Born in Los Angeles and raised in Oakland, CA, Ella Franklin is a rising filmmaker. She began experimenting with film and theatre as a child after visiting the set of Ron Howard’s Apollo 13.

Franklin studied at UCLA’s prestigious School of Theatre, Film and Television where she majored in Film, Television and Digital Media with a concentration in Producing. During her first quarter, Franklin produced The Castle, a short film that went on to screen at festivals domestically and abroad. In order to further satisfy her creative desires during her undergraduate studies, she enrolled in graduate film courses and engaged in personal commissions beyond the UCLA campus. During her time at UCLA, she directed and produced numerous short films while also completing internships with NBC Universal, Echo Lake Management, and Overbrook Entertainment. In 2010, she was selected by the Creative Minds Group to intern with IM Global Film in France during the Cannes Film Festival, and was later invited to continue interning in their Los Angeles Office. Her work has been shown in film festivals and art institutions around the world, including the Cannes Film Festival, Short Film Corner.

Franklin currently works as a freelancer and is developing a feature documentary focusing on cross-cultural interactions amongst international dancers at an African dance academy.