Latinx Filmmaker Katrina Cebreiro On Telling Stories From Home

Despite the film and television industry’s attempt to be more inclusive in recent years, the Latinx community remains woefully underrepresented both in front of and behind the camera. The narratives of many Latinx communities have not been prioritized, which is why Latinx Filmmaker Katrina Cebreiro is telling stories from home to shed light on the reality of Latinx stories and representation in film.

After graduating with her BA in Cinema and Television Arts, Katrina continued her studies and completed her MFA in Screenwriting at CSUF. Writer and director Cebreiro has also worked as an actress and has fully immersed herself in the industry by taking on different roles allowing her to explore and thoroughly learn the craft. Her passion for filmmaking is evident as she continues to create content and tell stories with her company, Cebreiro Creative Productions.

Cebreiro, with her mission to pave the way for many aspiring Latinx filmmakers, went through the motions of it all. During her undergrad, she began her career in the entertainment industry with an internship at NBC KMIR 6 News. After that, she interned at PBS and Conan, a late-night television show by Conan O’ Brien. She also went on to work for TMZ, Warner Bros, and the Daniel Hoff Agency. She was an associate producer on the feature film Psychosynthesis which the Duplass Brother’s help funded. Most recently, she worked as a Director’s Assistant on Infamous, starring Jake Manley. When she felt that she had enough experience to take her career and work on her own, she pursued her endeavours as a writer and director.

Her short film, “Church Camp” was selected by Indie Night Film Festival to screen at the

Legendary Chinese Theatre. Her TV pilot script, Donald Glover, made it into the final round

At Sundance. While her short film “Lovenapped” was screened at The Brightside Tavern Shorts Fest. And once, Mar Vista Studios almost optioned her script Universes. Although it may seem trivial to some. But as a Latinx filmmaker who has been underrepresented in the industry, this is huge.

“I tell stories for the Latinx community as well as millennials because the stories I tell are based on real-life experiences that are relatable for this audience,” Cebreiro said. “I also strive to tell stories that innovate and use creativity to bring a relatable human experience through visual storytelling.”

One of the defining moments of her career was when her short film, “Addict”, starring Danielle Vega from East Los High on Hulu and Emilio Garcia-Sanchez from The Society on Netflix, had wowed the audience and jury alike in the festival circuit. So far, it has been screened in different film festivals such as Indie Night Film Festival. Not only that, but it also became a finalist at Hollywood Screenings, and Cebreiro won Best Director at the Independent Short Awards. ISA and Indie Night has picked up distribution for the film. After this recognition, she finally has the opportunity to adopt that short into her first feature-length project in the summer of this year, which will be her directorial debut.

Katrina Cebreiro is just one person telling stories for the community, but for her, the more stories to be told, the more people feel represented, and she’s on her way to do more.