As their November 15th premiere at the Miami short Film Festival wraps up, the Season 3 cohort of the mitú | Walmart Filmmaker Mentorship Program is deep in post-production.

This season has fast-tracked a new generation of Latino storytellers—Sophia Constanzo, Glenís Hunter, Eric Ibarra, and Stephanie Osuna-Hernandez—from script development to a festival premiere in an 11-week accelerated format. All with guidance from returning mentor and Emmy award-winning director, Oz Rodriguez.

We caught up with the cohort one last time to look back on their journey. They opened up about what it meant to have Walmart’s support behind them, including the $50,000 grant, access to the Walmart Prop House, a full filmmaking equipment kit, insider gems from Oz, and the ways the experience helped shape their voice and confidence as filmmakers.

The Value of Mentorship

For all four filmmakers, the support from the mitú | Walmart Filmmaker Mentorship Program and the expertise of their mentor, Oz Rodriguez, were pivotal in elevating their productions.

Eric Ibarra, whose film “Two Step” will have its Miami debut, emphasized the critical role of mentorship in helping him grow as a director. A skill he says requires different resources than acting or screenwriting.

“The only way to get better at something is through trial and error,” he says. “This program provided me with an opportunity to grow as a director. [Walmart]     provided the funds for me to tell a story that I’m passionate about. I was given the opportunity to make mistakes, take chances, collaborate with new people, and push myself to a level I didn’t think I was able to reach.”

For Stephanie Osuna-Hernandez, the program was a significant leap forward in her career. Especially learning how to budget as a director.

“This was the biggest budget and crew I have worked on as a director. I know as I grow as a director, my budget and scope will get bigger and bigger, so this was definitely a good next step in my career,” she says. “As I continue to grow as a director, I know I will have new experiences that will teach me something new. This career is about being a forever student and being open to learning more, and I learned so much working on this short film through this program, like working with an ensemble cast, shooting with two cameras. It’s been a great evolution.”

Working with Oz Rodriguez

The opportunity to work with Oz Rodriguez was a highlight for the cohort, particularly for Glenís Hunter, who admits, “Being mentored by Oz is literally a dream come true for me. There’s even this joke that I tell, that I had him on my vision board because I’ve been wanting to work with him, and so you could only imagine the excitement when I found out that he was going to be my mentor

The Bronx-born actress, writer, and filmmaker behind the short film “15” says she values the mentorship as she is still learning to be a filmmaker. “To be able to just sit back and listen to what Oz has to say is mind-blowing to me,” she says.

According to the filmmakers, Oz’s mentorship provided practical, on-set wisdom that directly influenced how they executed their shots.

Sophia Costanzo highlighted how Oz’s input was invaluable from pre-production through the shoot.

“[Oz] truly cares so much about each one of our stories and was willing to help us find creative solutions to make sure that we could tell the best story possible,” she says. “After our shoots, we all agreed that we had each used the advice Oz gave us, and that he was right about the challenges we might face and how to navigate them. I’ll definitely be bringing the advice he gave us to my next projects. The other filmmakers have been equally inspiring.”

He specifically helped Castanzo guide her to switch scene locations as part of the filming of her short film “Cups.” He also gave her and the other filmmakers advice on how they had the coverage they needed to tell their stories, and how to work more efficiently on set.

“One of my biggest takeaways from having Oz as our mentor was really thinking about how to cover our story,” Constanzo adds. “As with any production, there are limitations– whether it’s time, budget, or otherwise– and in our time with him, whether it was in the screenwriting phase, in our table reads with him, or when looking at our pre-visualization books, he always made sure to emphasize how to make sure that we got the coverage we needed to tell our stories given the constraints we had.”

Shaping their creative voice with other experts

While bringing their stories to life, the filmmakers found themselves on a journey of trusting their instincts as they honed their director chops.

Osuna-Hernandez had to let go and lean in on the experts when things got tricky on set. Taking her film to the next level.

“I am used to a super indie mindset of filmmaking where I do it ALL, but in this film, although it’s still an indie short film, I had a team of experts working on my crew. I learned to really lean on them and trust that they will get it done and flawlessly, and they did just that,” she shares. “We were pressed for time while shooting, and they were always three steps ahead. It helped me focus on directing and working with the actors. I loved the flow of the team and appreciated how easy they made it for me. Without them and their amazing knowledge, the film would not be what it is. So overall it’s about trusting yourself and trusting your team, that was the most valuable lesson that I already knew, but it felt good to see it in practice with project size.”

Meanwhile, Hunter found the program allowed her to delve deeper into personal themes and step outside her comfort zone as an actress and writer.

“When you’ve been a writer and an actress, your approach to directing comes from a different point of view, and I can place myself in the shoes of, let’s say, an actor and be able to create a safe space for them to be able to do their jobs properly,” she says.

Castanzo also found working with professional storyboard artist Alexis Bronte during the mentorship was key to developing her visual storytelling skills. This was particularly important in conveying her trademark themes of “heartfelt, multi-generational family stories that blend humor with authenticity.”

As she worked on polishing her film, she learned to use visuals to bring these themes to life.

“One of my goals coming into this program was to further develop my ability to direct the camera and tell my story in a visually creative way, and I could not have done that without Alexis’s support,” she says. “It was amazing to see how the original drawings matched so many of the shots we got on set, made our shoot more efficient, and also helped our team be on the same page when rolling.”

It’s clear that the biggest takeaway, as summarized by Hunter, extends beyond technical skill: “The most valuable thing I’ve learned from not only Oz, but also my cohorts is that you can be a great director and approach it in a very authentic, humble, and fun way.”

The Road to the Miami short Film Festival

These four filmmakers just wrapped the premiere of their short films on November 15, where they shared their unique visions. The program not only provided the resources to produce their shorts, but also opened opportunities for the world to see a different side to their communities.

Osuna-Hernandez hopes her journey inspires other Latino filmmakers to showcase their stories.

“I am an open book and I hope my films inspire others to make their own films through their pov,” she says. “Although we are all Latinos, we are not a monolith and have so many pov’s and stories to tell, and I want to see them ALL.”

On the other hand, Hunter is excited to see how people will react to her film.

“I’m always also excited to hear how people interpreted certain things that may be me, as the Writer-Director interpreted differently,” she says. “And of course, I’m just really excited to get away from LA for a little bit, head down to Miami, and do some networking, maybe if I’m lucky, even enjoy some of the beach.”

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