Alvaro Rodriguez is the co-creator and executive producer of the Netflix adult-animated series Seis Manos (2019). He is also the co-screenwriter of Robert Rodriguez’s Machete (2010) and Shorts (2009), and the writer and co-producer of Last Rampage (2017). He was a writer on the TV series From Dusk Till Dawn for El Rey Network and Netflix International and story editor on Chicago Fire. He currently serves as co-producer on Showtime’s drama series Rust (2021), starring Jeff Daniels. His short fiction has appeared in the Bram Stoker Award-winning anthology After Death, among others. A frequent panelist at the Austin Film Festival, Rodriguez has been a guest speaker for writing courses and screenwriting conferences across the country from Seattle to New York City. He is currently developing projects with Exile/Endeavor Content, Abot Hameiri, Shout Factory, OH!Pen Productions and others.
Alvaro will be judging the Horror Feature category.
Chase Palmer is a New York-based writer/director. His first feature as writer-director, Naked Singularity, debuts next year. Adapted from the Pen Prize Winning novel A Naked Singularity By Sergio De La Pava, it stars John Boyega, Olivia Cooke, Bill Skarsgard, and Ed Skrein.
As a screenwriter, he’s worked with numerous studios and directors. His produced work includes co-writing IT: Chapter 1, the highest grossing horror film in history, and on TNT’s hit The Alienist.
Current projects include the gothic western Unbury Carol for director Cary Fukunaga, an adaptation of The Helicopter Heist for Netflix, Jake Gyllenhaal, and the Oscar-winning directing team of Free Solo, and Monsterpocolypse for Warner Bros. and director Fede Alvarez.
Chase will be judging the Horror Feature category.
Sonia Almanza Gambaro is the Vice President of Television at Eugenio Derbez and Ben Odell’s 3PAS Studios. Gambaro was previously a literary manager at Equitable Management and her own company Pollinate Entertainment where she set up and sold projects to Netflix, Hulu, Freeform, Ellation, SonyTV, MWM, EndemolShine and brokered worldwide branding campaigns for clients. She also spent time at Madhouse Entertainment, Televisa USA (Chasing Life, Devious Maids) and Paradigm Talent Agency. Gambaro began her career in Hollywood as a segment producer after successfully touring over 60 cities as a DJ and mixing on LATV and KIIS-FM.
Sonia will be judging the TV Spec category.
Patrick Wimp is writer-director from Chicago, Illinois. His work has been lauded in prestigious film festivals around the world every year since 2009, with screenings at the Chicago International TV Festival, Austin Film Festival, Cannes International, New York Television Festival, and many more.
Patrick’s work has aired on Netflix, PBS, Amazon Prime, and a number of international cable and TV networks.
Patrick’s 2019 digital series “Brothers from the Suburbs” received both the Jury and Audience awards at the 2019 Austin Film Festival, Best Web Original at Urbanworld ’19, and Best Directing at SeriesFest Season 5. The show was recently optioned by Warner Bros TV. Patrick also photographed the 2019 Chance the Rapper short music film “We Go High” and was named to the Austin Film Festival’s 25 Screenwriters to Watch in 2020.
As a proud African-American storyteller, Pat’s work focuses on creating emotionally impactful, accessible, human stories, built around authentic and diverse characters.
Patrick will be judging the Short Screenplay category.