Biography
Tanya Saracho is a playwright and television writer who most recently served as creator, showrunner, and executive producer of the critically-acclaimed series "Vida" on Starz, which earned 100% critical rating on Rotten Tomatoes for all three seasons. The show, which aired its third and final season on Starz in May 2020, featured all Latine directors in season one, and all Latina directors in seasons two and three, including Saracho, who made her television directorial debut. The series had an all-Latine writers room for seasons one and two, and in season three, the room was composed of all Latina writers.
Saracho has multiple television projects in development as part of her overall deal with Universal Content Productions (UCP) and is adapting her Off-Broadway play "Mala Hierba" for Anonymous Content, for which she will make her feature film directorial debut.
Saracho co-founded the Untitled Latinx Project (ULP), whose mission is to increase Latine representation in television, broadcast, cable, and streaming platforms through content created by Latine writers, along with co-founding the Writers Access Support Staff Training Program, to help increase representation and opportunities for underrepresented communities. In addition, Saracho launched the Ojalá Ignition Lab in June, 2021, as part of her deal UCP, which is a lab and incubator program aimed to nurture, amplify, guide, and empower intersectional Latine voices. The fellows and finalists for Ojala's inaugural lab were announced in January 2022.
Saracho is the recipient of the Norman Lear Writers Award at the 36th Annual Imagen Awards, taking place October 2021. Named one of "TV Scribes to Watch" by Variety in 2018, Saracho was also honored by the LGBTQ California Legislative Caucus as their 2020 Pride Month Honoree. She received the Rising Star Award at the Outfest Legacy Awards and was awarded the New Voice Award by Final Draft. "Vida" won the GLAAD Media Award for Outstanding Comedy Series in 2019, and was nominated for seasons two and three as well. The series was also honored by the National Hispanic Media Coalition with the 2019 Impact Award, won the Audience Award at the 2018 SXSW Film Festival, and made its season two premiere as an Official Selection of the 2019 Tribeca Film Festival.
Saracho's television credits include "How to Get Away with Murder," HBO's "Looking," and "Devious Maids."
Saracho was named "Best New Playwright" by Chicago Magazine, and has had plays produced at New York City's Primary Stages and 2nd Stage, as well as Victory Gardens Theatre, The Denver Theatre Center, Oregon Shakespeare Festival, The Goodman Theater, Steppenwolf Theater, Teatro Vista, Teatro Luna, Fountain Theater, Clubbed Thumb, NEXT Theater and 16th Street Theater.
Saracho was also named one of nine national Latino "Luminarios" by Café Magazine, and received the first "Revolucionario" Award in Theater by the National Museum of Mexican Art. She is the founder of Teatro Luna (the first all-Latina Theatre Company in the nation, now defunct) as well as the founder of ALTA (Alliance of Latino Theatre Artists). She is currently in development with South Coast Repertory and Two River Theatre.
Saracho was born in Los Mochis, Sinaloa, México, and raised along the Texas border, spending the better part of her adult life in Chicago. She currently resides in Los Angeles.
