Johnny Cole

Filmmaker - Photographer - Writer - Traditional healing

I have trained and worked in the entertainment-storytelling business for over three decades as a playwright, director, actor, photographer, producer, and in production services. Old Hollywood, 70’s classic films, Crime, Noir, Sci-fi, and Anime, along with psychology, plant medicines, traditional healing, and ancient wisdom teachings, inform aspects of my work. I believe that stories are at the core of what makes us human beings; they reflect who we are as a collective, and that storytelling is one of the oldest medicines. They carry our collective memory and our potential for a transformed future.

As a neurodivergent, I tend to perceive patterns and connections outside of the usual realms of perception. In this regard, it is clear as day to me that our collective societies and planet must heed the call to break through our ‘power over mono-cultures’ as the go-to ‘hard-drives’ that run our planet. It is through diversity, inclusion, and interconnectedness to the vast and varied expressions of life on our planet that we can find ways to heal ourselves and create a better future for all of us, including Mother Earth, and all her creatures and elements.
In this regard, I have spent decades working with people from all walks of life as a healer and mentor. Maskwa, a multi-award-winning script, was developed and came together through those experiences, along with specific input from hundreds of individuals represented in the characters, themes, and story itself. The greatest challenge in writing Maskwa was how to infuse broad and diverse elements into a story about diversity - to weave the ‘medicine of interconnection’ into a story about interconnection in a way that is potent, timely, and entertaining.

For more information, I have created a website for Maskwa that includes a two-minute video pitch, artwork, a list of script awards, and script coverage.