凱蒂·本德·永利 Katie Bender Wynn

Katie Bender Wynn is a Los Angeles based filmmaker crafting long form narrative sports stories capturing the heart and spirit of the athlete for mainstream audiences. Recently, Katie directed MATILDAS: THE WORLD AT OUR FEET [2023], a 6 part docu-series for Disney Plus about the Matildas; Australia’s National Women’s Football Team starring Sam Kerr, Ellie Carpenter, and Mary Fowler. In May of 2021, Katie directed the short documentary film WE CHAMPION for General Mills’ iconic cereal brand, WHEATIES, featuring legendary activist and 1968 Olympic Champion Tommie Smith for the Cannes Lions Festival. Katie was a story producer on the NETFLIX docu-series HOME GAME [2020] about unique and dangerous traditional sports from around the world, and she story produced a SHOWTIME pilot about NBA champion Draymond Green [2019]. Katie made her directorial debut with the feature documentary THE WILL TO FLY [2016], profiling Olympic champion freestyle aerial skier, Lydia Lassila. The film premiered in Melbourne on International Women’s Day followed by a successful theatrical release where the film was positively received by critics. The film was quoted “The Most Inspirational Movie Of The Year” by the Huffington Post Australia. Since then, it has been sold to VOD and television networks across the globe, including National Geographic. Beyond the film release, THE WILL TO FLY impact campaign was used as a vehicle to inspire gender equality in sport and life and had a significant impact in Australian communities on an educational, sporting, corporate and political level. The film and educational program continue to be studied throughout schools and sports clubs across Australia. In addition, Katie is a TEDx speaker and has spoken on panels for Variety, Women In Film, KPMG Australia, impact doc labs, international film festivals, and Q&A screenings. She also made a speech at Australian Parliament House advocating for Women In Sport by breaking down the disparities between Men's and Women's media coverage in sports across Australia and the globe. She has worked with non-profit organizations directing short-form documentaries, including “THE GIVING TREE AWARD” honoree film featuring Chrissy Teigen for the 2019 baby2baby Charity Gala, and the “LIV AID” film about a breast cancer awareness device featuring ‘Dr. Ernie Bodai’ for the Olivia Newton-John breast cancer foundation. Before turning to filmmaking, Katie was a professional athlete, first as a gymnast, then as a freestyle aerial skier who trained on the Australian Aerial Ski team. After retiring from freestyle skiing in 2008, Katie decided to bring her love of film and sport together and has proven her edge in premium sports documentaries. Katie is a member of the Directors Guild of America [DGA], Australian Directors Guild [ADG] & Australian Academy Cinema Television Arts [AACTA].