My name is Joana Maria, I was born in the city of Lisbon, Portugal. Ever since a small child, I was always been in touch with the arts, through the paintings and writings of my mother and theatre and music of my older sister. I found my path when I initiated the adventure of studying cinema, attending Universidade Lusófona, in Lisbon. It was there where I discovered my love in writing, directing, editing and photography. (Yes, I'm a storytelling freak. I confess.) I enriched my training with courses in Brussels, Cologne and Budapest specializing in directing which gave me the opportunity to direct my first financed fiction short film - WE ARE DESPERATE - by Europe Media Program and consequently my first short documentary - LIKE A TREE - shot in China by invitation of the program Looking China 2015. I also ventured into an artistic residence in Barcelona - DYF: Design Your Future - which motivated me even more to use my art in favor of social activism and later was really important in the making of the video - SEE ACTIONS. NOT COLORS. - which I created still as a student as part of an awareness campaign for inclusion and won two prizes, one by the Council of Europe and another by Plural + organized by the United Nations. After a couple of years as the Image Director for one of the oldest accessories brands in Portugal, Pedra Dura, I'm now working on my brand as a Multidisciplinary Creative as a freelancer. Already with a few short-films directed and written by me - including the award-winning short fiction films "OOBE", "WE ARE DESPERATE" and "SEE ACTIONS. NOT COLOURS." - I'm still working really hard to provoke emotions and tell stories, either with still or moving images.