Marc Wanamaker is a renown historian, archivist, and lecturer in film history. In 1971, he founded Bison Archives in Los Angeles, a leading repository of research and photographs of motion picture history. He assisted in forming the American Film Institute facilities in Beverly Hills in 1969 and was an AFI staff member for seven years. His extensive list of publications includes over a dozen books as well as articles in the Los Angeles Times and interviews in numerous documentaries related to motion picture history.

Wanamaker is a founder of the Los Angeles International Film Exposition and assisted in forming The American Cinematheque. His vast experience co-producing film festivals and expositions led to an appointment as a program consultant with the Pordenone Silent Film Conference in Italy. He has tapped into his vast collection in Bison Archives to produce several historical film festivals, conferences, and programs.

Wanamaker is also the nephew of actor Sam Wanamaker.