M.C Cruz is a child of Chilean immigrants. Who was born, raised and currently based in Toronto but has also lived two years in Chile and more recently completed an Artist Residency in Morocco. They attended Etobicoke School of Arts and majored in Visual Arts before moving to Vancouver to study film and video production at Capilano University. They facilitated filmmaking workshops for marginalized communities as part of Fright Film Academy and Fright Film School. They have written, directed and produced several live action and animated short films including “Vampyric PSA”, “La Llorona” and “Root Causes”. The animated film “Root Causes” screened at OCAD in a special preview and Rendezvous with Madness Film Festival with an invitation to join a filmmakers panel. Their painting series "Refuge From Home" was showcased at the University of Toronto and Toronto City Hall during October 2019 as well as at TMAC for Being Scene 2020. Recently they created and presented paintings for "Unusual Spaces", a virtual art party by Hercinia Arts Collective. This work was done in Asilah, Morocco during the Covid 19 pandemic and addresses the strange times and circumstances we are in. The Cruz Herrera Museum in Spain also featured their latest artwork in a special online video presentation. In 2021, they were awarded a 15,000 dollar grant from the ISO Solidarity Fund to research and write a screenplay. They are also working on a feature documentary film and series of paintings about the massive street protests happening in Chile (el estallido social). In 2022 they worked with the Accessible Writers Lab to create more access into the film and TV industry for writers who are disabled and otherwise marginalized in Canadian society. Most recently they created animated sequences for a CBC funded pitch trailer. Their work in traditional visual arts has been exhibited at the University of Toronto, Being Scene Juried Art, New Vistas Juried Art Exhibit, and Arts Etobicoke, among others. Their goal is to continue creating work that challenges the status quo while being visually and narratively compelling.
