Cristina Ibarra is a renowned filmmaker with a 20-year career spanning multiple award-winning projects. Her roots along the Texas-Mexico border have significantly influenced her work, which often explores the complexities of border crossing experiences.
One of her most notable projects is "The Infiltrators," a docu-thriller that follows undocumented activists on a secret mission inside a detention center. The film has received widespread acclaim, including the Audience and Innovator Awards in the NEXT section at the 2019 Sundance Film Festival, as well as other notable festival awards. It is currently being distributed by Oscilloscope.
Ibarra's previous documentary, "Las Marthas," received critical acclaim from The New York Times, which described it as "a striking alternative portrait of border life." The film premiered on PBS's Independent Lens in 2014 and is distributed by Women Make Movies.
Her documentary "The Last Conquistador" was broadcast on POV in 2008 and received praise from USA Today, which referred to it as "Heroic." The film explores the racially conflicted construction of a monument to a conquistador in El Paso, Texas.
Ibarra's directorial debut, "Dirty Laundry: A Homemade Telenovela," was broadcast on PBS in 2001 and received an award for its innovative storytelling. Throughout her career, she has received numerous fellowships from prominent organizations, including the Soros, Rauschenberg, Rockefeller, NYFA, CPB/PBS, NALIP, Firelight, the Sundance Women's Initiative, and Creative Capital, among others.
