Juan Escobedo
founder

More information coming soon...

Jose Yenque
co-founder

More information coming soon...

Monica Lerma
co-founder

Monica Lerma was born and raised in East Los Angeles, CA. She graduated from James A. Garfield High School and received her Bachelor's of Art degree in Sociology from the University of Southern California (USC).

Monica's background is in youth development and programming. She has worked with teen parents and probation youth, with homeless and runaway youth, and has facilitated art programs.

Monica has been involved in coordinating the Latino History Parade in Pasadena, helped write and implement a gang intervention program for middle schools through LAUSD, and is currently working with The East Los Angeles Society of Film and Arts (TELA SOFA) in showcasing film festivals in Greater East Los Angeles.

Darci L. Strother, Ph.D.
U.S. Fulbright Scholar




Professor, California State University San Marcos, USA Dr. Darci Strother is a Professor at California State University San Marcos, where she has taught courses in literature, linguistics, and the Spanish language since 1983. She also serves as the Director of the Office of Community Service Learning, which helps provide students with real-world learning experiences outside the classroom, while offering valuable service that strengthens communities. Dr. Strother has published and lectured nationally and internationally, and has special expertise in the area of Spanish theatre. She serves on the Board of Directors for the Association for Hispanic Classical Theatre, and is the Theatre Review Editor for the journal Comedia Performance. As a Fulbright scholar, she spent six months in Chile teaching, lecturing, and conducting research, as well as offering numerous workshops for Chile's current and future teachers. Her Ph.D. and M.A. degrees are from the University of California Irvine, and she holds a B.A. degree from the University of Pennsylvania.

Christopher George
Young and Direct Entertainment

Dave Kebo
Editing Program Coordinator




Dave Kebo is a screenwriter, editor and director. He has premiered films at both the Cannes Film Festival and at Sundance, where he was awarded the New Filmmaker's Award. Dave Began his screenwriting career on a rewrite for the Jet Li action movie "The Black Mask." Since then, he has written projects for Beacon Pictures, Artisan, Digital Domain, Fremantle, Hydraulx Films, and MTV. As a director, Dave has made numerous shorts, documentaries, music videos, as well as two feature films. His latest, the critically acclaimed thiller "Death Valley," stars Eric Christian Olsen ("Fired Up"), Vince Vieluf ("Rat Race") and Dash Mihok ("I Am Legend") and was released in 2008 by Slamdance/Allumination.

Eddie Galvan
Young and Direct Entertainment