Micro-Budget Filmmaking

Diana Peralta (she/her) is a Dominican-American writer and director. Her debut feature, DE LO MIO, had its world premiere as the closing night film of BAMcinemaFest in 2019 and is being distributed by HBO. The film was awarded “Best Narrative Feature” at IndieMemphis Film Festival and “Best Film” at RiverRun International Film Festival. Diana was featured in Filmmaker Magazine’s “25 New Faces of Independent Film”. Diana is in development on her second feature film, NO LOVE LOST, and is also developing an original TV pilot with UCP through the Ojála Ignition Lab Fellowship. She currently teaches directing at Columbia University’s Film MFA program. Aside from her film work, Diana has worked as a creative producer in advertising for 8+ years. She graduated from Johns Hopkins University with a BA in Film & Media Studies in 2011.

Julia Kots’ (she/her) first feature film, Inez & Doug & Kira, premiered at the Woodstock Film Festival in 2019 and is distributed by 1091 Pictures. Julia’s award-winning short films have screened on PBS and dozens of festivals worldwide, including Slamdance, Cinequest, Woodstock, Hamptons, Edmonton, and Chicago International. She has received awards and grants such as IFP Audience Choice Award, Coca Cola Refreshing Filmmakers Grant, New Line Cinema Grant, Milos Forman Fund, AMPAS Foundation Grant, Made in NY Grant, as well as a residency from the MacDowell Colony. Julia works as an editor, with credits ranging from PBS to the Oscar-nominated film, My Week With Marilyn. She holds an MFA from Columbia Film School and a BA from Yale. Julia is a refugee from Kharkiv, Ukraine.

Madoka Raine (she/her) began her career as an actor, working in NYC and LA in both film and television. She quickly found inspiration to write her own stories, and her first feature film script was a finalist for the Sundance Institute Feature Film Program. She later wrote and directed a short film “Jumping In,” which premiered at the 2008 Cannes Film Festival – Short Film Corner. She wrote, directed, and produced “Happy 40th,” and award winning feature film which premiered at the 2015 Seattle International Film Festival and is now being distributed through Global Genesis Group, available through Amazon Prime. “Happy 40th” also secured a soundtrack distribution deal with The Orchard, and the soundtrack is available on iTunes, Amazon, and many other music platforms. Her most recent completed project is “Jed’s Day.” A short film that has just started the festival circuit.

Mariette Monpierre’s (she/her) was born on Guadeloupe island, grew up in Paris and lives in New York. She has a Masters from the Sorbonne University and Smith College. She began her career @ BBDO NY producing commercials for Pepsi, Visa, Pizza Hut and FedEx. Her first feature narrative Elza (Le Bonheur d’Elza) was the NY Times Critics’ Pick when released in theaters and won several awards internationally. Elza is streaming now on KinoNow Black voices and Black stories. Between 2 Shores, an immigrant story documentary film, aired on PBS/AfroPop series last January. Mariette completed her first TV series pilot Carribbean Girl NYC for Flow Network and France Television. Her latest documentary Towards Mecca on Muslims in the West Indies is currently airing on France Televisions Network and is having a successful run in the festival circuit.

Maria Mealla (she/her) was conjured in the Andes Mountains of Bolivia. She was raised by storytellers that encouraged her to pursue filmmaking, a path which eventually led her to the beautiful city by the bay. She ventured into movie-making in 2010 and learned the craft through work trade by collaborating with other talented filmmakers on their projects. Her latest film, Bring me an Avocado, premiered at Cinequest March 2019 and took home the Audience Award. It is currently still gathering positive reviews and awards in the film festival circuit. With her work, Maria strives to uplift and increase representation of the Latinx community in front of and behind the camera. When she is not working on narrative projects, Maria works as a video producer in the Bay Area at large. Her favorite foods are hot dogs and mashed potatoes and she is of average height.