Luisa Dantas is a Brasilian-American multimedia storyteller whose work centers on race, place, and social justice. She has produced, written and directed narratives that span genres and modalities, including animated and live-action fiction and traditional and interactive documentary, that feature complex and nuanced protagonists from traditionally underrepresented communities. Her most recent film, Rip Tide, premiered at the Mill Valley Film Festival and has screened festivals around the world. She also wrote and co-directed MINE, an animated web series about an unraveling utopian community set in the near future, premiered at the Tribeca film festival and won best web series at American Black Film Festival. Her work has received support from the Rockefeller, Surdna, Robert Wood Johnson, and Ford Foundations, among others.
Luisa also served as the director and Executive Producer for Rise-Home Stories, an innovative storytelling project funded by the Ford Foundation, which brings together artists and advocates from all over the country to collaboratively harness the power of narrative in the fight for housing, land, and racial justice. The award-winning project includes an animated web series, children’s book, non-fiction podcast, interactive site, and video game that have engaged multigenerational audiences around the world.
As a narrative consultant, Luisa works with clients in diverse sectors of social justice advocacy and philanthropy to become better storytellers in the fight for a more just and equitable future. Her clients include Policylink, the Ford Foundation, JPB Foundation, and National Employment Law Project, among others.
Luisa also wrote and directed the multi-platform documentary Land of Opportunity, which chronicles the reconstruction of New Orleans through the eyes of those on the frontlines. The project includes a feature film, which was commissioned by Arté in France for the 5th anniversary of Katrina, and a groundbreaking interactive web platform produced in conjunction with partners in six cities. Luisa also co-produced the documentary Wal-Mart: The High Cost of Low Price, for which she worked undercover as a cashier at a Florida superstore, wearing a hidden camera..