Sergio Navarretta

Sergio Navarretta is an internationally recognized award-winning director who is fiercely passionate about bringing meaningful content to the screen. He draws inspiration from Italian neorealism and considers his work an exploration of the human condition. Navarretta's projects are touching, relevant, inclusive, often humorous, and most importantly, entertaining. He is currently hard at work innovating creative ways for his projects and the film industry at large to press on during the unprecedented COVID19 crisis. Currently, Navarretta is back in the director's chair with his passion project, THE CUBAN, starring: Oscar winner Louis Gossett Jr. (AN OFFICER AND A GENTLEMAN); Oscar nominee Shohreh Aghdashloo (THE HOUSE OF SAND AND FOG); Ana Golja (Degrassi: Next Class); Lauren Holly (DUMB AND DUMBER) and Giacomo Gianniotti (Grey's Anatomy). THE CUBAN tells the story of a naïve pre-med student named Mina (Golja) who develops an unlikely friendship with Luis, an elderly Cuban musician with dementia (Gossett Jr.). Navarretta made his directorial debut with LOOKING FOR ANGELINA, a true crime feature that tells the story of one of the most sensational murder cases in North American history. LOOKING FOR ANGELINA won numerous awards, was showcased at festivals around the world, played to sold-out theatres in fifteen Canadian cities, and ranked amongst the top five in box office revenues for Canadian films at the time. A social action campaign and learning guide were created and launched alongside the film to raise awareness and spotlight issues of domestic violence. Navarretta's follow-up feature, THE COLOSSAL FAILURE OF THE MODERN RELATIONSHIP, starring Enrico Colantoni (Just Shoot Me), traveled on the festival circuit, and premiered at Grauman's Chinese Theatre in Hollywood on Oscar weekend. COLOSSAL is currently available on all VOD platforms in the US/Canada, and around the world. Between features, Navarretta has directed a number of award-winning short films, including THE FORTUNE COOKIE, OVER A SMALL CUP OF COFFEE and EN PLEIN AIR, an homage to the Group of Seven. He also worked as a producer, service producer and executive producer under his own company banner, S.N.A.P. Films Inc., as well as for various international clients. He executive produced (for Canada) the sci-fi movie, ANDRON starring Danny Glover and Alec Baldwin. He is an executive producer of the biopic LAMBORGHINI, starring Alec Baldwin and Antonio Banderas, and was a consulting producer on TRADING PAINT, starring John Travolta. Navarretta is proud to have executive produced and overseen all aspects of production and casting for the star- studded animated theatrical feature ARCTIC DOGS, now on Netflix, featuring Jeremy Renner, James Franco, Anjelica Huston, Alec Baldwin, John Cleese and Heidi Klum. Just prior to the quarantine orders necessitated by COVID19 all over the world, THE CUBAN screened at the Whistler Film Festival and the Pan African Film Festival in Los Angeles, winning top awards at each. After the COVID19 shutdown began, the film also served as the opening feature to Canada's first nation-wide virtual film festival, the Canadian Film Fest, on Super Channel to great success. THE CUBAN is slated for North American release in 2020 and features the music of Grammy nominated piano virtuoso Hilario Duran. Navarretta received his education at York University in Toronto and has a background in music from the Royal Conservatory. He has done extensive training in both acting and directing, learning under the guidance of actor Nick Mancuso and renowned acting coach Rose Dubin, and directing at Toronto's Tarragon Theatre. He has attended various master classes, including one led by director Robert Altman, and has shadowed both directors and cinematographers over the years, including the legendary Piotr Sabocinski. Navarretta sat on numerous panels to raise awareness about domestic violence and issues of racism during the release of LOOKING FOR ANGELINA, a film that has subsequently been utilized by universities, government and police services across Canada. He is proud to sit on the boards of several arts organizations, including the ICFF Film Festival in Toronto and is a member of the Directors Guild of Canada. He is Vice President of S.N.A.P. Films Inc., and currently has a number of live action and animated projects in development. Navarretta speaks English and Italian fluently, and has a Canadian and European passport. He divides his time between Toronto and Los Angeles.