Rana Kazkaz, a Syrian-American, currently lives with her family in Jordan, having left Damascus as a result of the ongoing Syrian conflict. Kazkaz holds an MFA in Acting from Carnegie Mellon University/Moscow Art Theatre and attended the Directing Workshop for Women at the American Film Institute. She is the writer and director of **** short films including ‘Mare Nostrum’ (2016). She is currently working as a story editor and co-producer on two feature-length documentaries.