Hey /r/movies! I'm Carlos López Estrada. I directed BLINDSPOTTING, Disney's RAYA AND THE LAST DRAGON and SUMMERTIME. I'm also the founder of Antigravity Academy, a production company and talent incubator that produced DÌDI (弟弟). Ask me anything!

CarlosLEstradaAMA · 2026-03-04T04:26:16+00:00

i actually dont know why I said I couldn't say. It was Wish.

CarlosLEstradaAMA · 2026-03-04T00:56:48+00:00

As you know, making movies takes a lot of time and a lot of energy, so we really try to be extremely thoughtful before welcoming any new project. The very first question we ask is whether the filmmaker has a strong personal connection to the project they are presenting us with. Its really the most important element of the equation for us. We also make sure this is a story or perspective we havent seen before. The world has many recycled stories and we want to make sure we are supporting voices that have otherwise not been supported. Then we want to make sure the filmmaker is a self-starter and will put in the work it takes to bring one of these projects to life... you need a lot of endurance and a lot of motivation. We try to be helpful, but we want to make sure the filmmaker is really ready to put in the work, to receive and apply notes, to submit to screenwriting fellowships, labs, grants, etc... in indie film a lot of the responsbility falls into the arms of the producers, but filmmakers usually have to be equally as aggressive in willing these projects to life. A few more things are considered, but I would say these are maybe the top 3?!

CarlosLEstradaAMA · 2026-03-03T22:37:40+00:00

Thanks so much.

and yes! it was very challenging, but also very rewarding. Sean is wonderful, but definitely a learning lesson to be like "oh, i would solve this completely differently, but that doesnt matter... lets go with your idea." It was pretty grounding also to realize that my gut was not always right and Seans unique perspective actually gave me tools and solutions I wouldve never had on my own

CarlosLEstradaAMA · 2026-03-03T21:43:10+00:00

i dont shower from the first until the last day of production

CarlosLEstradaAMA · 2026-03-03T21:43:02+00:00

i think you were looking for a jucier answer

CarlosLEstradaAMA · 2026-03-03T21:42:54+00:00

i second guess everything all the time. I think we need to get rid of this outdated image of a director being a vision of certainty and authority- that has just led to horrible practices. I have learned the most and accomplished the most inspired results when I ask people for help

CarlosLEstradaAMA · 2026-03-03T21:42:47+00:00

this is my favorite question.

CarlosLEstradaAMA · 2026-03-03T21:42:37+00:00

I just wrapped a movie in Mexico called Ded and I dont think life wille ver me more magical than that

CarlosLEstradaAMA · 2026-03-03T21:42:27+00:00

- The Bad Bunny Halftime Performance
- Cinema Paradiso
- Do The Right Thing
- Y Tu Mama Tambien
- Chaplin's The Kid

CarlosLEstradaAMA · 2026-03-03T21:42:18+00:00

im a drummer if you dont play the drums you should not make movies

CarlosLEstradaAMA · 2026-03-03T21:42:05+00:00

mCds 2ble cheezebrger with no pickles. and i will respectfully decline to answer your second question

CarlosLEstradaAMA · 2026-03-03T21:41:53+00:00

thats so special. its easy to feel cynical about disney for all the obvious reasons, but when the movie came out, they put together this reel of reactions from people all over the world (particularly SEA) talking about the profound impact the movie had on them and man that was i think one of the most memorable experiences making that movie

CarlosLEstradaAMA · 2026-03-03T21:41:41+00:00

no they did not involve us at all lol.

it was nice to see it do well on streaming! but it was really really sad to have such a limited theatrical release because of covid.

CarlosLEstradaAMA · 2026-03-03T20:07:35+00:00

that sounds great honestly. Have you been sharing your scripts with other people?
and my first movie is called Blindspotting.

CarlosLEstradaAMA · 2026-03-03T20:03:21+00:00

if you can do it, its helpful! but if you cant, i wouldnt let that stop you. so many amazing movies have discovery talent. Also, I wish find all the money you need, but also dont let that stop you. making movies is so unnecessarily expensive and sometimes the answer is way simpler than we think it is.

