Marianna Bronislawa Barbara Palka (born 7 September 1981) is a Scottish actress, producer, director, and writer. She is the writer, director and star of the film ''

Good Dick ''Good Dick'' is a 2008 film written and directed by Marianna Palka. Palka also stars in the film, opposite Jason Ritter. ''Good Dick'' premiered in the Dramatic Competition of the 2008 Sundance Film Festival. Plot A video store clerk stalks, s ...

'', which screened at the

Sundance Film Festival The Sundance Film Festival (formerly Utah/US Film Festival, then US Film and Video Festival) is an annual film festival organized by the Sundance Institute. It is the largest independent film festival in the United States, with more than 46,66 ...

Early life and education

Palka was born in Glasgow, Scotland. At the age of 17, Palka moved to

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

to study at the

Atlantic Theater Company Atlantic Theater Company is an Off-Broadway non-profit theater, whose mission is to produce great plays "simply and truthfully utilizing an artistic ensemble." The company was founded in 1985 by David Mamet, William H. Macy, and 30 of their actin ...

Career

Palka wrote, directed and starred in ''

'', which competed in the Dramatic Competition at the 2008

. The film also featured

Jason Ritter Jason Morgan Ritter (born February 17, 1980) is an American actor and producer. He is known for his roles as Kevin Girardi in the television series '' Joan of Arcadia'', Ethan Haas in '' The Class'', Sean Walker in the NBC series ''The Event'', ...

Martin Starr Martin James Pflieger Schienle (born July 30, 1982), professionally known as Martin Starr, is an American actor and comedian. He is known for the television roles of Bill Haverchuck on the short-lived comedy drama ''Freaks and Geeks'' (1999–20 ...

, Mark Webber,

Charles Durning Charles Edward Durning (February 28, 1923 – December 24, 2012) was an American actor who appeared in over 200 movies, television shows and plays.Schudel, Matt (December 26, 2012) "''In real life and on the screen, he played countless role ...

and

Tom Arnold Tom Arnold may refer to: * Tom Arnold (actor) (born 1959), American actor * Tom Arnold (economist) (born 1948), Irish CEO of Concern Worldwide * Tom Arnold (footballer) (1878–?), English footballer * Tom Arnold (literary scholar) (1823–1900), ...

. ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...

'' said the film "surmounts its indie-movie quirkiness with exceptional acting and a sincere belief in the salvation of its wounded characters.” Palka returned to

2010 Sundance Film Festival The 26th annual Sundance Film Festival was held from January 21, 2010 until January 31, 2010 in Park City, Utah. Award winners *Grand Jury Prize: Documentary - '' Restrepo'' *Grand Jury Prize: Dramatic - ''Winter's Bone'' *World Cinema Jury Prize: ...

as a Juror with the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation. Palka appeared in

Peter Mullan Peter Mullan (; born 2 November 1959) is a Scottish actor and filmmaker. He is best known for his role in Ken Loach's ''My Name Is Joe'' (1998), for which he won Best Actor Award at 1998 Cannes Film Festival, 2000's '' The Claim'' and all thr ...

’s ''Neds'', Jeremiah Jones’ ''Restive'',

Bryce Dallas Howard Bryce Dallas Howard (born March 2, 1981) is an American actress and director. Howard was born in Los Angeles and attended New York University's Tisch School of the Arts, initially leaving in 2002 to take roles on Broadway but officially graduati ...

’s ''When You Find Me'', Nathan Sutton's ''Autumn Wanderer'' and Sylvia Sether's ''King of Norway.'' In 2014, Palka produced and was the subject of the

HBO Home Box Office (HBO) is an American premium television network, which is the flagship property of namesake parent subsidiary Home Box Office, Inc., itself a unit owned by Warner Bros. Discovery. The overall Home Box Office business unit is ba ...

Lucy Walker documentary '' The Lion's Mouth Opens'', which follows the process of Palka discovering she has inherited the genetic mutation that causes

Huntington’s disease Huntington's disease (HD), also known as Huntington's chorea, is a neurodegenerative disease that is mostly inherited. The earliest symptoms are often subtle problems with mood or mental abilities. A general lack of coordination and an unst ...

