Mason Funk

Mason Funk was born and raised in Los Angeles and graduated from Stanford University with a BA in English in 1980. Over the next decade, Funk learned the art of writing while teaching high school English, coaching soccer, and working a wide variety of odd jobs, from picking apples to birthing sheep. He lived for seven years in Lisbon, Portugal, where he started writing for film and television. Returning to Los Angeles at 35, Funk began an award-winning career in nonfiction TV and film, writing and producing programs and documentaries on topics ranging from social issues to sports to science, and earning two Emmy nominations.

In 2014, Funk recognized that the individuals who launched the modern-day LGBTQ+ civil rights movement in the 1960s and '70s – one of the most remarkable social change movements in U.S. history – were becoming elders. It was imperative that their life stories, wisdom, and practical strategies for social change be recorded, preserved, and shared while they were still alive. Fueled by this vision, Funk founded The Outwords Archive (OUTWORDS) in 2016. To date, OUTWORDS has captured nearly 400 interviews with LGBTQ+ pioneers and elders in 47 states. In June 2019, OUTWORDS’ first interview anthology, entitled "The Book of Pride," was published by HarperCollins.

A dynamic speaker and storyteller, Funk has shared stories from OUTWORDS with a wide variety of audiences, including Google, Disney, Microsoft, AARP, the UK Ministry of Justice, and many others.

Funk and his husband, psychotherapist Jay Edwards, divide their time between the Silver Lake neighborhood of Los Angeles and Palm Springs, California.