Queen Mimi

When you feel like a queen, even a laundromat can be a palace. Marie “Mimi” Haist defied her adulterous husband and moved onto the streets in her 50s, living in parking lots and doorways until finding her “home” one stormy night between rows of washers in a Californian laundromat. Encouraged to stay by a more than generous laundry owner, Mimi’s ‘the past is the past’ philosophy endeared her to regular fluff and fold clients and, after more than 20 years, Mimi has made some unlikely friends, ranging from local loves to Hollywood A-listers Zach Galifianakis and Renee Zellweger. Filmed over 5 years by barista/actor/director Yaniv Rokah while he worked at a cafe across the street, Queen Mimi is the story of an unlikely hero. Now 89, Mimi reminds us to never give in and never give up, and that if you ever find yourself in the gutter, to never stop looking at the stars.