Bio

Maria Valdez is a Guatemalan-born, California-raised, award-winning director. Her passion is bringing human interest stories to life from the Latino perspective and amplifying authentic portrayals of Latina characters across multiple genres. She has applied her style to almost every genre and has been recognized for her work, ranging from comedy and drama to action. Although her films cross genres,  the unifying thread that stitches her stories together is the celebration of family, culture, and the embodiment of strong Latino characters.  

Maria was selected for the Alliance of Women's Directors - Latina Directing Fellowship, the Women in Film Directing Fellowship, Start with 8, and Unlock Her Potential Mentorship Program. Her TV Pilot was also selected to participate in the Read Latinx Writers Initiative. She is the recipient of The HFPA Directing Fellowship, The Gerald Hughes Comedy Directing Fellowship, the Verna Fields Fellowship, The MPAA  Award, and most recently, her film VIDA won the First Place Gold Circle Award from the Caucus Foundation along with a 60K Panavision Grant.

Maria was one of eighteen students selected into the prestigious UCLA Film School and is a recent MFA Writing/Directing program graduate. She is also a Cal State University, Fullerton graduate, having received two B.A.s, one in Journalism and the other in Cinema & Television Studies. Her films have screened at Oscar qualifying festivals, and she currently has two short films playing at several film festivals across the country. She also sits as a Board Member for the Alliance of Women Directors