During the summer of 2018, Giovanni
co-directed La Madre de los Todos Exilios, The Mother of All Exiles at La Casa Tercer Acto in Barrio Lourdes in Bogotá, in collaboration with Tricklock Theatre Co.
As a filmmaker, he directed and produced Upon the Fragile Shore, which was screened at the 32nd Los Angeles Asian Pacific Film Festival & Th
During the summer of 2018, Giovanni
co-directed La Madre de los Todos Exilios, The Mother of All Exiles at La Casa Tercer Acto in Barrio Lourdes in Bogotá, in collaboration with Tricklock Theatre Co.
As a filmmaker, he directed and produced Upon the Fragile Shore, which was screened at the 32nd Los Angeles Asian Pacific Film Festival & The NoPassport Theatre Conference Dreaming the Americas: Who is it for? He also produced six short films entitled Green shorts: films (re)imagining our troubled environment including his screenplay El Pescador y La Lluvia, The Fisherman and The Rain. The films were part of VisionLA Fest, COPOUT at the Arts House Theatre in Melbourne & University of Panamá. These screenings were presented as part of ARTCOP21, a global initiative for cultural activity in Climate Change.
Furthermore, he's been traveling to Australia to work with theatre and community organizations. What started out as a resident scholar position in Playwriting Australia’s National Play Festival has expanded to an artist-in-residence opportunity with Philippine-Australian Arts, Culture and Innovation Central, National Theatre of Parramatta
Furthermore, he's been traveling to Australia to work with theatre and community organizations. What started out as a resident scholar position in Playwriting Australia’s National Play Festival has expanded to an artist-in-residence opportunity with Philippine-Australian Arts, Culture and Innovation Central, National Theatre of Parramatta and one of Sydney Biennale's cultural adviser.
Next door in Singapore, their work at the Haque Centre of Acting and Creativity (HCAC) entitled The Body Series culminated. The devised theatrical plays included Creation of My Body, Words of My Body and Thoughts of My Body. At the same time, National Poetry Festival Singapore commissioned Ranice Tay, a Sinagporean artist and Giovanni to write/perform a piece with the theme of ‘In Spirit.’ Benches is a coming-of-age, two-person poetic play on love, loss, and what it means for some stories to stay with us forever. The following year, alongside Zora Imani Smith, they presented another Poetry Festival commissioned work entitled 'Palindromes,' this time delving into music and the parallel between Malay Indigeneity and the Filipino Immigrant experience.
A Guest Artist for Boska Komedia - Divine Comedy Festival 2017 in Kraków, Poland and a Cabaret performer at Galerie St St in Neukölln, Berlin. Giovanni has also facilitated performance workshops at London Dramatic Academy and directed What the Butler Saw at Upstage Bern in Switzerland. Allos, The Story of Carlos Bulosan was presented in
A Guest Artist for Boska Komedia - Divine Comedy Festival 2017 in Kraków, Poland and a Cabaret performer at Galerie St St in Neukölln, Berlin. Giovanni has also facilitated performance workshops at London Dramatic Academy and directed What the Butler Saw at Upstage Bern in Switzerland. Allos, The Story of Carlos Bulosan was presented in Styria, Austria as well as Kamapala International Theatre Festival in Uganda. Additional credits include musicals: Cabaret, Urinetown, Spring Awakening and plays: Scrimmage (East West Players), The Hotel Play (Playwright's Arena/Centre Theatre Group), Government Inspector, Convergence Zone, In the Next Room,
The House of the Spirits, Medieval Mystery Plays The Last Firefly (Artist at Play/CTG).
He was also the co-producer for Beyond Our Outward Guise: Filipino American Stories at the
Pasadena Playhouse.
DNAWORKS is adapting Joseph Conrad’s 1909 novella The Secret Sharer into a mixed-media performance work. Considered an early queer text, The Secret Sharer integrates dance/text/music/projections and will be performed in an open-concept space with audiences co-creating the environment and the narrative. This devised work is an exploration of fragility, tenderness, and intimacy in times of personal duress and societal discrimination–—the narrative of a silent, shared connection between two outsiders in the face of violence. In response to an increase in both hate crimes and the visibility of LGBTQQ2SPIAA+ youth trauma worldwide, we wish to create a space for resiliency and healing.
Recipient 2019 MAP Fund Award, Subcircle Residency & Mondo Bizarro Beta Performance.
"Belonging" is a tale about women whose interconnectedness surpasses their separation from the diaspora of their Indian identity. Spanning various countries and continents, we follow different characters from Bangalore, London, Singapore and California witness their experience navigating a world where they question their very own belonging.
Featured in Our Digital Stories: Vol. 1. Community partner for Vol. 1 was Silicon Valley De-Bug
Written by Noel Alumit
Featuring: Rommel Rojas, Ginger Leopoldo & George Infantado
Music by Florante C. Aguilar Filmography: Patrick Nan
Directed by Giovanni Ortega
Starring Matt Fuentes, Jasmine Reyes, Kristine White, Kai Morfin, Sandy Nguyen, Louis Nguyen & Rommel Rojas.
Synopsis
Benny and Han are Asian-American brothers in high school. Benny wants to pursue his dream of being a professional football player, while Han has a passion for the medical field.
The two worlds collide as the brothers come face to face with bullying, stereotypes, and personal responsibility.
This project is made possible by generous support from the
City of Los Angeles Department of Cultural Affairs (DCA), The Aratani Foundation,
and Dwight Stuart Youth Fund.
This musical play follows two strangers, seemingly worlds apart, as they come to realize just how in tune they are with each other. With original songs penned by Ortega and scored by José Promis, as well as classics from Singaporean-Malaysian singer and icon Saloma and pop sensation Agnes Monica, PALINDROMES comes at a time of division to remind us that, maybe, we've all just got each other backwards.
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