Nesanet Teshager Abegaze is a filmmaker, entrepreneur, educator, co-founder of Azla Ethiopian Eatery, and co-founder of Mamush Studios, whose profound love of storytelling and community unifies her wide-ranging career. At Stanford University, Nesanet earned her BA in Human Biology, an interdisciplinary major that allowed her to explore science, history, and the arts. Following her tenure supporting non-profit organizations at the New World Foundation, she earned her MA in Education from UCLA and taught at Los Angeles schools, where she developed an innovative health/life sciences curriculum with an emphasis on the arts.
Since leaving the formal education sector, Nesanet has immersed herself in many creative fields. As Vice President of Operations at Atom Factory, a renowned entertainment management company, she helped musicians and entertainers realize their unique artistic visions. From there, she and her mother co-founded Azla, a plant-based Ethiopian restaurant inspired by the idea that the dining table is a space to share food and your life. Working with and listening to her mother inspired Nesanet to preserve her family history via her lifelong interest in film. Her short film, Bereka (2020), screened at Sundance Film Festival, and won best experimental film at BlackStar Film Festival. Today, Nesanet brings her extensive career and artistic experiences to Mamush Studios. She works on books, films, cooking seminars, and more to foster community while creating new narratives.