Marius graduated in 1995 with a BFA in acting from Hyperion University, a private conservatory in Bucharest, Romania. It was his way to express himself in an intolerable, mute, and frozen in fear society where the spirit was not allowed to be free even after the anti-communist revolution of 1989, which he experienced first hand. There he discovered Stanislavksi's psychological acting and methods of physical actions.
For two years after graduation, Marius traveled Europe with the Greek play The Suppliants, Aeschylus' oldest tragedy. The production was performed in French, language that Marius speaks fluently. Vienna, Amsterdam, Avignon, Paris, Rome, Glasgow, Birmingham, Dublin were just a few European theatre capitals where he was grateful to show his talent and appreciation for the art of acting.
In 1997, Marius Iliescu also performed the play at the Lincoln Center Festival in NYC. The moment was decisive in his decision to continue pursuing his career in the United States. In 2005, he graduated with Magna Cum Laude in Dance Performance and Choreography from Oakland University in Rochester, Michigan, achievement that broadened his artistic horizons tremendously. For four years after graduation, 2005 - 2009, Marius was a principal dancer with the most intriguing and visually spectacular contemporary dance company in MI, Detroit Dance Collective, lead by the explosive Artistic Director - Barbara Selinger.
Thirsty to know as much as possible about the art that frees him more than anything, in 2010 Marius earned his Master of Arts in Directing from Wayne State University, Detroit, MI. Also, in 2010 Marius played the lead in D'Balentine Creative production, Death and Detroit, an acclaimed short film about the untamed spirit of Motor City, and in 2011 was the lead actor in Colin Ulman's film Working with the Dead.
With quite an impressive list of features and short films credits, as well as acting and directing theatrical works in his backpack, in 2012 Marius joined the world of dramatic artists of Chicago, where he decided to make his acting and directing mark on film.
Butterflies in the Dark, a real story of survival (Noiemi Lobont - Director, Marius Iliescu - Original Screenplay/Executive Producer/Lead Actor) and Adios and Vaya con Dios (Ave Fenix Productions, Zachary Laoutides - Producer, Marius Iliescu - Executive Producer/Co-lead Actor) are two of the last films he worked in Chicago, currently both in post-production.
