MIGUEL CANTU is a special effects makeup artist based in San Antonio, Texas. Miguel owns and operates his own company, Altered Vision Studios, as a local independent filmmaker and producer. He hosts workshops teaching various makeup, costume, and prop making techniques which are applied to the film industry. Miguel is currently working on feature film and television projects and collaborates with other local artists.
Miguel will be doing a full makeup and prosthetics demo from a special effects makeup artist beginning at 11 a.m. in the Filmmakers Area.
San Antonio filmmakers will be on hand to talk about their work.
COLIN BRESSLER attended the School of Visual Arts in New York City where he received the award for Best Achievement in Cinematography, He began working in the industry as a First Assistant Cameraperson. As an assistant, Colin was able to learn and truly immerse himself in the art of cinematography. Based on the film work he accumulated, he was nominated for the American Society of Cinematography Award for Best New Comer to the industry. Shortly after, he served as Director of Photography on two feature length documentaries; Take Me to the River and Kokuyaku. He brought this newfound knowledge to the HiDef feature film, The Amazing Floydini, that went on to win Best Feature Film at the New Hampshire Film Festival and his second HiDef feature, You Tell Me. Colin went on to Lens a variety of other film projects and TV shows on the History channels, the Discovery Channel, the Style Network and many more. He has also entered the new world of web-based content with innovative shows for various magazines online where he has been at the front of the web video revolution Colin then began directing micro budget films and shot his first film Sleepover, an experimental Horror film. He has since made three more micro budget films, Bloody Drama, Domestic Hell and Remy’s Demons. He has won best feature for Domestic Hell in two film festivals.
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ALEC DYER has been an aficionado of film since the age of five. In high school, he took a video tech class to develop his skills, directing writing and editing productions with his friends. Alec attended The Art Institute of San Antonio where he created his first professional short film A Stormy Night. The film went on to win awards in many festivals both domestic and internationally. Currently, Alec is a freelance videographer, editor and works as a production assistant. He also works as an actor and extra for many shows and films, including Alita: Battle Angel, Walker and Lawman: Bass Reeves. Alec is currently working on post-production for his next short film True Self, based on the short story What Lies Beneath by Terrence Osborne Jr, set to release later this year.
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ROB MABRY began his writing career as a military journalist and humor columnist for the US Army. He produces, writes, directs, and edits the short films he creates. Mabry’s short film, Mr. Figmentus, was nominated for "Best Dark Comedy" as an official selection of the 2019 Austin After Dark Film Festival. His first feature The Legend of the Chupacabra, a horror-comedy, premiered in October 2023.
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DANNY GERALDO MARTINEZ is a filmmaker and screenwriter born and raised in San Antonio, Texas. Danny has collaborated with various directors and writers throughout his artistic career, assisting as a screenwriter on short films or as a production assistant on indie features. In 2014, Danny worked as a production assistant in the independent film, Marfa Girl II directed by acclaimed director and photographer, Larry Clark. In 2021, Danny released his debut horror short film, Lilith with friends Jeremy St. James and Dane Berkshire. The movie was awarded Best Horror at the Austin Spotlight Film Festival in 2022.
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PAULINA MANSEAU is an award-winning director, writer, and producer born in Los Angeles, California. She is of Mexican and Lebanese roots and was raised in Mexico, later returning to the U.S. She has passionately pursued her career in theater, film, and writing. Recognized as one of Texas' top directors and screenwriters, her works were featured on PBS, leading to her induction into the Alliance of Women Directors and in which she was selected into the Latina Directors Mentorship program. Paulina draws inspiration from the vibrant community and cultural diversity surrounding her. Her fearless approach to storytelling challenges norms and sparks meaningful conversations through her art.
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ALEX RAMIREZ is an award-winning Mexican-American filmmaker and educator based in San Antonio, Texas. He has received multiple grants for his film work and is the head of his own production company, Mala Bruja Pictures. His films have screened at the Mill Valley Film Festival, Cine Las Americas International Film Festival, South Texas International Film Festival, and the Albuquerque Film and Music Experience. He has been featured in publications such as Texas Monthly, KLRN's The Beat, Texas Public Radio, San Antonio Current Magazine, and the San Antonio Express-News. He is the current Media Arts Director of SAY Sí.
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BRYAN RAMIREZ is an award-winning filmmaker from San Antonio, Texas. Upon graduating honors with a degree in Motion Picture Production from Full Sail Film School in Orlando, Florida, He broke into the industry editing the Documentary Los Lonely Boys: Cotton Fields and Crossroads (Sony Entertainment). Bryan wrote, directed, and produced his first feature film Line of Duty (Lionsgate) lasting four weeks in AMC Theaters across the U.S., acquiring international distribution. In the last few years Bryan produced the reality television shows Flipping Nightmares, Built for Business and live boxing broadcasts for FiteTV. Recently he signed on to direct two feature films: Pine Ridge and A Brother’s Badge.
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JUSTIN ANTHONY RODRIGUEZ has been writing and directing projects for his production Brave Pictures for seven years. He’s won two Lone Star Emmys in his career as a Technical Director in broadcast news. Winner of San Antonio local filmmaker grant in 2019 and Luminaria Artist Grant in 2021 for his creative filmmaking, Justin was also named Best Local Filmmaker in 2022 by the San Antonio Current. He currently has projects on Amazon Prime and the upcoming American Latino Network, Avenida TV.
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CEDRIC THOMAS SMITH, multi-award winning, writer, director and producer, is a San Antonio native whose journey into film began in 2010 with a short film on LGBT domestic violence that he’d written, Unimaginable. Cedric began directing his own works with films that have won over 40 film festival awards including The Symphony of Silence and Melissa (both examine the epidemic of teen bullying), the feature film version of Unimaginable and Breaking Brokenness, which is about the pattern of abuse wrapped up in secrets and lies within a family. Cedric continues to write, direct, and produce films that entertain yet give voice to those that feel voiceless including his latest film, Losing Lalo which examines the loss of a veteran to suicide and the impact it has on his family and fellow veterans.
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