From Paola Mendoza’s documentaries: Autumn’s Eyes, La Toma, Still Standing; to her fictional work: On the Outs, critical hit Entre Nos, and her most recent films Half of Her and Broken Tail Light, Mendoza has continually tackled the effects of poverty on women and children. Her films have been embraced at the most prestigious festivals around the world, including Toronto, Berlin, South-by-South West, Full Frame, Pusan, Deauville, HotDocs and Tribeca. She was named one of Filmmaker Magazine 25 New Faces of Independent Film. She was also a two- time nominee for the NALIP Estel Awards, given to Latino filmmakers in the field of directing. Her script Entre Nos was awarded the Grand Jury Prize for the Panasonic Digital Filmmakers Award at IFP’s Independent Film Week. Her latest script, A Paso de Mangles has been supported by Tribeca Film Institute, Independent Film Week and Film Independent’s Fast Track. Penguin published her first novel, The Ones Who Don’t Stay, in the Summer of 2013.