The Los Angeles Latino International Film Festival (LALIFF) announced the 10 visionary Afro Latino and Indigenous Latino directors that were selected for its Latinx Inclusion Fellowship, sponsored by Netflix. The Fellowship, now in its second year, was created to develop extensive and inclusive opportunities for underrepresented groups within the Latino community.
Award-winning filmmakers William D. Caballero, Evelyn Lorena, Nicole Mejia, Sebastian Rea and Kristi Uribes are the fellows selected for the Indigenous Latino cohort and Elyssa Aquino, Jeanette Dilone, Alexis Garcia, Gabriella A. Moses, and Eli Vazquez are the fellows selected for the Afro Latino cohort.
“We are honored to be able to provide this unique fellowship that, with the support of Netflix, allows us to uplift underrepresented Latino voices in the industry,” said Academy Award®-nominated actor and co-founder of LALIFF and the Latino Film Institute, Edward James Olmos. “These ten selected fellows demonstrate the richness of talent in our community. We are excited to embark on this fellowship with them and are looking forward to the films they’ll be producing in the coming months.”
Pete Corona, director of drama series at Netflix, added, “Expanding this year’s program to include both Indigenous Latinx and Afro Latinx filmmakers helps create even more opportunities for people to see themselves and their experiences reflected on screen. This year’s Fellows are talented storytellers with unique creative visions. We can’t wait to see their films come to life with support from the incredible team at LALIFF.”
Each fellow will be awarded a $20,000 grant to produce a short and will receive individualized mentorship, as well as various networking opportunities. Their completed films will premiere as part of the 2022 version of LALIFF, where the fellows will also participate in the festival’s Industry Week to further develop their careers and gain industry access needed to succeed as working artists.
This year’s mentors include creative producer Alicia Marie Agramonte who has worked on projects such as Creed and HBO’s award-winning series Veep; head of development and producer at Ojalá productions Christine Dávila; writer/director/producer Lissette Feliciano whose first feature film Women Is Losers was LALIFF 2021 Closing Gala, and is available now on HBO Max; writer/director Javier Fuentes-León whose first feature film Undertow represented Peru at the Oscars® in 2011 and his latest feature The Best Families was an official selection of LALIFF 2021; editor Michael N. Knue whose work includes editing The Hidden and Night of the Creeps, as well as Todd McFarland’s comic book classic, Spawn; storyteller, media maker and media arts educator Cristina Kotz Cornejo who was recently recognized by Variety as “2021 Educator of the Year”; writer/director Diana Peralta whose debut film De Lo Mio was an official selection at LALIFF 2019 and picked up by HBO for distribution; and writer/producer Oscar Torres whose latest film 7th & Union, starring Omar Chaparro, had its world premiere as LALIFF 2021 opening night gala, and is set to be released worldwide in 2022.
Mike Pierantozzi joins Movers+Shakers as exec creative director
Creative agency Movers+Shakers has appointed Mike Pierantozzi as executive creative director. In this new role, he will help guide the creative direction of Movers+Shakers’ socially-native campaigns. Pierantozzi will report to co-founder and chief creative officer Geoffrey Goldberg.
With nearly two decades of experience as a copywriter, creative director, and multi-platform storyteller, Pierantozzi brings a wealth of knowledge from his work with major brands including Kraft, Unilever, IBM, and Walmart. He has led the creation of award-winning campaigns for agencies like Red Tettemer, Ogilvy, The Brooklyn Brothers, TAXI, Saatchi & Saatchi, and most recently, Vayner, where he spearheaded culturally iconic work for Planters including “Death of Mr. Peanut.” He led the National Down Syndrome Society and Luvs account, whose “First Kid. Second Kid” campaign was awarded by the Effies, ADC, Clios and LIAs.
Outside of the office, Pierantozzi practices what he teaches brands. He’s gone viral multiple times on his own TikTok account, featuring comedic interactions with his son and a trombone. He’s accumulated 15K followers on TikTok.
“Mike brings a rare and awesome combination of deep social and platform experience, a keen eye for excellent storytelling, and a humble and kind approach to leadership,” said Goldberg. “Mike’s got a knack for turning brand stories into cultural movements, making him the perfect fit for Movers+Shakers. He’s got the kind of bold vision and attention to culture that fits perfectly with our mission to push creative boundaries and drive industry firsts. Plus, as a creator himself he has the innate ability to make people stop, laugh, and share--which is exactly what we’re about.”
“I’ve... Read More