Judi Polanco, Director of She Survived
Judi Polanco was born in New York City and raised in the countryside of the Dominican Republic for most of her young life. The only girl in a herd of brothers, she struggled with her identity from a very young age and strove to rise above her situation. Always the tomboy, she fought against the gender stereotypes enforced on her, refusing to become a “housewife”, as the rest of the women in her family had. She grew up as one of the boys and to this day, her brothers will say in a crowd of males, “You can talk in front of her. She’s just one of us.”
Rising above her upbringing, Judi majored in Forensic Psychology. As a student, she worked full-time at a New York law firm to support herself and her studies, refusing to give in. As a graduate student at New York University, Judi majored in journalism but soon realized that her passion was filmmaking. Judi received a certificate from NYU in Film and TV.
Judi’s experiences with racism, gender bias, domestic violence, and graduate school inspired her to direct her first documentary, She Survived, which touches on violence against women. Judi is now a wife and mother of two beautiful daughters. She is also a children’s book author and a Human Resources professional with over 10 years of experience in a variety of industries.
Andrew Porter, Cinematographer
andrewbdporter.com
Andrew Porter first began taking photographs during his teenage years on his grandmother’s Pentax K1000. Eventually, this led him down a path to create films and become a cinematographer working in New York City.
Professionally, he has worked with companies such as Polaroid, The Jim Henson Company, Bravo, HBO and Sephora. Most recently, his mini-documentary The DJ is here was featured on the front page of reddit.com.
Outside filmmaking, he enjoys juggling, analog photography, collecting VHS tapes and exploring new stations on his shortwave radio.