I was born in Huancayo, Peru, and was raised in Fairfax, Virginia. As a child I took a strong interest in the visual arts, and was particularly fond of painting. When I was 8, my mother purchased a brand-new camcorder, and I was fascinated by it. I discovered I could take the principles of color and composition I had learned as a painter and apply them to the videos I took with my mother’s camcorder—I had discovered my new favorite medium.

Since those days I worked intensively to learn all I can about the technical and artistic aspects of film production.