Profile Text
Birth Name: Thomas McKay Martin, Jr.
Place of Birth: Seattle, Washington, U.S.
Date of Birth: September 7, 1979
Ethnicity: * father – European * mother – African-American
TJ Martin, also known as T. J. Martin, is an American filmmaker. He co-directed the documentary Undefeated (2011), which he was also co-editor and co-cinematographer on. It won the Academy Award for Best Documentary Feature.
He is the son of singer and songwriter Tina Bell and guitarist Tommy Martin, who were members of Seattle-based rock band Bam Bam. His father was white. His mother was African-American. Regarding his background, he has stated :
My experience navigating the world is night and day different than that of someone whose parents are both Black. I personally, identify much more with being mixed race. It would be hard for me to accept such an achievement without also acknowledging my Native American, Scandinavian, Chinese and Jewish roots as well! I definitely think it warrants a greater conversation. I wonder if there’s some kind of designation for being the first mixed race director to win for best documentary? Probably not.
My experience navigating the world is night and day different than that of someone whose parents are both Black. I personally, identify much more with being mixed race. It would be hard for me to accept such an achievement without also acknowledging my Native American, Scandinavian, Chinese and Jewish roots as well! I definitely think it warrants a greater conversation. I wonder if there’s some kind of designation for being the first mixed race director to win for best documentary? Probably not.