ERIN LAU
DIRECTOR • PRODUCER • WRITER
Raised in Kahaluʻu, Hawaiʻi, Native Hawaiian filmmaker Erin Lau has dedicated her life to creating empathy-forward stories for her community. After completing her Bachelors at the Academy for Creative Media at the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa, Erin worked as a videographer and editor for Native Hawaiian production company, ʻŌiwi TV. She later moved to Los Angeles after receiving a full-ride merit scholarship from Chapman University, where she completed her MFA in Directing. Since graduation, Erin has signed with the United Talent Agency (UTA) and continued her growth through opportunities with the Sundance Institute, Tribeca Studios, Unlock Her Potential, Points North Institute, Nia Tero, Powderkeg’s Break The Room, and Film Independent’s Project Involve program and Episodic Directors Intensive.
Erin's films have screened in over 50 film festivals across the world. Her Chapman thesis THE MOON AND THE NIGHT received support from the 2017 Sundance Native Lab and was shortlisted for the Student BAFTA awards. The film was later licensed by the Criterion Channel. With the support of Film Independent’s Project Involve program, Erin was able to direct her next movie, ALL I EVER WANTED, which won Best Comedy at the 2022 Hollyshorts Film Festival. Her latest film INHERITANCE was also supported by Tribeca Studios, Netflix, and Gold House through the Future Gold Film Fellowship. It recently premiered at the 2022 Tribeca Film Festival and won the Oscar-Qualifying Hawaiʻi Best Short Award at the 42nd Hawaiʻi International Film Festival.
Outside of her personal work, Erin worked for three years as a Senior Producer-Director for Jubilee Media, where her videos accumulated over 130 million views. Through this role she was also given the opportunity to develop community-focused content for brands including Google, Netflix, SK-II, and Always. She now works as a freelance producer and director, developing projects inspired by her community and home.
Erin also serves on the advisory boards for Hawaiʻi Women in Filmmaking and the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoaʻs Academy for Creative Media.
NEWS + INTERVIEWS:
2022
Creatives of Color - Indigenous Peoples Month
by Intuition Films
‘Not made to sit on a shelf’: Film festival kicks off today at Palace Theater
by Hawaii Tribune-Herald
Cinema Club Vérité: Conversations with Filmmakers - Erin Lau
by Emmy SF TV
Setting Your Foundation of Immovable Truth
by Mixed Asian Media
Netflix to help Native Hawaiian filmmaker tell her next island story
by Hawaii News Now
UH graduate selected for Netflix, Tribeca, Gold House film directors fellowship
by UH News
2021
Native Hawaiian Cinema: 2021 and Beyond
Presented by Sundance & HOMA
Reel Wāhine of Hawaiʻi - Season 2
by Hawaiʻi Women in Film
2020
Native Women in Film
Presented by Rolling Rez Arts & First Peoples Fund
Presented by ‘Ohina Film Showcase
C3: Pacific Cinewaves
Presented by LA Visual Communications
The Future of Kānaka Maoli Filmmaking: Where do we go from here?
Presented by Hawaiʻi International Film Festival
Presented by Walker Art Center