Ramona S. Diaz is an award-winning Filipino American filmmaker whose films have been screened at Sundance, Berlin, Tribeca, SXSW, IDFA, HotDocs, and many other top-tier film festivals. Known for her compelling character-driven documentaries that combine a profound appreciation for cinematic aesthetics and potent storytelling. Her work demonstrates an uncanny ability to gain intimate access to the people she films, resulting in keenly observed moments and nuanced narratives that are unforgettable.

Ramona’s current release, A Thousand Cuts, premiered at the 2020 Sundance Film Festival and won an IDA Award and an IFP Gothams Award, and was nominated for the PGA for Best Documentary. With press freedom under threat in the Philippines, A Thousand Cuts goes inside the escalating war between the government and the press. The documentary follows Maria Ressa, renowned journalist and 2021 Nobel Peace Prize recipient, who has become a top target of President Rodrigo Duterte’s crackdown on the news media.

Ramona is both a Guggenheim Fellow and a USA Fellow – prestigious awards given to artists with singular visions who have significantly contributed to the arts in the United States. She was named the inaugural McGurn Family Trust Resident in Film by the American Academy in Rome. Ramona is a member of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, and the Producers and Writers Guilds of America. In 2017, she received the Women at Sundance Fellowship award, a Creative Capital Award, and a Chicken & Egg Pictures Filmmaker Award.