About
Awards
2010 Kodak Howard Bingham Award
2013 Four Time Gold ADDY Award
2014 Legacy Leader Award
2023 Kodak Vanguard Award
2024 RIT Distinguished Alumni Award
Awards for Projects as Director of Photography
2020 Winner Cynopsis Best of the Best & Rising Star Award Best Lifestyle Reality Series Content for “vh1’s Black Girl Beauty”
2021 Winner Gold Telly Award Winner, Social Video: Social Impact for “vH1 Black Girl Beauty”
2021 ICG Generation Next Change Maker
2022 Kodak Vanguard Award
2022 Winner Best Pilot at the New York Movie Awards for “Go Fetch Club”
2022 Winner Best Original Story at New York International Film Awards for “Go Fetch Club”
2022 Winner Best Indie Short at New York International Film Awards for “Go Fetch Club”
2022 Winner Best Indie Short at the Los Angeles Film Awards for “Go Fetch Club”
2022 Winner Best Web/TV Pilot Toronto International Women Film Festival for “Go Fetch Club”
2022 Winner Best Proof of Concept at Houston Comedy Film Festival for “Go Fetch Club”
2022 Winner Best Web Comedy at Manhattan Film Festival for “Go Fetch Club”
2022 Winner Best Web/TV Pilot Latino Film Market for “Go Fetch Club”
2022 Winner Best Documentary at The People’s Film Festival for “The Sun Rises in the East”
2022 Winner Best Mid-Length Documentary at the Montreal International Black Film Festival for “The Sun Rises in the East”
2022 Winner Programmers Choice Award for Documentary Feature from Bushwick Film Festival for “The Sun Rises in the East”
2022 Winner Urbanworld Best Feature for “The Melt Goes on Forever: The Art & Times of David Hammons”
2022 Winner Urbanworld Audience Award for “The Melt Goes on Forever: The Art & Times of David Hammons”
2022 Winner of New Jersey Fall Film Festival for “The Sun Rises in the East”
2022 Contemporary Art Critic’s Prize at the Documentary Film Festival for “The Melt Goes on Forever: The Art & Times of David Hammons”
2022 Independent Spirit Award at the Detroit Black Film Festival for “The Sun Rises in the East”
2022 Judge’s Choice Award of Indianapolis Black Documentary Film Festival for “The Sun Rises in the East”
2023 Winner GLAAD Media Awards - Outstanding Online Journalism for “Logos Trans Youth Town Hall”
2023 Highly Commended International - Canberra Short Film Festival for “El Funeral”
2024 Le Train Bleu Award at the Cinema on the Bayou Film Festival for “El Funeral”
2024 Philadelphia Latino Arts & Film Festival Official Selection for "Fat Lips"
Festivals
Big Apple Film Festival
Black Film Festival
Canberra Short Film Festival
DOC NYC
Documentary Film Festival on Contemporary Art
Festival de la Crítica Cinematográfica de Caracas
International Human Rights Film Festival Albania
New Cinema
New York Festival of New Cinema
New York Film Festival
Norwich Film Festival
Palm Springs International Film Festival
Sheffield Doc Fest
Shorty Awards
SXSW
Sundance Film Festival
Tribeca Film Festival
Urbanworld
Victory International Film Festival
Honors
2021 International Cinematographers Guild Generation Next Change Maker
2023 International Cinematographers Guild Mentee
2023 International Cinematographers Guild Scholarship Committee
2023 American Society of Cinematographers Scholar
2024 Rochester Institute of Technology Distinguished Alumni Award
2024 International Cinematographers Guild Scholarship Committee
2025 International Cinematographers Guild Scholarship Committee
Publicity
December 2021 ICG Magazine “Change-Makers”
August 2022 ICG Magazine “Cooking with Cameras”
July 2023 ICG Magazine “600 Black Women Los Angeles Meetup”
Showcases
2018 Time Square Campaign: Outdoor Advertising Association “Get Out of Home”
2021 Climate Action: Inspiring Change at the Peabody Essex Museum “Running”
2021 - 2022 Brooklyn Museum, Baseera Khan “I Am an Archive”
2022 Montreal Independent Film Festival for “Go Fetch Club”
2022 Palm Springs International Film Award Semi-Finalist, “Elizaville”
2022 Sheffield Doc Fest, “The Melt Goes on Forever: The Art & Times of David Hammons”
2022 Vancouver International Film Festival, “The Melt Goes on Forever: The Art & Times of David Hammons”
2022 Chicago International Film Festival Gold Hugo Nomination, “The Melt Goes on Forever: The Art & Times of David Hammons”
2022 I Scherm dell’arte, The Melt Goes on Forever: The Art & Times of David Hammons”
2023: Art Basel, “The Melt Goes on Forever: The Art & Times of David Hammons”
2023 Toronto Black Film Festival, “The Melt Goes on Forever: The Art & Times of David Hammons”
2023: The Shed, Open Call “40 Acres”
2023 : Weeksville Heritage Center “40 Acres”
2023 : Upstate NY Horror Film Festival, “Fat Lips”
2023 : Secrets of the Dead Short Film Festival, “Fat Lips”
2023 : Victory International Film Festival, “El Funeral”
2023 : Buffalo International Film Festival, “El Funeral”
2023 : International Human Rights Film Festival, “El Funeral”
2023 : Norwich Film Festival, “El Funeral”
2023 : Canberra Short Film Festival, “El Funeral”
2023 : Festival de la Crítica Cinematográfica de Caracas
2023 : Victory International Film Festival
2023 : International Human Rights Film Festival Albania
Chris Wairegi is an award-winning New York City based Cinematographer. Chris’ filming experience is cross genre from narrative to documentary, commercial to experimental, and short to long form works for streaming, television, and the big screen. She has traveled domestically and internationally to bring stories to screen and share her vision with the world. Her dedication to the art and craft of visual storytelling, technical expertise, and passion for creating beautiful and compelling work have made her a titan in her field and an irreplaceable asset on each project.
Chris’ work has shown at Sundance, Tribeca Film Festival, and SXSW Film Festival. She has worked on television shows such as Run the World, Flatbush Misdemeanors, and Survival of the Thickest and shot shows such as Black Girl Beauty, MTV Women in Rap, and more.
She is a Legacy Leader, Kodak Howard Bingham Scholar, and Four Time Gold ADDY award winner. Chris is a proud member of IATSE Local 600, the International Collective of Female Cinematographers (ICFC), Brown Girls Doc Mafia (BGDM), Documentary Cinematographers Alliance (DCA) and SPORAS.
Chris was the recipient of the very first Kodak Vanguard Award for the creation of 600 Black Women. She is a member of the ICG Scholarship Committee, a 2021 ICG Generation Next Change Maker and a 2023 ASC Vision Scholar. She is a tireless feminist, activist, and educator.
