Zach Polis

Zach Polis is a screenwriter, playwright, and former poet laureate.

Zach studied screenwriting at NYU Tisch School of the Arts, as well as Scriptwriting for Film and Television at the National Film and Television School in the UK. He was a featured TV writer as part of the National Film and Television School’s Script Development Diploma, as well as TV Drama: Creating the Bible with Peter Ansorge, former Head of Drama for Channel 4. He completed UCLA School of Theater, Film and Television’s Professional Program in Producing.

Zach has been featured in the Street Style section of British Vogue, Vogue Italia’s “Best of” PhotoVogue, and Teen Vogue describes his style as brilliant. His poems have been featured with Vogue Italia.

He was St. Albert’s first poet laureate, acting as a literary and cultural ambassador to the Edmonton Metropolitan Region. He was one of the Edmonton Public Library’s Featured Writers. He was Alberta Artist in Residence / Arts Ambassador. He is an alumnus of Banff Centre for Arts and Creativity’s spoken word residency. He is a recipient of the Edmonton Artists' Trust Fund Award and RBC Emerging Artist Award.

Zach has performed across Canada, including the Canadian Individual Poetry Slam finals. He has performed his poetry on CBC Radio, as well as live on the CBC Centre Stage for the Edmonton Poetry Festival. His video poems have been exhibited by the Art Gallery of Alberta. Zach’s poetry has been displayed on Blindman Brewing’s Super Session pale ale. Zach’s poetry was part of Poetry Moves on Transit, which puts short poems into public transit vehicles. His poetry was displayed as public art in partnership with the Edmonton Arts Council. His poetry is available at the Calgary Public Library through their short story dispenser at the Central Library.

He’s also a filmmaker and photographer. Zach directed “Glass Bookshop,” a documentary with TELUS STORYHIVE. Zach’s photos have been published on Vogue Italia’s PhotoVogue, curated by Alessia Glaviano and her editorial team. He has received “Planet Placement” and “Sustainable Production Training” from BAFTA’s albert, as well as Reel Green’s “Climate and Sustainable Production Training.” He completed CBC’s One Stop Workshops around the business and financing of film, TV and digital media productions.

Zach graduated from the University of Alberta with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Drama and Creative Writing (with Distinction). Zach has received scholarships and awards in playwriting, poetry, acting, Japanese studies, and outstanding academic excellence (top 1.2% of the student body university-wide, or roughly 330 of 28,000 undergraduates enrolled). He studied playwriting with Nobel Laureate Derek Walcott.

Zach has been featured four times in New Trail, the University of Alberta's alumni magazine, which reaches 250,000 university-educated readers around the world. He was a shortlisted candidate for the City of Edmonton’s John Poole Award for Promotion of the Arts. His artistic work has been supported by Banff Centre for Arts and Creativity, TELUS STORYHIVE, Alberta Film Commission, National Screen Institute, Edmonton Arts Council, Alberta Foundation for the Arts, Canada Council for the Arts, and Writers' Trust of Canada.