THE CREATIVE TEAM

DIRECTOR

WRITER / ACTRESS

PRODUCER / CASTING

Ethan Maniquis

Sasha Higgins

David Gugliemo

Ethan launched his film career on the cult classic From Dusk Till Dawn, written by Quentin Tarantino and directed by Robert Rodriguez. Cutting his teeth at Troublemaker Studios in Austin, he went on to work on visually iconic films like Desperado and Sin City, honing a bold, kinetic style.

Maniquis has crafted stories across the globe—from the alleys of Beijing in Tian Lai Meng Xiang and the boxing rings of Panama in Hands of Stone. He made his directorial debut co-helming the box office hit Machete for 20th Century Fox, bringing grindhouse grit to the mainstream. Since then, he has directed features, commercials, and music videos, including the Spanish-language comedy Limonada, shot on location in the Dominican Republic.

Sasha Higgins grew up in Hong Kong and Michigan with English parents. As an actress, her work has taken her from the West End and the Geffen to film and television. For her writing she has received the Hopwood award and placed in the Academy Nicholl Fellowship, Austin Film Festival, Slamdance, and Raindance screenwriting competitions. She is a bonafide dog lady, having volunteered and fostered for rescues for the past twelve years.

David Gugliemo his best known for casting acclaimed festival hits including The Standoff at Sparrow Creek (TIFF Premiere), Run Hide Fight (Venice Premiere) and Shelby Oaks, acquired by Neon.

He just completed casting the new entry to the Evil Dead Franchise, Evil Dead Wrath, for Sam Raimi's Ghost House Pictures, Sony and New Line.

As a producer, Gugliemo recently wrapped Frontier Crucible, starring Armie Hammer, Thomas Jane and William H Macy. Additional Producing credits include the cop thriller Muzzle starring Aaron Eckhart. Last Stop in Yuma County and Killing Faith, starring Guy Pierce and Bill Pullman.

PRODUCER

Noah Smith

[Noah Smith is a producer and writer with more than a decade of experience across national media and the nonprofit sector. His latest nonprofit documentary, LA TORMENTA, narrated by Rita Moreno, was selected for the Santa Barbara International Film Festival.

For more than seven years, Noah has produced editorial and visual storytelling for Direct Relief, the nation’s fifth-largest nonprofit.

He previously reported for the Washington Post, where he was a founding member of Launcher.