Mel Donalson | Writer, Producer

Mel Donalson received his Ph.D. in American Studies from Brown University, and he was a professor at Bates College, UC-Santa Barbara, Pasadena City College, UCLA, and California State University-Los Angeles. He taught courses and seminars in African American Studies, American Literature, American Film History, Gender and Sexuality, and Creative Writing.

In addition to his published essays, he was the Editor of Cornerstones: An Anthology of African American Literature and Co-Editor of the Encyclopedia of 20TH Century African American Literature. His critical books include Black Directors in Hollywood, Masculinity in the Interracial Buddy Film, and Hip Hop in American Cinema. With his short stories appearing in several journals, Donalson also published three novels: The River Woman, Communion, and The Third Woman. At the same time, his poetry has been included in numerous periodicals, leading to his published collection, entitled Revelations.

In 2017, his one-act play, The Corner, was performed in the Paul Robeson Theater Festival in Los Angeles. In that same year, Donalson wrote, produced, and directed the full-length drama, Shout at the Fremont Theatre, South Pasadena, California.

As a screenwriter and filmmaker, he has written, produced, and directed the short fictional films, A Room Without Doors (1998) and Performance (2009). More recently, he worked as an Associate Producer on the documentary, Medical Racism: The New Apartheid (2021), and a Writer-Producer on the short fictional film, Passage (2021).