Jena Burchick
Jena Burchick is a two-time regional Emmy award winning filmmaker, artist and professor from Baltimore, Maryland. She is a recipient of the 2025 University of Film & Video Association Excellence in Teaching Award, which celebrates and honors members who ignite a passion for learning among students through innovation, commitment to inclusive teaching, and demonstrate creative pedagogy for student engagement.
She returned to her alma mater, Towson University, after spending a decade crewing as an IATSE 487 Studio Technician and Gaffer for commercial, episodic television and feature films such as House of Cards, Veep and Jason Bourne, as well as lighting President Obama during his administration.
Burchick has produced and directed short and feature-length documentary and docu-narrative films exploring the complexities of family and community dynamics while investigating themes related to gender, bodily autonomy and generational trauma. Her work has been exhibited in film festivals, conferences and galleries both nationally and internationally. The production and distribution of her work celebrates intentional crewing practices that aim to engage and educate emerging filmmakers.
She received her B.S in Electronic Media & Film from Towson University and her MFA in Film from Vermont College of Fine Arts. She currently teaches narrative and non-fiction film production, theory and professional practice as a tenure track Assistant Professor in the TU EMF department.
