Michael Korolenko is a teacher, writer, and filmmaker living in Washington state. Born in New Jersey and raised in New York, he did undergraduate work in English and film at Vassar College. He received his Masters of Science degree for his thesis film, "Since '45," a documentary on recent American history and the media. The film went on to win a special Academy Award for Best Documentary as well as the Focus Competition Award. It was screened at both FILMEX in Los Angeles and the New York Film Festival and was televised nationally on Showtime, the Discovery Channel, and Jim Lehrer's PBS series"U.S. Chronicle."
He also made numerous independent films, including "Chords of Fame, " a musical biography about American folk singer Phil Ochs and the 1960s, funded in part by grants from both The American Film Institute and The National Endowment for the Arts. He made a short "electric folk operetta," "TAMLIN," based on an old Scottish ballad, as well as numerous corporate films.
His writing includes two short fantasy stories, published as part of collections based on author Terri Windling's shared universe, Borderland. His story "Arcadia" is in "The Essential Bordertown," and "Reynardine" is in "Life on the Border."
His most recent project was Of Yesterday and Tomorrow. It won an Accolade Award in fall 2010. He currently teaches film studies at Bellevue College in Bellevue, Washington. Recent projects at BC were "Rocket Man", "Rocket Man II", and "Rocket Man III", three films created by students in his "Making Movies" class and written by Korolenko. The films are parodies of 1930s superhero serials and are available on DVD.
The Comet Chronicles is another recent production that Michael is involved with creating. It is directed by Wade Chitwood and scheduled for release spring 2011.
Contact: mkorolen@bellevuecollege.edu