Discipline Category: Live Performing Arts

Ethan Stark is a queer, neurodivergent playwright based in Winnipeg, Manitoba. He also directs, acts, artist admins, stage hands, production assistants, assistant stage manages, and occasionally will direct and edit music videos and short films. Basically, he is obsessed with the creative process and loves making cool stuff with cool people no matter what his role is. He was an artist in residence with One Trunk Theatre. There, he wrote and directed the first iteration of his play "Sinking Ship."  He continued seeking out mentorship through Creative Manitoba. His playwriting debut at the 2023 Winnipeg Fringe (A Work in Progress) was awarded the Harry S. Rintoul Honourable mention award. The next year he made his fringe producing and directing debut with new original play, The Ethan in the Room, which was once again shortlisted for the Harry S. Rintoul Award and given five stars by Winnipeg Free Press’s Ben Waldman. He was also a 2024 participant in Real Wheel Theatre’s playwriting circle and most recently assistant stage managed for We Quit Theatre’s newest show Glory. His work often features casual queer representation and explores the role of vulnerability and honest conversation in healing relationships both on a personal and societal level, often through the lens of magical realism.

I am an Ojibwe-Cree actor, writer, director, music producer, and program manager dedicated to Indigenous storytelling. My journey began at the Nor’West Community Centre in Winnipeg, where early exposure to the arts ignited a lifelong passion for performance and creative expression.

On screen, I’ve appeared in short films including Don’t Look @ Me (Sean Kinsella) and Unless You Have Been There (Farrah Murdock), the feature Aberdeen (Ryan Cooper & Eva Thomas), and Season 3 of the series Acting Good (APTN/CTV Comedy).

My directorial debut, Stay Awhile, created through the Skodoodisden Project, screened internationally at the Red Nation International Film Festival (Los Angeles), Pocahontas Reframed Film Festival (Richmond, VA), and across Turtle Island.

Behind the scenes, my career has spanned cinema operations, legal work as a Trademark Paralegal, and leadership roles in film organizations. I currently serve as Program Manager for the Winnipeg Indigenous Filmmakers Collective (WIFC) and as Education & Outreach Coordinator for the Winnipeg Film Group (WFG).

In 2025, I graduated from the National Screen Institute’s CBC New Indigenous Voices program, where I worked as Assistant Director on Rezervations for Two and later joined Eagle Vision as an Office PA. That same year, I became a proud member of ACTRA.

I continue to balance acting, writing, and directing with a commitment to fostering spaces where Indigenous voices can thrive and be represented authentically on screen.