Filmmaker Roundtable: Latin Voices in the Mainstream
Saturday May 17th at PDC Center, Rm1406
1:45pm – 2:45pm
The Panel
MODERATOR
Hector Gonzales
Hector Gonzales has over 20 years of experience in Film/Radio/Television & Broadcasting as an award winning Producer, Filmmaker, Stunt coordinator & Fight Choreographer.
As a producer for Austin’s own Rooster Teeth Productions, Hector was responsible for production, coordination, and execution of live streams, shopping streams, live action shows and events including Rooster Teeth’s 21st Anniversary Live Stream Event, multiple segments of the annual 24 hour charity drive, Extra Life, managing stages at the companies annual fan expo, RTX, and more. For his efforts and work, Hector won the 2023 Rooster Teeth Employee of the Year (Founders Award), the final employee of the year award before the company was shut down.
Hector also is a lecturer and guest professor having earned his Undergraduate and Masters from The University of Texas in 2006 & 2017, respectively. He has lectured on genre film studies and theory at UT-Austin, Austin Community College, The University of Pittsburgh, and multiple high schools across Central Texas. In 2012, he created a 2 day, 6 hour course that covers concepts, practices, and ideas for undergraduate student experience on planning and execution of action/fight scenes for film/television production. He currently teaches Production Management at the Austin School of Film and Fight Choreography classes for actors and stunt professionals in Austin.
Additionally, Hector worked as the Equipment Manager for Rooster Teeth, The University of Texas, and Megalomedia handling the day to day equipment needs and supervising delivery, repair, and replacement for every type of filmmaking tool(camera, lighting, audio, grip, etc.) During this time he worked with various networks including Warner Bros/Discovery, A&E, TLC, TNT and shows worked on included The Peacemaker Podcast(HBO), Red Vs. Blue, My 600lbs. Life, Shipping Wars, Quints By Surprise, Marshal Law: Texas, & more.
Finally, Hector is an acclaimed stunt performer and fight choreographer having choreographed over 50 Feature, Independent, Animated, & Student Films supervising people, equipment, locations, and on-set direction of action & fights. His action design work includes the award winning, and first ever 3D student thesis film in the country, Hard Reset 3-D, as well as the final season of Red Vs. Blue: Restoration; the industry shattering web series from Rooster Teeth.
David Blue Garcia
David is an Emmy award-winning Director and DP best known for directing TEXAS CHAINSAW MASSACRE for Legendary Pictures. The film premiered on Netflix in 2022, amassing over 29 million hours of viewership in its first week.
Born and raised on the South Texas border, David’s filmmaking journey began with a family VHS camera and a series of homemade action movies starring his little brother. After graduating from the University of Texas in 2006, David stayed in Austin, immersing himself in the independent film scene. Over the years, he lensed six feature films and directed countless commercials, documentaries and branded films across five continents.
In 2015, David set out to create something personal—highlighting the rich culture of South Texas. Drawing inspiration from Texas filmmaking legend Robert Rodriguez, he returned to his hometown with a crew of eight and a $58K budget to direct his debut feature, TEJANO—an action-thriller about a farmhand’s desperate deal with a Mexican cartel. Premiering in 2018, TEJANO won the Audience Award at the Dallas International Film Festival and was acquired by HBO in 2020.
David is currently set to direct the horror film ZEUS for Mucho Mas Media, with production slated for 2025. He is also attached to helm NO SUCH THING for Ridley Scott’s Scott Free Productions.
Julio Quintana
Julio Quintana was born in Los Angeles and is the oldest of five brothers. His Cuban parents settled in California after fleeing Castro’s regime, where his father became the first in the family to earn a college degree.
The family later moved to Kenai, Alaska, and then to several towns across California, Louisiana, and Texas, sparking Quintana’s interest in cultural diversity.
In 2000, he enrolled at the University of Texas at Austin, switching from Mechanical Engineering to Religious Studies and later adding a degree in Radio-Television-Film.
