Srinivas (Ricky) Akella
Srinivas Akella aka Ricky is a screenwriter from Chennai, India living in Vancouver. After finishing school Srinivas realized that he’d rather play video games and play soccer than go to college, but his mom predictably said no. So, he did the next best thing and he became a game designer. But he soon realized his true passion lied in telling stories. He also realized that he was funnier than he was athletic. His work has earned glowing reviews from his grandmother and also his mother. He received his training at both VFS and at LCFA. He would love to one day be so successful that people are scared to tell him that he’s too old and it’s time to retire unless his master plan for world domination comes to fruition.
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Kyron Beaton
Born in Coquitlam, British Columbia, Kyron Jacob Beaton is a Langara graduate screenwriter. His father being an English teacher for the Burnaby school district, Kyron acquired many of his skills in literature from him as a result. Beginning his studies at Douglas College at the age of seventeen, he had since graduated from the institution with an Associate’s Degree in the Arts. “Saint Montang”, a forty-five minute short film he had written during his time at Douglas College, had gone forth to win two outstanding awards at two international film festivals. He also helps to represent The Laurel Foundation, an international nonprofit which seeks to help families with raising children on the Autistic Spectrum, similar to Kyron who has been diagnosed with Aspergers.
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Instagram: @kyronbeaton
Braeden Fruin
Braeden Fruin is a screenwriter, currently enrolled in Langara College in the Film Arts program, while at Langara, Braeden has written two short scripts which have been filmed. A deep love of movies is what pushed Braeden into screenwriting, and while he has been writing in some capacity all his life, he started screenwriting when he was 18, and quickly knew it was what he wanted to do. Braeden likes to write in all genres, but comedy is his favorite and where he feels most suited. His focus is on features, but he also writes shorts and television.
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Zi Jian Li
Ever since childhood, Jeff had always played around with cameras. His father would show him how the quality of photos improve each time he gets a new camera. Eventually, Jeff started taking his own photos of the world. In high-school, Jeff attended a school trip to Kenya, Africa to volunteer for a school. He filmed the experience he thought that changed his life and was asked to present a documentary for his school. He received high praises from the students and teachers for filming and editing the video himself. He took those praises and decided to hold onto them for his potential career.
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Instagram: @jeffereh
Josefina Llanos López
Born and raised in Mexico. Josefina learned to read at 4 with amazing ease and, ever since, has wanted to tell stories. Like many people in her generation, TV and movies were an integral part of her childhood, and she always dreamt of writing her own shows and films. She has a linguistics degree from UMSNH, as well as an ESL teacher diploma. She has worked as a writer for local magazines and television in Morelia, her hometown, and in the successful interactive educational platform Knotion. She currently lives in Vancouver and works in the film industry.
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Gabrielle Mar
Gabrielle Mar is Chinese-Canadian from Vancouver. She has always enjoyed creating stories and wants to share her creations with everyone. She specifically loves to write stories that include diversity in ways that normalizes it. It’s why she decided to pursue screenwriting after getting a small taste of it in the last year of high school after her English teacher suggested she turn one of her assignments into a screenplay.
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Dani Sampaio
Born in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, Daniela Sampaio de Lacerda graduated in Visual Arts at Senai University in 2010. In 2008, she started her career in Globo TV, the biggest TV company in Latin America, as a Costume Designer. She was part of soap operas such as: Tempos Modernos, Araguaia, Pega Ladrao, Salve Jorge, Verao 90, Ligacoes Perigosas, Capitu and many others. In 2020, a desire of doing more on this art made her quit her job and move to canada to expand her professional field. She does Film arts/writing at Langara College. In there, she could write two short movies: Jump and Abroad.
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Kay Sigurgeirson
Kay has been writing and pursuing artistic interests since childhood, and as she grew older and developed a strong interest in filmmaking, she realized she would like her creative exploits to take on the main focus in her life. When she decided she needed to more seriously commit to developing her skills, she moved to Vancouver. 2 years later and she is still adjusting to life in the big city after growing up on picturesque Saltspring Island. Her wish is to break into the industry and make connections with other artists and fellow filmmakers. She plans to hone her skills, more seriously pursue a career in her chosen field, and continue to tell and take part in the stories she enjoys, leaving her mark in some way.
Jose Alayo Amaya
Jose Alayo Amaya is an aspiring writer, who has written a variety of different stories stemming from all types of genres.