María Alvarez is a Cuban-Dutch filmmaker and a USC Film Production graduate. A Rising Voices fellow (Hillman Grad/Indeed/271 Films), she co-directed and co-wrote the short film “Last Days of the Lab,” which premiered at Tribeca, screened at the Toronto International Film Festival, and was Oscar-qualified for Best Live Action Short at the 2024 Academy Awards. María works as a freelance director and photographer in narrative, music videos, and commercials for clients like Nike and Netflix. As a Sundance Institute Latine Collab Scholar, she is developing “Guava Tree,” her feature film exploring themes of cultural identity, family, and belonging.