After graduating from high school with distinction Maiana studied for two years in the Preparatory classes for nation-wide entrance exams to literature schools (Normal Sup) in Bordeaux, then two more years in Paris, where she obtained a “Maitrise” (bachelor with honours) in Corporate Communications with distinction at the Sorbonne University, in 1999. She decided to specialise in film production, and to broaden her horizons by studying abroad. Her admission to the Master of Arts in media arts production, with a major in film and video production, at the University of Technology, Sydney, turned this wish into a reality.

Since then she worked in more than twenty short films, learning in depth all the aspects of the audiovisual field, specialising in directing, script writing and editing. Her work and enthusiasm had soon results, when her work as an editor for “the Pill Box” won best editing awards in two film festivals in Sydney. Her first two short movies (“The Son”, 2002, “Insomnia”, 2001) were screened in a number of Australian short film festivals. Her third short, “Pascal”, 2003 was screened in competition in the International Women Film Festival of Bordeaux, at the international film festival of Montevideo, Uruguay and won best directing at the Premier Regard film festival, Boulogne Billancourt, France. Since then a graduate in Editing from the very selective Australian Film and television school, (AFTRS), where she finished the editing of Secretos de Lucha, Maiana occasionally works as a technical support and unlinear editing teacher at the same School. She also works free lance as an editor and is developing several documentary and fiction projects, both on the short and the long format.

Secretos de Lucha is Maiana’s first long project. She received a scholarship from the Fondation de France and Aquitaine’s regional council to develop the project. She also attended the Doc Clinic, a documentary development workshop within the Talent campus organised by the festival of Berlin, in February 2005, with this project.

Director’s Nominations & Awards

Directing Award at the Premier Regard Film Festival, Boulogne-Billancourt for Pascal.
Best editor award at the Kaleidoscope film festival and Golden Eye Awards of UTS, Sydney, October 2001 for The Pill Box.

Secretos de Lucha Nominations & Awards

Festival de Biarritz, September 2007. BEST DOCUMENTARY AWARD
International History Film Festival Pessac, France, November 2007 AUDIENCE AWARD
FIPA, Biarritz, January 2008. Nominated for the Mitrani award.