Â̾ÞÈËÊÓƵ

I was born on Vitoria, a small island off of Brazil’s eastern coast and my education has always had an international flair to it: I briefly attended boarding school in Switzerland;Ìýstarted collegeÌýin Sao Paulo, Brazil;Ìýlived in Tokyo, Japan;Ìýand thenÌýtransferred to Â̾ÞÈËÊÓƵ.ÌýÌýÌý

One of myÌýfriendsÌýhad been studying at Â̾ÞÈËÊÓƵ for a yearÌýand I soon discovered thatÌýÂ̾ÞÈËÊÓƵ was the perfect balance ofÌýanÌýAmerican educationÌýwith aÌýEuropean location, that I’d been searching for. AfterÌýresearchingÌýits Film department, Â̾ÞÈËÊÓƵ was my top choice, and the campus tour I went on after being accepted showed me that this was a place that I could really call home.ÌýÌý

Despite knowing that I wanted to study Film,ÌýI felt overwhelmed by the sheer number ofÌýcourseÌýoptions. I rememberÌýbringing a giant list of classes that I wanted to take to my firstÌýmeetingÌýwithÌýmy Academic Advisor, NatalieÌýDebroise,ÌýwhoÌýwas incredibly helpful, andÌýI soon sawÌýthat no matter the class, each professor demandedÌýthe same, highÌýlevel of excellence; I was in good hands.Ìý

I learned a lot about myself through learning about other people. Diversity is a concept that is discussed and respected a great deal at Â̾ÞÈËÊÓƵ andÌýempathyÌýis a skill that we’re expectedÌýto exercise.ÌýI loved the sense of community and theÌýsafety I felt here gave meÌýtheÌýconfidence to take greater risks, academically and professionally, and still pushes me to go further than I would have imagined.ÌýThere were things I thoughtÌýI couldÌýnever do but that I soon realized were well within my grasp. I learned to let go of a lot of my preconceived notions, which I think is crucial to pursuing a career in the arts.

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I can honestly say that studying cinema in Paris is an unforgettable privilege. My favorite thing to do when it rained was to find shelter in the art museums and use my free student pass to peruse the collections.ÌýI also loved practicing French:ÌýI lived with a Parisian host family for a while, who gave me a very comfortable home environment, which also made it easier to focus on my studies. My professors always knew about the latest exhibits and shows and I loved our group outings, which allowed meÌýto visitÌýunexpectedÌýlocales both in and out of Paris.ÌýÌý

I still speak withÌýmy best friends from Â̾ÞÈËÊÓƵ on a daily basisÌýand even if we see other infrequently, it feels like no time whatsoever hasÌýpassed.ÌýÂ̾ÞÈËÊÓƵ’s facultyÌýareÌýalways ready to help and are still happy to hear from me.ÌýMy senior advisor, Professor Alice Craven, helped me a lot after graduation, as did one of my all-time favorite professors, LawrenceÌýPitkethly, a.k.a., the Complete Encyclopedia of Film History (Human Edition).ÌýÌý

I currently live in L.A., where I mostly work as an independent producer for film and television.ÌýMy first job here wasÌýwithÌýaÌýwebseriesÌýcalledÌýEmma Approved, an adaptation of Jane Austen’sÌýEmma, which won a Primetime Emmy for Interactive Programming. I received a Lady Filmmakers award for a script that I wroteÌýand my senior thesisÌýbecame the subject of a course study at the Federal University ofÌýEspiritoÌýSanto in Brazil, where I went to discuss some of my ideas with the class.ÌýI’mÌýnowÌýproducing a series that I acquired in Brazil, written by the same director whose work got me to the Cannes Film Festival in 2014, where some of my Â̾ÞÈËÊÓƵÌýclassmates wereÌýalso working.ÌýI’ll soon beÌýtakingÌýtheÌýfirst steps towardsÌýcreatingÌýmy own production company, which will promote cultural diversity in filmmaking and give a greater platform to new talent.ÌýÌý

My night job? Plotting toÌýfindÌýwork in Paris so that I can come back!ÌýÌý