Juan Francisco Pardo

Juan Francisco Pardo was born on the 18th of December 1977 in Aruba. This young filmmaker and author started creative writing and filming at the age of seven. As a child he was fascinated by science fiction movies, especially 'E.T.: The Extra-Terrestrial'. By the time Pardo was nineteen he published his first youth novel 'E Solo di e Caiquetionan' and began to work at a local television station, his duties were master control, production control and news editor. In 1999 Pardo attended Septima Ars Film and Television School in Madrid, Spain where he studied Film Direction. After 2 years he came back to Aruba and directed a 30 minutes teen self-acceptance short film 'E Secreto'. In 2003 he attended Sint Lucas Media Design School in The Netherlands where he studied Media Design. In 2010 Pardo founded AVI-Audiovisual Institute of Aruba an organization that aims for a better Aruban audiovisual culture. At AVI, Pardo has organized workshops about scriptwriting, filmmaking and TV production. Pardo is a two-time winner of the 'Aruba Treasures' video contest. In 2011, his '10 Ave Maria' won jury prize for best short film at the 5th Trinidad & Tobago Film Festival. '10 Ave Maria' was also screened at the Aruba International Film Festival 2011, the Bahamas International Film Festival 2011, the Caribbean Tales Film Festival 2012 Barbados, the Reggae Film Festival 2012 Jamaica, the Montreal International Black Film Festival 2012, and at the 34th International Festival of New Latin America Cinema in La Habana, Cuba. Last year his second short film 'Awa Brak' won the audience award for best Aruba Flavor film at the 3rd Aruba International Film Festival. It also received special mention in the best film category at the Trinidad & Tobago Film Festival 2012. Last year, Pardo also received an award from Focus Magazine Aruba in recognition of his achievements in art and entertainment in 2012. 2013 started with a big project 'Tribi soña' (Dare to Dream) a multidisciplinary educational project develop by Pardo. 'Tribi Soña' consists of several intensive audio-visual workshops. Pardo is working on the post-production of his third film 'Abo So' (Only You) which was the final product of 'Tribi Soña'.