A long-time patron of the arts, Martin Washington was known to frequent live stage performances with his parents in the early 1980’s, as a toddler. Even as a baby, this career accountant/first-time filmmaker would keep so quiet in theaters that neighboring audience members never knew he was in attendance. In his grade school years, commuting to private school from Philadelphia, PA, Martin’s artwork was praised by students, staff and parents alike.
High School would be Martin’s first go at Philadelphia’s public-school system. He graduated from a magnet program for select students, and then settled on an accounting major for his Bachelor of Science degree, which he received in the spring of 2000. One of his shining accomplishments in undergrad school was a 20-minute comedy short for World Philosophy class (half animation, half live-action), in which he presented two opposing sides of an argument on the creation of the universe.
Besides full-time accounting and auditing, Martin has taken on his share of youth counseling and volunteer work. Working with and around the youth rekindled a creative spirit in Martin, which aside from his Philosophy class project, had largely laid dormant since middle school. He taught himself to play piano and began writing music as a hobby. One of those songs was a favorite of his baby brother’s, which they performed as a duo, live at his brother’s wedding.
For his latest project, Martin has taken on motion picture production. Inspired again by music, this time he dared to share his bold and sobering interpretation of a seemingly soft and subtle pop-ballad from the mid 1990’s. With its wild action, eerie suspense and killer ending, the 7-minute short, "Danger In Moscow," is a tear-jerking, thought-provoking experience that has evoked the most earnest of dialogues between viewers.