Lauren Marie Peña is an Award-Winning filmmaker and actress born and raised in Miami, Florida.
Lauren won the award for “Best Comedic Actress” in Los Angeles, CA while competing in the “Best New Talent Awards” when she was 17. Returning home to Miami and completing work on Michael Mann’s remake of “Miami Vice”, she packed her belongings and headed back to Hollywood, this time to live, at the age of 19.
Her films have screened and won awards at festivals around the world as well as international competitions. Her directorial debut “Easy Money” took home the award for “Best Short Film” at the Cinema City International Film Festival. Lauren competed in the international online competition, Project Breakout, winning the title of “Breakout Filmmaker” with her short films “Easy Money” and “Christmas Confessional.” This competition took her talents abroad to London, England to work on a film set and meet an Academy Award Winning Producer. It was in London where she developed insights into international film production, thus influencing her directorial style, vision, and every project she would take on thereafter.
While living in LA, she undertook a diversity of job titles to support her career, which in turn expanded her knowledge in all aspects of on-the-set moviemaking. Camera in hand, she has traveled to countries such as China, Greece, Cyprus, and England as a “one-woman-machine;” taking on the role of cinematographer, editor, producer, and director working for different companies and organizations.
Her most recent film, “No Dark, No Light” premiered at Miami Art Basel Week Multiversal Film Festival and won the “Best of Fest” & “Audience Award.” Lauren wrote, directed, produced, starred, edited, and did the voiceover narration on the short film which is part of a feature length trilogy series.