About the Director

About the Director

Born in Coimbra, Portugal, Joana L. Martins pursued her B.A. in Art History at the Universidade Nova de Lisboa. Right after finishing her degree in 2007, and after deciding to become a movie director, she was one of the few chosen to take part in the competitive Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation’s Film Directing Intensive Course, with the support of the Deutsche Film und Ferhenseakademie of Berlin. After winning a Special Mention of the Jury at the 2008 Festival Pontino del Cortometraggio, in Italy, Joana decided to pursue her graduate studies abroad, traveling to the U.S.A. that same year, to attend the MFA in Cinema program at the San Francisco State University. Since then, while being recognized for her will to produce and direct social responsible media, Joana has been able to garner the resources to complete her graduate program and her student films, namely with grants from the Luso-American and the Calouste Gulbenkian Foundations. 
            Nods to Joana’s directorial work include the San Francisco Foundation Cadogan Award for Excellence in the Fine Arts and the Golden Palm Award for Best Student Film at the 2011 Mexico’s Film Festival and Awards for the short film “Pax America”. Her thesis film, "Ayana", a short literature to film adaptation has started its round of festivals in 2013, garnering a Diamond Award at the California Film Awards, in the USA, and an Award of Excellence at the International Film Festival for Environment, Health and Culture, in Jakarta, Indonesia.