Jonas Mekas (born 1922) is a Lithuanian filmmaker, writer, and curator who has often been called “the godfather of American avant-garde cinema.” He was the founder of the Anthology Film Archives, The Film Makers Cooperative and Film Culture magazine. He was heavily involved with artists such as Andy Warhol, Nico, Yoko Ono, John Lennon, Salvador Dali and fellow Lithuanian George Maciunas. During the Second World War, Mekas was held in displaced persons camps before emigrating to the United States with his brother, Adolfas Mekas, in 1949.

Though his narrative films and documentaries are highly appreciated, he is best known for his diary films, such as Walden (1969), Lost, Lost, Lost (1975), Reminiscences of a Voyage to Lithuania (1972), and Zefiro Torna (1992). In 2001, he released a five-hour long diary film entitled As I Was Moving Ahead, Occasionally I Saw Brief Glimpses of Beauty, this documentary is based on the chronicles of his life.
Passed away on January 23, 2019 at the age of 96.