Welcome!
I'm Gaylynn Baker, and regardless of whether I'm acting, directing, or writing in this crazy creative industry, I am first and foremost a lover of "story."
​​My story began at three with dance lessons. The first time I hit a stage and the spotlight hit me I was hooked. Dance earned me a ballet scholarship to college, and then a “lucky” break came that allowed me to move to perform Off Broadway, on National TV and model in New York.
After that came marriage and childbirth, and my decision to stay home to raise my two beloved sons, (the smartest decision I have ever made). So twenty or so years had passed before I returned to this industry I love.​
I learned the art of movie making by crewing on eleven low-budget features in Los Angeles.
​​I learned the art of movie making by crewing on eleven low-budget features in Los Angeles. When I realized that documentaries would give me the privilege of both directing and writing, I wrote and directed three award-winning documentaries.
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My latest one, "We Know Not What We Do," opened the Jakarta World Film and International Film Festival in Indonesia and also won the Accolade International Humanitarian Award. Before that, "The Trail of Painted Ponies," narrated by Ali MacGraw, won Best Documentary Film and I won Best Woman Director at the New Mexico White Sands Film Festival. My first short 9-minute doc, When Buffalo Roam," narrated by Peter Coyote, won the New York International Film & Video Festival. All three can be viewed here.
In addition, I wrote two books, Gifts of Gratitude and We Know Not What We Do, and a screenplay, "50 to 1," that was produced and directed by Jim Wilson, and released in theaters. My books can be digitally downloaded here.
During the years in between films and writing, I worked as press secretary to Lt Gov. Walter Bradley in New Mexico. When New York was attacked in 911, I produced “The Dream Catcher Project” delivering 10,000 Dream Catchers to New York. In addition, I worked with Governor Gary Johnson, Shirley MacLaine, and Val Kilmer, to start what is now a booming film industry there.
As you can see, my life has been a wild ride, filled with stories: funny stories, sad stories, inspiring stories, and the deep joy of creation.
May you find the stories you love as you flip through these pages.
- Gaylynn Baker