If you’re not having fun, you’re doing something wrong. – Groucho Marx –
Valerie is an award winning Toronto based actor and filmmaker. At 18 years of age she toured China, the U.S. and Canada as a Puppeteer. She is a scholarship Graduate of George Brown’s Acting Program and a three time Dora Mavor Moore award winner. Valerie first gained international recognition playing the leading roles in Bruce McDonald’s Highway 61 and Roadkill. She has been a host for The Showcase Revue and has appeared as a guest star in various T.V. episodics and several Independent features.
The Passion of Rita Camilleri was Valerie’s writing, directing and producing debut. The film has won several international prizes. The Karlovy Vary film Festival held a retrospective of Valerie’s work as an actor and a filmmaker. Other filmmaking credits include: One Day I Stood Still, L’amour L’amour Shut the Door Por Favor and BoomBoom Baby Wants to Go. She has directed a Public Service Announcement for Centre of Opportunity, Respect and Empowerment (C.O.R.E), a biography on Colin Linden for the Toronto Arts Awards and two Bravo!FACT shorts entitled Pictures from Home and Omneya – Wish. Valerie also directed the Festival of Lights, a parade full of vignettes set on rooftops of Toronto’s Kensington Market, as well as video images for Theatre Gargantua’s production of Nod. Tell Us the Truth Josephine – a bitter immigrant story and Small, Stupid and Insignificant both won the best experimental film at the Female Eye Film Festival. The Fall of Grace, a short film for the National Theatre School of Canada. Black Hole, a music video for Joey Wright.
Valerie can be seen on the small screen as well with recent roles including a guest star spot on the CBC hit series The Border and in a recurring role on the international hit series Degrassi, NBC’s Beauty and the Beast, Murdoch Mysteries and most recently The Expanse Season 2.
Valerie continues to work on stage. She has returned from the UK where she developed a theatre piece with the support of the National Theatre Studio in London, England. She has starred in the award-winning theatre production of Scorched at The Tarragon theatre, National Arts Centre and the national touring company. She played in One Light / Neptune theatre’s The Veil and won a Merritt Award nomination for best leading actress. She was also in Frankfurt to perform the one-woman show titled We are not Afraid of the Dark by Tine Van Aerschot. In 2016 she was nominated for a Dora Mavor Moore award for her performance in Botticelli in the Fire and Sunday in Sodom at Canadian Stage, which won best production.
Valerie’s second feature film It’s Hard to Be Human has finished its festival run and won BEST CANADIAN FEATURE at the Female Eye Film Festival. It has worldwide distribution. Her first feature film, The Anniversary, won BEST NARRATIVE COMEDY at Cinequest. Best Leading Actress, Best Supporting Actor and Honourable Mention Best Feature film at Buffalo Niagara film festival and an Actra nomination for Best Actor for Colin Mochrie. Her third feature film Carmen is a Maltese/Canadian co-production, shot in Malta and starring Natascha McElhone. Valerie has two feature films in development.
Awards & Nominations
(selected)
It’s Hard to Be Human (feature film)
2018 Best Canadian Feature Film, Female Eye Film Festival
2016 Nomination, K.M. Hunter Award for film-making
The Anniversary (feature film)
2015 Best Narrative Feature, Comedy, Cinequest 25
2015 Best Actor in Supporting role, Best Actress in a leading role, Honourable Mention, Best Feature Film, Buffalo Niagara Film Festival
Small, Stupid and Insignificant (short)
2011 Best Experimental Drama, Female Eye Film Festival
Tell Us the Truth Josephine (short)
2009 Best Experimental Film, Female Eye Film Festival
The Passion of Rita Camilleri (short)
Best Film (Golden Knight Award) Malta Film Festival
Silver Plaque Award, Chicago Film Festival
Golden Plaque, Chicago Television Production
Best Music, Atlantic Film Festival
Gemini Nomination, Best Music Honorary Mention
New York Film Festival Honorary Mention, Columbus Film Festival
Expecting (feature film)
Best First Film (special jury prize for collective effort), Montreal World Film Festival
Second Prize, Sudbury Film Festival
People’s Choice Award, Vancouver International Film Festival
Best Canadian Film, Worldfest Houston
Gold Award, Low Budget Feature