Michael Hanelin

Michael Hanelin is an American-born film actor who has appeared in feature films such as Durant's Never Closes, Dead in 5 Heartbeats and The Men Who Robbed the Bank. He co-stars in Grief, scheduled for release in 2016. In other projects, he has played detectives, lawyers, business moguls, grieving fathers and budding serial killers. Michael didn't start his acting work in film, rather he was propelled in front of the camera by a voice-over coach who recognized his talent. He was attracted by the technical challenges of camera work and the affinity/fear he felt in leaving his "comfort zone." After a couple of roles, Michael was hooked. Following his voice-over classes, Michael began camera classes with Marla Finn and the late Peter Stelzer (Emmy winning producer of Miss Evers' Boys) at the Phoenix Film Institute. Kevin Phipps' course in the Meisner method augmented his studies. Michael's first project with director Travis Mills, Off Track, was a sweaty adventure at a local horse track. He played a family man who copes with the stresses of home life by pretending to be a losing horse bettor, while never actually placing a wager. Michael now co-stars in Grief, a feature length film directed by mentor Kevin Phipps. Grief is a surreal drama in which Michael stretches his range even further by playing a conflicted lawyer struggling with dual personas who is unable to reconcile his own actions. Michael's film credits began in 2011 and span a wide range of functional roles including Writer, Producer, and of course dozens of acting roles. He is also involved in a unique project adapting 52 classics to modern-day short films over the course of 52 weeks. When not working as a doctor (he's an Interventional Radiologist,) or filming, Michael enjoys traveling the world, playing poker tournaments along the way. His family consists of his mother, a well-known botanical artist living in Los Angeles, his father, who is also a radiologist, and four siblings. Two of his brothers are in medicine, although when they get together, the whole clan is known to ham it up. Originally from the Seattle area, Michael has lived in Berkeley, New York City, St. Louis and Atlanta. He settled in the Phoenix Valley in 2008.