Rita Baghdadi is an Emmy award-winning Moroccan-American documentary filmmaker known for the intimacy of her bold, character-driven films.
Her film SIRENS premiered at the 2022 Sundance Film Festival and won the Grand Jury Prize at Outfest. The film was praised as “utterly charming” by the Hollywood Reporter, “deeply moving,” and “so slick it feels more like narrative perfection.” Executive Produced by Natasha Lyonne and Maya Rudolph, the film was released in theaters across the U.S and is now available to stream. In March 2024, Rita’s film FINDING THE LIGHT about former conflict photographer Muhammed Muheison premiered on Disney+, which recently earned her two Cinema Eye Honors nominations.
Rita is co-founder of the production company Lady and Bird Films (BLACK BARBIE, Netflix 2024, SUBJECT) known for their ethical approach to documentary filmmaking. She is a 2024 Concordia Fellow, a Sundance Fellow, a Film Independent Fellow, and named DOC NYC’s ‘40 under 40.' She is a proud member of Brown Girls Doc Mafia and an active mentor in the industry.
Currently, Rita is in development and production on several new films including STALLIONS shooting in Morocco, and a doc series for Hulu. Rita is a member of the DGA and is represented by WME. When she’s not behind the camera, she’s always looking for a horse to ride.