Natalia Santa


Natalia Santa Carrillo is a Colombian director and screenwriter. She is best known for writing and directing the 2017 drama film The Dragon Defense.

Early life

Santa was born in Bogotá. Both of her parents worked in television; her mother, Fabiola Carrillo, is also a screenwriter. She studied literature at the National University of Colombia and worked in various publishing houses, including Alfaguara. After studying English in the United States, she began working on television scripts with her mother.

Career

In 2016, she and Kiran Fernández founded a production company, Perro de Monte. Her debut feature film, The Dragon Defense, premiered in the Directors' Fortnight section of the 2017 Cannes Film Festival, making her the first Colombian female director to participate in an official section of the Cannes Film Festival. Her second feature film, , premiered at South by Southwest in 2024. She co-wrote the upcoming Netflix series One Hundred Years of Solitude, based on the 1967 novel of the same name by Gabriel García Márquez.

Filmography

Film

Television

Awards and nominations