Carlos Gutierrez was born and raised in Miami, Florida. As an undergraduate student at Tufts
University, he majored in Spanish Literature with a minor in Communications & Media Studies.
His honors thesis project, a documentary entitled Journey into Exile, garnered numerous
awards at festivals including the NY Independent Film Festival and the World Fest Houston. After
graduating with his B.A., Mr. Gutierrez worked as a television commercial producer in advertising
for three years. He was awarded a Graduate Fellowship in order to attend New York University
Master’s Film Program. During his time at NYU, Mr. Gutierrez was awarded several grants
including: the Warner Bros. Production Grant, Walter Meade Scholarship, the National
Hispanic Foundation for the Arts award, a Cuban Artists Fund grant and the Richard Vague
Award in Film Excellence.
Mr. Gutierrez’s short film, Sleight of Hand, won the Best Latino Filmmaker Award at the DGA
Student Film Awards, was an official selection at Palm Springs Film Festival and won several
awards at the First Run Film Festival in New York City. While at NYU, he was awarded the
Grand Prize for the 2004 HBO-NY Latino Film Festival Short Film Contest in which he was
given the chance to direct Lechón (Pork). As part of the Grand Prize, Lechón was screened
ahead of the feature films that played during the festival. Lechón was an official selection at the
Slamdance Film Festival and the Gen Art Shorts in the Park festival. Mr. Gutierrez was later
selected as a finalist for the Esquire Magazine Short Film Competition where his short film In
the Past was screened for a panel of industry professionals including Phillip Seymour Hoffman.
Both Lechón and Sleight of Hand were purchased for on-air programming by the network Sí TV.
Sleight of Hand was also sold nationally in the U.S. with the Sony Playstation (PSP) in a short
film compilation titled: ShortsPlay. Still a student at NYU, Carlos then signed with NY-based
Production Farm for representation as a television commercial director. His commercial for the
New York International Latino Film Festival, titled Typecasting, was awarded an Emmy for Best
P.S.A. and a Bronze trophy at the Ad Age Latino Awards. He is now currently on the directing
roster of the LA-based production company Cortez Brothers.
In 2006, Mr. Gutierrez graduated with a Masters of Fine Arts in Film Directing from New York
University. Carlos’ thesis film, Wet Foot/Dry Foot, was nominated for the Student Academy
Awards and is in development as a feature film. The film was selected as the winner of the
Showtime Network’s 7th Annual Latino Filmmakers Showcase and had its world premiere on
the network. His script Black and Blue, based on Wet Foot/Dry Foot, was named one of three
finalists in the FADE IN Awards for Best Feature Screenplay in 2008.
Carlos’ follow-up film Escondido (Hidden) premiered on Showtime Networks and was produced
by Showtime as part of the Latino Filmmaker Showcase. Mr. Gutierrez is also developing two
more feature films as a writer/director. In addition, Mr. Gutierrez is also a published poet having
twice received the Editor’s Choice Award from The International Library of Poetry.
short films