Director · Producer · Editor
An independent filmmaker and the founder of Burnhouse Pictures, working across directing, producing, and editing.
About
Michael Burns has spent more than two decades making independent films. His work begins with character and performance, then builds a visual world around the people and places at the center of the story.
Through Burnhouse Pictures, Michael has directed and produced narrative features, documentaries, and short films. His feature work includes Whispers of the North, Peaks and Valleys, Proper Binge, which he co-directed with Dean Q. Mitchell as the Quake Brothers, and the documentary Breath of Fresh Air. Peaks and Valleys and Proper Binge are available on Tubi and other streaming platforms.
Michael is also a former film instructor who continues to mentor aspiring filmmakers. Whether leading his own production or joining another filmmaker in the edit, he brings the same focus: find the emotional center and serve the story.
Interviews
Feature films
When her estranged father returns from prison seeking forgiveness, a deaf teenager turns to a magnetic stranger—only to find herself trapped in a darker version of the past she has spent her life outrunning.
Wrapped in plastic and thrown from a plane into a rural Alaskan lake would usually mean the end of the story. For Bailey, it’s just the beginning.
After another drunken mishap lands his lifelong friend in the hospital, Burgess “Buzz” Zwink reluctantly forces himself into sobriety.
A documentary about the skateboarders who organized, raised funds, and fought for a skate park in Wasilla, Alaska.