Biography
Katie Folger is an actress, writer, and comedienne based in Austin, Texas. Her work is geared toward more nuanced representation of women in media inspired by longtime mentor Robert Redford. An award-winning artist, her bold and memorable performances have garnered her praise from festivals like Sundance, SXSW, and Locarno, among others.
Folger, a staple in Austin indie film scene, recently returned to her roots onstage with a dynamo comedic performance in the May 2023 premiere of her one woman comedy Getting in Bed with the Pizza Man, a racy, dagger-tongued 75 minute monologue exploring the perils of sex & being single during the Covid-19 era. Directed by Matrex Kilgore, the show enjoyed a highly successful, sold out run in Austin with encore plans in early 2024. The show is shortlisted for the prestigious B. Iden Payne Awards, Austin's theater awards, this fall.
Broadway World said of GBPM, "Folger brings both humor and vulnerability to her story of navigating the dangerous waters of casual sex during the pandemic... is it ironic that Folger speaks of her pursuit of men in the same way that we are accustomed to hearing men speak about women, or is this her effective subversive point? I choose the latter."
The Austin Chronicle calls her a "fierce, confident, engaging storyteller with super, effortless comic timing and a liking for descriptive detail and heightened prose. Further, "if pheromones could talk and were given a public forum to express themselves, it would take the form of Katie Folger's Getting in Bed with the Pizza Man - a lusty, self-written, one-woman oration on female sexual discovery, exploration, and empowerment."
Up next, she can be seen in starring roles in feature films Family Portrait (2023 Locarno Film Festival, El Gouna Film Festival, Chicago International Film Festival), a sprawling family drama/thriller directed by Lucy Kerr (2022 Filmmaker Magazine's 25 New Faces of Independent Film) and Tooth Shop Fiasco, an absurdist comedy produced by George Rush (2024). She is best known for her starring role as villain 'Meredith' in Rooster Teeth's Streamy-Award winning sci-fi series Day 5 (2017, Amazon). Other TV credits include a recurring role in Robert Rodriguez's From Dusk Till Dawn (2013, Amazon).
Pre-pandemic, she wrapped a six-month sketch comedy season at The Magnet, her NYC stage debut, and trained in comedy under Amy Poehler herself at Upright Citizens Brigade (2019). In Los Angeles, she was one of the first on-camera hires as a satirical news anchor and writer for Phil DiFranco's Rogue Rocket in the new media space (2020). In the feature space, additional credits include Andrew Bujalski's Results (2015, Sundance), Karen Skloss's The Honor Farm & Emily Hagins's Grow up Tony Phillips (2017, SXSW). Her breakout role was in Zero Charisma which won SXSW's Audience Award (2013). She has collaborated with notable Texas Film figures Richard Linklater, Bryan Poyser, Bob Byington, Yen Tan, Vicky Boone, Rooster Teeth, and the Austin Film Society.
Alongside her work as an artist, Folger is working towards a Masters in Clinical Mental Health Counseling with special interest in working with victims of intimate partner violence and in crisis and trauma intervention.