, and which was nominated for an

Emmy Award The Emmy Awards, or Emmys, are an extensive range of awards for artistic and technical merit for the American and international television industry. A number of annual Emmy Award ceremonies are held throughout the calendar year, each with the ...

and shortlisted for an

Academy Award The Academy Awards, better known as the Oscars, are awards for artistic and technical merit for the American and international film industry. The awards are regarded by many as the most prestigious, significant awards in the entertainment ind ...

nomination. Palka made a cameo in the

series ''Girls'' as Jessa's (

Jemima Kirke Jemima Jo M Kirke (born 26 April 1985) is a British-American artist, actress and director. She gained international acclaim through her role as Jessa Johansson on the HBO series ''Girls''. She made her film debut in the 2005 indie short '' Smil ...

) sister. As of 2017, Palka appears as Reggie 'Vicky the Viking' Walsh in the

Netflix Netflix, Inc. is an American subscription video on-demand over-the-top streaming service and production company based in Los Gatos, California. Founded in 1997 by Reed Hastings and Marc Randolph in Scotts Valley, California, it offers a fil ...

series ''G.L.O.W'' . Palka wrote, directed and starred in ''

Bitch Bitch may refer to: * A female dog or other canine * Bitch (slang), a vulgar slur for a human female Bitch or bitches may also refer to: Arts and media Film and television * ''The Bitch'' (film), a 1979 film starring Joan Collins * ''Bitc ...

'', based on a true story from Scottish doctor

R.D. Laing Ronald David Laing (7 October 1927 – 23 August 1989), usually cited as R. D. Laing, was a Scottish psychiatrist who wrote extensively on mental illnessin particular, the experience of psychosis. Laing's views on the causes and treatment of ...

of a mother acting like a dog after a psychotic break. The film made its round in film festivals around the world, after its world premiere at

2017 Sundance Film Festival The 2017 Sundance Film Festival took place from January 19 to January 29, 2017. The first lineup of competition films was announced November 30, 2016. Awards The following awards were presented: * Grand Jury Prize: Dramatic – ''I Don't Feel at ...

. In 2017, Palka directed the feature film ''EGG'' starring

Christina Hendricks Christina Rene Hendricks (born May 3, 1975) is an American actress and former model. With an extensive career on screen and stage, she has received various accolades, including six Primetime Emmy Award nominations, two Screen Actors Guild Awa ...

Alysia Reiner Alysia Reiner is an American actress. She is best known for playing Natalie "Fig" Figueroa in the Netflix comedy drama series '' Orange Is the New Black'' (2013–2019), for which she won a Screen Actors Guild Award for her role as part of the ...

and

Anna Camp Anna Ragsdale Camp (born September 27, 1982) is an American actress and singer. She is best known for her roles as the villainous Sarah Newlin in the HBO vampire drama ''True Blood'' (2009, 2013–2014) and Aubrey Posen in the musical comedy '' ...

and produced by Michele Ganeless.

Theater

In 2010, Palka performed in ''

Love, Loss, and What I Wore ''Love, Loss, and What I Wore'' is a play written by Nora and Delia Ephron based on the 1995 book of the same name by Ilene Beckerman. It is organized as a series of monologues and uses a rotating cast of five principal women. The subject matter ...

'' at The Geffen Playhouse in Los Angeles. In 2012, she was in The Ensemble Theater in

Santa Barbara, California Santa Barbara ( es, Santa Bárbara, meaning "Saint Barbara") is a coastal city in Santa Barbara County, California, of which it is also the county seat. Situated on a south-facing section of coastline, the longest such section on the West Coas ...

, reading of ''The Good Soldier''. She appeared in

Martin McDonagh Martin Faranan McDonagh (; born 26 March 1970) is a British-Irish playwright, screenwriter, producer, and director. Born and brought up in London, he is the son of Irish parents. He is known as one of the most acclaimed modern playwrights whose ...

's ''The Lonesome West'' at the Actor's Gang Theatre, Los Angeles, and in

Conor McPherson Conor McPherson (born 6 August 1971) is an Irish playwright, screenwriter and director of stage and film. In recognition of his contribution to world theatre, McPherson was awarded a doctorate of Literature, Honoris Causa, in June 2013 by the Un ...

's ''Dublin Carol'' at the Ensemble Theatre Company.

