Jean Strauss is a New York Times best-selling author, legislative activist, and documentary filmmaker. With For the life of me, she marries her twin passions of adoption reform and filmmaking.
A graduate of UC Berkeley and USC, wife of a college president and mother of two grown sons, she began making documentary films at the age of 50. Her short films won numerous award and accolades, and were included in prestigious screenings from American Cinematheque?s annual ?Women in Shorts? which displays emerging women directors, to the San Diego Cinema Society?s ?A Year in Shorts.? Her books include Penguin?s Birthright: the Guide to Search and Reunion, and the NYTimes bestseller, Forever Liesl: a memoir of The Sound of Music.
She currently lives on Bainbridge Island, Washington, and in Lubbock, Texas.
For the Life of Me is her first feature film.
