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In partnership with the Los Angeles Latino International Film Festival (LALIFF), the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences introduced the 2022 Academy Film Accelerator, a five-week program that will provide filmmakers from Latino communities with educational resources and mentorship focused on the business of filmmaking.
The Los Angeles-based program welcomed ten participants to guide them on navigating the entertainment industry and build an awareness of the business skills required to get a film to the screen.
The program is supported by TelevisaUnivision’s new global streaming service, ViX, as part of Aperture 2025, the Academy’s ongoing commitment to inclusion, representation, and equity. “We are honored to host this group of talented filmmakers as we come together to elevate mutual learning, community, and impact,” said Shawn Finnie, the Academy’s Executive Vice President, Member Relations and Awards.
“We are so grateful to LALIFF and ViX for playing a central role in our vision to invest in filmmakers from different communities, backgrounds, and experiences. The Accelerator will be led by the Academy’s VP of Impact and Operations, Jeanell English, and Associate Director, Member Relations and Awards, Angelica Cervantes. Through our Academy members and industry executives, this program will address the important, yet often overlooked, topic of the business of film,” Finnie added.
According to The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, participants will benefit from workshops and masterclasses centered around content distribution facilitated by leaders across the film industry.
Miguel Angel Caballero, Lorena Durán, Michael Flores, Justin Floyd, Gabriela Garcia Medina, Monica Moore-Suriyage, Gabriela Ortega, Kase Peña, Tamara Shogaolu, and Maite Zubiaurre will learn about how to create creative pitches, marketing and promotions, production development, and more.
“This partnership with the Academy marks another important step in ensuring that Hollywood truly represents the diversity and richness that the Latino community has to offer,” said Edward James Olmos, co-founder of LALIFF. “We are honored to be able to support these talented filmmakers by offering them the right tools for the continuous growth in their careers.”
They will also receive exclusive networking opportunities, mentoring from Academy members, a $10,000 stipend to go towards all aspects of distributing and promoting their projects or to offset living costs, and the opportunity to pitch current or future projects to industry leaders.