Our Team

Karishma Kohli

Director

She began her career at Yash Raj Films in Mumbai, India, where she met her mentor-to-be Kabir Khan. She went on to collaborate with Kabir in several films, including hits such as Tubelight in 2017, Bajrangi Bhaijaan in 2015, and Ek Tha Tiger in 2012. After eleven successful years as assistant and associate director, Karishma made her directorial debut in 2017 with the reality series The Mini Truck, followed by Minime, a travel show she directed for TLC India. In 2018, she also directed The Reunion, a web series released by Times Now/ Zoom TV. Most recently, she directed the web series Mentalhood for ALT Balaji. Karishma studied at the New York Film Academy.

Roberto Donoso

Writer / Producer

An Ecuadorian-born writer and producer based in Miami. He graduated from Wilmington University, where he studied Business Management all while fueling his covert love for the arts with a packed schedule of electives like Literature, Philosophy, Aesthetics of Film, and Photography. After a 10-year career managing people and processes at a leading Fortune 500 company, Roberto switched paths to pursue his passion for storytelling. In addition to co-writing and producing The Woman Under the Tree, he is working on the manuscript of a historical novel.

Prashant Thakker

Writer / Producer

Born in Mumbai and based in Miami, his works have won multiple awards. In 2018, his comedy screenplay, Nut-ivity, currently in production, was a winner at the America Film Market for "Best Screenplay Pitch" and the winner for "Best Screenplay Pitch" in 2017 at the Miami Media and Film Market. His screenplay, Siblings, co-written with Karishma Kohli, won at the 2018 Miami Media and Film Market for "Best Screenplay Pitch". Prashant collaborated as a screenwriter in the full-length feature film Horror Time, produced by James Franco. In 2010, he co-produced the award-winning film I Am. Most recently, Prashant script-supervised the Alt Balaji webseries, Mentalhood. He studied creative writing at the University of Miami and screenwriting at Studio4 in Los Angeles and New York. 

Rupinder Nagra

Producer / Actor

Born in Punjab, India and brought up in Canada, he is well-known for his portrayal of Amal Kumar in Richie Mehta’s Amal. This role garnered him a Canadian Academy Acting nomination and the film went on to win over 20 awards internationally. He has worked on several films such as Karan Johar’s Kurbaan, Hansal Mehta’s Omerta and Simran, the Danish film De Ontsnapping and The Etruscan Smile (directed by Oscar Nominated Oded Binnun & Mihal Brezis). His theatre credits include The Other Place (London, UK - directed by Claire Van Kampen) and My Brothers & Sisters (London, UK - directed by Craig). Having a background in Improv/Comedy he worked for several years with the hit Improv Comedy troupe Step-UP (Toronto, Canada).

Fabiola Rodriguez

Producer

She is an independent film and television producer based in Miami.  For 11 years, she worked at South Florida PBS (WPBT), where she first produced children’s content and later news and political programming. While there, she earned an Emmy Award (out of three nominations) and three Telly Awards. Fabiola left South Florida PBS to pursue opportunities in the narrative space. In 2018, she was part of the producing team behind “Huracán," a psychological drama directed by Cassius Corrigan. The film had its world premiere at the 2019 Miami Film Festival, playing at the historic Olympia Theatre to a sold-out crowd. Huracán was acquired by HBO in the fall of 2020. Fabiola also worked as crew on productions such as Prime Video’s "The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel," A24’s “Waves," ABC’s "Grand Hotel" and independent films such as "Critical Thinking" and “Reefa." Her most recent project, a narrative feature film titled “Ludi," is directed by Edson Jean and executive-produced by Oolite Arts, one of Miami's largest artist support organizations. “Ludi" was selected to be a part of IFP's Narrative Lab, while Fabiola was selected to be a part of the New Orleans Film Society's Southern Producers Lab. She graduated from the University of Iowa with a Bachelor's degree in Communication Studies.

Daniel Kaplan

Director of Photography

Born and raised in Miami, he graduated with an MBA in Marine Affairs and Policy at the University of Miami. After graduating he decided to drastically alter his career path by landing a job with a local television production company called The Corner of the Cave. While at The Cave he worked as DP and AC on television shows for networks like History Channel, Discovery Channel, and Oxygen Network. Currently, Daniel works for Onboard Media, a company that produces original content for LVMH Moët Hennessy, Carnival Corporation, and other well-known companies. All the while, Daniel has enjoyed creating his own original short documentaries.

Jose Parody

Composer

He is an award-winning Colombian composer based in Los Angeles. By exploring new sound palettes with both traditional composition and contemporary music production techniques, he brings a special voice to each of his projects. In 2018, he was honored with his second Emmy for his score for the Emmy-winning show “The Migrant Kitchen”, a recognition which he also received for the first season in 2017. In early 2019 he scored “Rapid Response”, a feature documentary which explores the history of motor-sports safety during the most fatal years in professional racing. Some of his most profound education came from his assistant-ship with British composer Tom Howe, where Parody had the opportunity to observe the importance of not only talent, but also  teamwork and communication. During 2017 and 2018,  he assisted Tom on feature-films such as “Professor Marston & the Wonder Women”, “Early Man”, “Charming”, and “Wonder Woman”. He recently contributed music for projects such as Netflix's “Last Czars”, CNN/Nutopia's “I Knew Jesus”, and “Indian Boarding School” (Channel 4 Television).

Alina Interián

Our Lead

As co-founder of Teatro Avante, Alina produced many of the company's early plays. She displayed her acting talent in the 1970s and 1980s, earning critical and audience praise for her starring turns in Electra Garrigó, Las niñas ricas de Camagüey (The House of Bernarda Alba), A Streetcar Named Desire, Agnes of God, Extremities, and The Miracle Worker, among others.  In the late 1980s, she turned to literature and joined Miami Dade College, where she founded the Center for Literature, and was the moving and creative force behind the growth, recognition and prestige the Miami Book Fair enjoys today. She directed the event for 25 years. Alina returned to theatre in 2015 in the revival of René R. Aloma's Alguna cosita que alivie el sufrir at the 30th International Hispanic Theatre Festival of Miami, in the role of Ana, which she played in the piece's first production, also by Teatro Avante, in 1986. In 2016 she played the role of Lina Berman in El puerto de los cristales rotos, and in 2017 played the lead role in Notas que saben a olvido. Her more recent work includes Ana in Nowhere in the World, and this summer, Sister Angela in Bayamesa. The Woman Under The Tree is Alina's latest project and cinematographic debut.