Awards

* 20YY: Annenberg Film Fellowship * 2008: Sundance Film Festival – Grand Jury Prize, Dramatic (nominee) for ''Good Dick'' * 2008: Edinburgh International Film Festival – New Director's Award for ''Good Dick'' * 2010:

, Alfred P. Sloan Award * 2016: News & Documentary Emmy Awards – Outstanding Short Documentary (nominee) for ''The Lion's Mouth Opens'' * 2017: Fantasia Film Festival – Cheval Noir award for Best Screenplay for ''

'' * 2017: Neuchâtel International Fantastic Film Festival – Narcisse Award, Best Film (nominee) for ''Bitch''

Filmography

;Creator * 1990s: ''By My Very Self'' (Short) * 1990s: ''For My American Friends'' (Short) * 2008: ''

'' – as The Woman; producer, director, writer * 2014: ''I'm the Same'' – as Skye; co-producer, director, writer * 2014: '' The Lion's Mouth Opens'' (Documentary short) – as herself; producer, writer * 2015: ''Always Worthy'' – as Genevieve; producer, director, writer * 2016: ''Heirloom'' (Short) – as Maid Ivy; writer * 2017: ''

'' – as Jill Hart; director, writer * 2018: ''

Egg An egg is an organic vessel grown by an animal to carry a possibly fertilized egg cell (a zygote) and to incubate from it an embryo within the egg until the embryo has become an animal fetus that can survive on its own, at which point the a ...

'' – director ;Actor * 2001: ''Earth Day'' (Short) – as Gail (voice) * 2006: ''Orchids'' (Short) – as Girl's Feet * 2007: ''

Drunk History ''Drunk History'' is an American educational comedy television series produced by Comedy Central, based on the Funny or Die web series created by Derek Waters and Jeremy Konner in 2007. They and Will Ferrell and Adam McKay are the show's exec ...

'' (TV series) – as Martha Washington (1 episode: "Drunk History Vol. 3: Featuring Danny McBride") * 2007: '' Derek and Simon'' (TV series short) – as Sophie (2 episodes) * 2009: ''Betty File 43'' (Short) * 2010: ''

Neds Ned is a derogatory term applied in Scotland to hooligans, louts or petty criminals.First Kiss'' (Short) – as Soko's Kisser * 2015: ''Pant Suits'' (Short) – as Joanne * 2015: ''

Scottish Mussel ''Scottish Mussel'' is a 2015 comedy film, written, directed and produced by Talulah Riley that revolves around the life of a Glaswegian criminal, Ritchie (Martin Compston), who becomes interested in poaching freshwater pearl mussels from rivers ...

'' – as Fiona * 2015: '' Contracted: Phase II'' – as Crystal Young * 2015: ''Oh Gallow Lay'' (Short) * 2015: ''

Forever Forever or 4ever may refer to: Film and television Films * ''Forever'' (1921 film), an American silent film by George Fitzmaurice * ''Forever'' (1978 film), an American made-for-television romantic drama * ''Forever'' (1992 film), an American ...

'' – as Kate * 2016: ''

Girls (TV series) ''Girls'' is an American comedy-drama television series created by and starring Lena Dunham, executive-produced by Judd Apatow. The series depicts four young women living in New York City. The show's premise was drawn from Dunham's own life, as w ...

'' (TV show) – as Minerva (1 episode: "Queen for Two Days") * 2017–19: '' GLOW'' (TV series) – as Reggie Walsh (23 episodes) * 2017: ''We Are Boats'' – as Marko * 2017: ''Mississippi Requiem'' – as Emily Grierson * 2018: ''The Adventures of Thomasina Sawyer'' – as Aunt Polly ;Theater * 2006: ''

Dublin Carol ''Dublin Carol'' is a play by Conor McPherson, which premiered in London at the Royal Court Theatre in 2000. Plot John, a middle-aged employee of a funeral home in Dublin, returns from a funeral on Christmas Eve with Mark, a 20-year-old who has h ...

'' by

at the Ensemble Theatre Company * 2010: ''

'' at The Geffen Playhouse, Los Angeles * 2012: ''The Good Soldier'' reading at The Ensemble Theater, Santa Barbara, California * 2000s: ''

The Lonesome West ''The Lonesome West'' is a play by British-Irish playwright Martin McDonagh, part of his Connemara trilogy, which includes ''The Beauty Queen of Leenane'' and ''A Skull in Connemara''. All three plays depict the murderous occurrences in the we ...

'' by

The Actors' Gang The Actors' Gang is an experimental theatre and nonprofit group based at the Ivy Substation in Culver City, California. It was founded in 1981 by a group of actors, including Tim Robbins, now a member of the board and Artistic Director of the tr ...

Theatre, Los Angeles

Sources

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Palka, Marianna Living people 1981 births Scottish film actresses Scottish people of Polish descent Actresses from Glasgow Scottish women film directors Scottish film producers Writers from Glasgow Scottish screenwriters Scottish women photographers Scottish television actresses Scottish stage actresses 21st-century Scottish actresses 21st-century women photographers 21st-century British screenwriters 21st-century Scottish women writers British women screenwriters