After graduation, he worked under Terrence Malick on The Tree of Life and To The Wonder, eventually writing and directing The Vessel (2016), produced by Malick and starring Martin Sheen.
His second film, Blue Miracle (2021), starred Dennis Quaid and became a Netflix hit with over 100 million views.
His third film, The Long Game, premiered at SXSW in 2023, winning the Audience Award, and was later screened at the White House before its 2024 Netflix release.
Quintana lives in Austin, TX with his wife and producing partner Marla and their four children.
Gaby Acosta
Like many others in the industry, Gaby Acosta’s fascination with film and television began at an early age. She was enamoured with cinematography and storytelling, but she couldn’t deny being drawn to the mystery of what goes on behind the scenes. In 2006, she enrolled at the Fashion Institute of Design and Merchandising (FIDM) as a Visual Merchandising major. Two years later her career began as an intern where her main responsibility was dressing models for fashion shows. Through that opportunity, Gaby connected with a fashion production company where she started working as an assistant in their showroom and became engulfed in the high-end fashion and editorial world.
Though she thoroughly enjoyed her time learning new skillsets and getting her feet wet in the industry, Gaby was never completely satisfied and felt as if there were other areas that she needed to pursue in order to be fulfilled. After meeting a wardrobe stylist, she landed a gig assisting a designer in reality television. That created a shift in her career, and it was then that she realized that she could partner her love of fashion with her childhood dreams of working behind the scenes of the small and large screens. The connections she made working in the reality television arena opened up new doors that would lead to opportunities in network television, national commercials, music videos, and eventually, film.
After a chance encounter at ComicCon with accomplished costume designer Kristin Burke, Gaby began her career on the Conjuring 2 as an assistant. Since that moment, Gaby’s career has been catapulted to new heights. Having worked with some of the most celebrated costume designers in Hollywood, including Janie Bryant, Sanja Hays and of course Kristin Burke, Gaby continues to pave a successful path in the costuming industry.
Over the course of the last 15 years, Gaby has worked as a stylist and designer on projects such as Veronica Mars, Blood Brothers, Fear of the Walking Dead, Why Women Kill and the ever popular Yellowstone Prequels, 1883 & 1923, along with commercials for companies such as McDonald’s, Logitech, Wells Fargo, Toyota, Walmart and many more.
Marta Cross
Marta Méndez Cross is an American actress, writer, and producer whose career spans across television, film, and theater. Born on a U.S. military base in the former Panama Canal Zone to an Irish American father and a Costa Rican mother, Méndez Cross grew up between countries and cultures. Her early years included time in Costa Rica and Germany before settling in Texas, where she attended the University of Texas at Austin and earned a degree in PR and Latin American media studies. Her academic focus on media representation would later inform much of her creative work, particularly around the portrayal of Latinos in entertainment.
After graduating college, she landed early roles in Texas based independent films such as Side FX and Red Ridge, later making her theatrical debut in Believe in Me, opposite Jeffrey Donovan and making the move to Los Angeles. She went on to appear in a range of television shows across major networks including ABC, CBS, NBC, Showtime, and Comedy Central. Her best-known television work includes a recurring role on ABC’s Off the Map, where she acted alongside Mamie Gummer, and a leading role in Lifetime’s Life with Olivia. More recently, she appeared in Hallmark’s Hopeless Romantic, which led to a writing deal with the network. She is currently developing Feliz Navidad, Hallmark’s first Latinx Christmas drama.
Parallel to her screen work, Méndez Cross has cultivated a career in independent filmmaking. She produced and starred in The Land of Shadowed Sand, which won the Audience Award at the Austin Film Festival. Her directorial debut, the short film Sober, which draws from real-life experiences, set the stage for her next directorial project, iChild, exec produced by Broken English Productions, Sony Entertainment and Women in Film. Throughout her career, she has emphasized storytelling with emotional resonance and cultural depth, often pulling from personal or community experiences.
Marta is 1/3 of the filmmaking team behind Tres Sisters represented at this years Conference along side Valeria Maldonado and Virginia Novello.
To attend this panel, please purchase a Conference Badge.