Filsan Said (she/her) is a freelance director and playwright based in Minneapolis. She has working credits with Pangea World Theater, Playwrights Center, Ten Thousand Things, Illusion Theater, New Arab American Theater, Guthrie Theatre, Theater Mu, and Penguin Random House. She is a former Artistic and Administrative Apprentice at the Playwrights' Center and a Kennedy Center Directing Intensive Cohort Alumni.

Education: B.I.S. Theater Arts, Geography, African American and African Studies at the University of Minnesota - Twin Cities

Theater came to my life as a 19-year-old sophomore who needed an extra job during the school year and found a job as an usher at a local theater. However, storytelling has been a part of me since birth. As a Somali girl from Minnesota, I grew up immersed in proverbs, poetry, and my father's "family meetings," where he would gather my siblings and me to share tales of Somali folklore. Through characters like Dhegdheer (Long Ears) and Cigaal Shidaad (The Wise Coward), I was steeped in the vibrant oral traditions that shape our heritage.

I write to immortalize the present. I direct because I have a semi-healthy obsession with evoking themes, collaborating, and finding answers to questions. I have a knack for meeting people where they are and working to help them mold what their vision is. I am an INFJ. A scorpio sun, moon, and gemini rising. Personality tests can provide the puzzle to uncovering the soul. Jersey hijab is the supreme hijab fabric (if you know, you KNOW).

I am interested in making art that explores the complexities of the human experience.  I am someone who is filled with side quests and stories. I love a good diversion from the sacred timeline.