Martín Gustavo Castañeda Yábar

Martín Gustavo Castañeda Yábar first self-identified as an artist during winter break, 2023. It was a Freudian slip he decided to keep.

Yes, there were awards. A Royal Reel Award in 2016 from the Canada International Film Festival for his first completed feature-length screenplay, Written by Victors. His film Box won Best Experimental Film at the 2015 Oregon International Film Awards. A handful of short films screened at a handful of indie festivals—some more obscure than others. The point is: he’s still at it. Writing, producing, sometimes directing. Always thinking about the next film, even when life barges in uninvited.

And no, he didn’t “make it” in the American Film Industry.

You know—“couldn’t take it,” “wasn’t built for it.”

It’s true. He lacked the patience (or masochism) for the industry’s slow-burning abuse—not sexual, of course, because you know: he’s a guy. He was even foolish enough to try unionizing Production Assistants. LOL.

And yet—he’d totally “sell out” the moment someone greenlit a project he’s developing. He’d be fine directing commercials if it bought him time to shoot a personal film in the desert. He’s not above money. He just insists on earning it without erasing himself.

So what we have here, for now, is a White Latino Peruvian Queer United States Army Combat Disabled Veteran, with an MFA in Film from Vermont College of Fine Arts, and an MA in Producing from Seattle Film Institute. He currently works at the University of New Mexico as UCAM’s Creative Services Senior Multimedia Director & Producer, and as Adjunct Faculty in the Film and Digital Media Arts department.

He spends most of his time figuring out stories while riding his mountain bike—low-key chasing, or maybe being chased by, a thunderstorm.

You’ll love or hate them. That’s the whole idea.