzog, and Andrei Tarkovsky, Abela continues to make impactful and enduring contributions to international cinema. |
© Marcelle Abela
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