Paula Ortiz

Paula Ortiz Álvarez (born 8 January 1979 in Zaragoza, Spain) is a Spanish director, screenwriter and producer whose work spans feature films, documentaries and short narratives, and whose influence reaches both cinema and academia. She earned a bachelor's degree in Hispanic Philology from the University of Zaragoza in 2002 and a master’s in Writing for Cinema and TV from the Autonomous University of Barcelona in 2003, before completing doctoral studies on cinematographic script theory, defended in 2011. Ortiz further refined her craft at NYU’s Tisch School of the Arts and at the University of California, Los Angeles, while also participating in the Bigas Luna Workshop for narrators and international screenwriting expos. Her early career involved research and teaching at the University of Zaragoza’s Department of History of Art, where she lectured on Film and Audiovisual Media Studies between 2004 and 2008, laying the foundation for a later academic appointment. In 2010 she completed shooting her debut feature Chrysalis, which premiered at the Shanghai International Film Festival, earned a special jury recommendation, and secured the Pilar Miró International Prize for Best New Director at Valladolid’s Seminci. The film’s success led to three Goya nominations in 2012, confirming Ortiz as a rising talent in Spanish cinema. Her second feature, The Bride (2015), a loose adaptation of García Lorca’s Blood Wedding, was a Spanish‑Turkish‑German co‑production that highlighted her ability to blend literary heritage with contemporary visual storytelling. Beyond directing, Ortiz serves as associate professor of History of Cinema at the University of Barcelona, teaches screenwriting at the University of San Jorge, and collaborates with numerous European film schools, while also founding the production company Poppy Films and leading initiatives such as the Assembly of Women Filmmakers of Spain (PEAK) and the European Women Audiovisual Network (EWA).