Rao is a screenwriter and director based in Brooklyn, with roots in Missouri, Tennessee, and Illinois. She’s currently a 2023 Hear Us Grantee for her debut feature film, a thesis student on scholarship at NYU Grad Film, and in pre-production on her short film shooting this summer.

Rao comes from a background in direct cinema mentored by Albert Maysles, and experimental fiction. As an indie Producer and Editor, her acclaimed feature films include Editing MATERNA (dir. David Gutnik, Tribeca Film Festival double award-winner), Editing MAINELAND (dir. Miao Wang, SXSW Special Jury Award Winner), and Producing and Co-Editing MADELINE’S MADELINE (dir. Josephine Decker, Gotham Nominee for Best Feature, Independent Spirit Award double-nominee)

Rao has given Artist talks at IFP Narrative Lab, The Edit Center, UnionDocs, and Yale University and has taught workshops at True/False Film Festival. Rao is a proud member of the Brown Girls Doc Mafia.