Cristina Kotz Cornejo facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Cristina Kotz Cornejo
|
|
|---|---|
 |
|
| Occupation | Screenwriter, director, producer |
| Years active | 1995–present |
Cristina Kotz Cornejo is a talented director and screenwriter from Argentina and the United States. She splits her time living and working in Boston, Mexico City, and Buenos Aires. Cristina is part of the Huarpe people, an Indigenous group from the Cuyo area of Argentina. She studied in both the US and Argentina.
Education and Learning
Cristina Kotz Cornejo studied film at New York University's Tisch School of the Arts. She also earned a degree in international relations from the University of Southern California. While at NYU Film School, she learned directing from famous filmmakers like Spike Lee, Nancy Savoca, Sara Driver, and French director Pascal Aubier. She also has a master's degree in managing arts organizations from Antioch University Los Angeles.
Her Work as a Filmmaker
Cristina Kotz Cornejo has created many films, both short and feature-length.
First Feature Film: 3 Américas
In 2007, her first full-length movie, 3 Américas, was shown for the first time at the Woodstock Film Festival. Cristina wrote, directed, and produced this film herself. The script for 3 Américas was also part of a special competition at the 25th Festival Internacional del Nuevo Cine Latinoamericano in Havana.
The film's script was developed with help from several important groups. These included the National Association of Latino Independent Producers' Writers' Lab and the Independent Feature Project (IFP) New York Directors' Lab. It also took part in the Sundance Institute's Independent Producers' Conference in 2004. 3 Américas received grants from the LEF Foundation in 2004 and 2007. The movie was later shared with audiences by Vanguard Cinema.
Short Films and Special Projects
Cristina Kotz Cornejo has made several short films. These include Despertar/Awaken, Hermanas, and Buena Fe. Her short film, The War That Never Was (La Guerra Que No Fue), was the only Argentine short film chosen for the Viva Argentina! Program at the Seattle International Film Festival in 2005. This film was shown at over 25 festivals in more than 11 countries.
Another short film, Ernesto, was made for the Partnership for a Drug-Free America. It premiered at the 2000 Palm Springs International Festival of Short Films. Her film Ocean Waves won an award in 2003 from the University Film and Video Association.
Her student film, The Appointment, was made with advice from Spike Lee while she was at NYU. This film won the Warner Bros. Pictures Production Award. Her brother, Andy Kotz, created the music for The Appointment and Ernesto.
Documentaries and Virtual Reality
In 1993, Cristina made a short documentary called Jewel and the Catch. It was about Jewel Thais-Williams, an activist and owner of the Jewel's Catch One Club in Los Angeles. Parts of this documentary were later used in the TV series Transparent.
More recently, Cristina created a 360-degree video called la raíz es más importante que la flor/the root is more important than the flower. This project received a special mention at a festival in Chile in 2022. It has also been shown at film festivals in England, Canada, and New Zealand. Cristina also received a grant in 2020 for a virtual reality project she is developing.
Teaching and Awards
In 2014, Cristina Kotz Cornejo became the first Latina full professor of film/media production in the United States. She has been teaching at Emerson College in Boston since 2001. She has received many awards and honors for her work. These include the Mann Stearns Distinguished Faculty Award, a MacDowell Colony Fellowship, and a Massachusetts Cultural Council Artist Fellowship. In 2019, she received the American Spirit Award for educating new filmmakers. In 2021, Variety magazine named her a 2021 Educator of the Year.
Filmography
Here are some of the films Cristina Kotz Cornejo has directed and written:
Director
- la raíz es más important que la flor (2021) (short 360-degree video documentary)
- Buena Fé (2014) (short)
- Hermanas (2013) (short)
- Despertar/Awaken (2011) (short)
- 3 Américas (2007)
- The War That Never Was/La Guerra Que No Fue (2004) (short)
- Ocean Waves (2003) (short)
- Ernesto (2000) (short)
- The Appointment (1999) (short)
- Jewel and The Catch (1993) (documentary short)
Writer
- Buena Fé (2014) (short)
- Hermanas (2013) (short)
- Despertar/Awaken (2011) (short)
- 3 Américas (2007)
- The War That Never Was/La Guerra Que No Fue (2004) (short)
- Ernesto (2000) (short)
Awards and Honors
- 2020 - Journalism360 Challenge Grant
- 2019 - American Spirit Award in Educating New Filmmakers (Caucus for Producers, Writers & Directors)
- 2014 - Cine Qua Non Screenwriting Residency Fellowship
- 2013 - Massachusetts Cultural Council Artist Fellowship
- 2012 - MacDowell Colony Fellowship
- 2010 - Film Independent Project|Involve Fellowship
- 2007 - Mann Stearns Distinguished Faculty Award
- 2000 - Face of Drugs Award, Partnership for a Drug Free America
See also
