Biography
Award-winning writer, director, and producer Dianna Ippolito brings a rich multicultural lens to her storytelling. Raised in Southern California by a Mexican immigrant mother and a first-generation Italian-American father, her childhood home resonated with music, culture, and cinema. Her father, a devoted lover of jazz and classic film who lived with a disability, fueled her deep appreciation for the arts and fostered a lifelong compassion for the disability community, values that powerfully shape the human-centered narratives she brings to the screen.
Ippolito's career began as a freelance fashion and street photographer, where she honed a keen visual eye before turning to screenwriting after her first course at the American Film Institute. Her Mexican and Italian heritage deeply informs her narratives, infusing them with cultural depth, as she explores themes of identity, resilience, and empowerment, particularly those centered on women and underdogs.
In 2013, she joined as co-producer and writer for the television action series SAF3, immersing herself for months in South Africa, where the series was filmed. Since then, she has produced and directed a diverse array of award-winning projects, including the psychological thrillers Close Your Eyes and The Obscured (both available on Amazon), and the holiday film Mistletoe Connection (currently streaming on UpTV). Her coming of age screenplay Rodeo Sisters took home Best Inspirational Screenplay at the Vegas Movie Awards, and she is also a Nicholl Fellowship quarter-finalist and a Fade-In and Scriptapalooza winner. Most recently, she earned the Rocoberti Writer's Retreat Scholarship in Spain.
With over a decade of experience spanning research, development, casting, production, and post-production, Ippolito has proven to be a versatile filmmaker. Her upcoming slate includes a Dudley Moore biopic, an LGBTQ drama titled The Two of Us, and several other music-driven biopics, a natural extension of her lifelong love for music and the compelling stories behind the artists who create it.
11 wins and 17 nominations
