David Marino
Walter Marino grew up in San Diego to immigrant parents. He joined the
Marine Corps in 2008 and was trained as a photojournalist. He deployed
to Afghanistan in 2009 and was awarded the Navy and Marine Corps
achievement medal for producing over 30 articles with supporting
images.
In 2015, he exited the Marine Corps to pursue education and graduated
with honors from the University of California San Diego, with a
bachelor’s degree in Literature and Writing. His career path changed
with an elective photography course, where a love for visual
storytelling was reestablished.
His love of photography led him to the UC Berkeley Graduate School of
Journalism, where he completed two master thesis projects in
documentary photography and documentary film. Walter says the themes
and style of his photography and films are deeply influenced by his
Latino culture. He often explores themes like pride and machismo, for
example, as well as topics that touch on mental health. His current
project is a film about his father’s use of psilocybin to help recover
from divorce, addiction and incarceration.