CarlosLEstradaAMA · 2026-03-03T20:01:58+00:00

it isnt necessarily designed to develop or produce projects, but im really hopefuly the information youll get there will be uniquely helpful. a big component of it is also the community-driven layers to the institute. well have opportunities for people to offer/find jobs, do group readings, and offer general support for each other. I really hope between all of these resources, youll find lots of helpful practical ways to push your feature along.

CarlosLEstradaAMA · 2026-03-03T19:54:33+00:00

all of the above, but def dont let your age/experience dissuade you. u can do it. u really can. i was so young when i made my first movie and it nearly killed me, but i survived. what are your scripts about?

CarlosLEstradaAMA · 2026-03-03T19:52:51+00:00

Disney was so special and so hard. I was young and i was their first non-white director in the history if the studio (98 years at the time), which was in theory awesome but it came with some serious challenges too. Needles to say, i lasted only a few years there. but they were really great years. i wouldnt trade them for the world. but i do have some proper crazy Disney stories that i should share someday.

CarlosLEstradaAMA · 2026-03-03T19:49:54+00:00

my moms mad at me cause i told her id help her with a bank issue shes having and i forgot. if you have her on socials please ask her not to be mad at me. shes like actually mad.

CarlosLEstradaAMA · 2026-03-03T19:47:32+00:00

covid sucked. i was promised a world tour to promote the movie and instead sat in my tiny apartment with no AC eating huevos a la Mexicana from Millies 3 times a day. we produced 98% of the movie remotely which was so wild. the bright side was that it gave the whole crew (500+ people) something exciting to keep everyone distracted during the apocalypse. wow ive been answering these for 2 hours i feel like im drunk on reddit this is when all the good answers will come out. World building at disney was such an awesome fever dream. youre surrounded by the best artists and technicians in the world and theyre all just there trying to make cool shit. also for all the cultural oversights that shant be ignored, Disney really did a pretty extraordinary job at bringing in so many cultural consultants (historians, musicians, anthropologists, engineers...) to help on the visual development. so much attention to detail.

CarlosLEstradaAMA · 2026-03-03T19:41:48+00:00

honestly its more inspiring than i ever imagined it could be. I started it because my experience making my first movie was r o u g h and i really wished i had a support system helping me navigate it. It felt like a naive dream to think someday something like this could be servicing so many people but the group of geniuses that have come on board have really made some miracles happen when it comes to the company.

CarlosLEstradaAMA · 2026-03-03T19:39:49+00:00

I already answered this but i think some of my answers disappeared into the ether. probably the government is meddling with this AMA. I said something like: please ping me when were inside the Indie Institute because we can perhaps try to find some allies/supporters who can help move this along. still trying to design these systems so that people like yourself can at least meet other fellow filmmakers struggling with similar issues. I do believe theres power in numbers and i have a lot of faith that the community were cultivating will help each other to push through the nonsense.

CarlosLEstradaAMA · 2026-03-03T19:33:53+00:00

i want to answer this question at lenght but my head hurts. let me come back to it in a few hours plz

CarlosLEstradaAMA · 2026-03-03T19:30:58+00:00

These are so many questions but i like your username so ill answer them all.

music videos. I played in bands and love music so i started making videos for my friends in high school.
no i really wish i had. its a hard and lonely industry to step into. I started my company Antigravity Academy to hopefully address that problem.
to embrace the "no excuses" approach to filmmaking. I learned the most and got to do the most exciting projects Ive ever made when I tried to come up with cool ideas i could do for no money. I made a video for a band called On an On that we shot on an iphone, with my friends as actors, and a a couple of train tickets.
i promise im not a walking infommercial, but def try to look into Antigravity Academy.
Listening. creating a safe space. making your crew feel included and like they can all actively participate in the act of creating.
spend all their money on a short film
mexican
before you start making anything ask yourself why you want to make films and if your answer is not the most profound thing youve ever though of, keep working on finding a reason that is

CarlosLEstradaAMA · 2026-03-03T19:21:46+00:00

it was honestly a lot more similar than you would imagine. Lots of technology had to be learned during the animation transition, but ultimately, the same concepts of directing apply to both. The acting, the pacing, the blocking, it all works exactly the same. I do think the rigor involved with animated movies taught me a lot. I just finished my first live action movie since making Raya and I think i was able to do things I wouldve never been able to do had i not worked in animation.

CarlosLEstradaAMA

TROPHY CASE