Ashton Avila (she/her) is a Mexican American writer-director whose work brings a unique and diverse perspective to each story she tells. She loves sappy teen rom coms, Taylor Swift break up songs and tamales at Christmas time.
Ashton has been mentored by some of Hollywood’s best including Academy Award nominated writer-director David O. Russell, Academy Award winning writer David S. Ward, The Fast and the Furiousdirector Rob Cohen, former DGA President and award winning director Martha Coolidge, original SNL writer Anne Beatts, actress and producer Colleen Camp and many others. She shadowed David O. Russell on his most recent production and previously shadowed Martha Coolidge on an episode of TBS's Angie Tribeca. Her background in production also includes work for NBC, JJ Abrams' Bad Robot, New Regency, AwesomenessTV, BratTV, Shadow Lion and Sony PlayStation.
As for her own directing work, the National Association of Latino Independent Producers Emerging Creator Alum directed the original Sony PlayStation pilot Two Roads, the Student Emmy nominated musical comedy Trying to Fuck: A Modern Day Romance, award winning 1960s period dramaI Got You Babe, award winning teen sex comedy Have A Little Faith, and horror short Lake Forest Road which is currently on a festival run. She recently directed the second unit of AwesomenessTV's Twin My Heart with The Merrell Twins Season 2, season 9 of Brat TV's Chicken Girls, and an upcoming production for Shadow Lion. Last year, Ashton was a quarterfinalist for NBC's Emerging Director Program and was welcomed into Ron Howard and Brian Grazer's Imagine Impact Community.
Ashton's original pilot Joselito's is a quarterfinalist in Final Draft's Big Break Competition, Stage 32's Television Writing Contest and Screencraft's Pilot Launch. She currently has two scripts in development at Roth Kirschenbaum Films.