Vidblain Balvas

Vidblain Balvas started making films his first year of college at Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México (UNAM). At 19 years old, Balvas used a digital 8 handycam to capture footage in a cemetery for a film called “Rehilte” (Pinwheel). Growing up mostly in México City, Balvas occasionally spent time in a small town called San Pedro Limón, where his family is originally from. After undergrad, Balvas went on to earn a master’s degree in Cinematography/Directing from Centro de Capacitación Cinematográfica (CCC) in Mexico City. As a filmmaker whose credits include films that have been screened at Cannes, Morelia, Guanajuato, Huesca, and Toronto, Balvas has also worked for big production companies such as Netflix and HBO. He also teaches cinematography at CCC. When he’s not on set or in the classroom, Balvas plays in a band with his best friend and cousin, plays soccer, visits with family, or goes to the movies. Some of his favorite U.S. films include “Edward Scissorhands”, “The Shining”, and “Taxi Driver”. Some favorite Mexican films include “Macario”, “Amores Perros”, “Los Olvidados”, and “Cronos”. Balvas will be joining the Film & Television (FiTV) faculty this fall as one of three visiting scholars associated with the COMEXUS: Becas Fulbright-García Robles organization.