Carina Rosanna Tautu biography - a poem

 Born behind the Iron Curtain in Romania, loving my current life in Los Angeles, California, I feel I am bridge between what we call the Old World and the New World.

Growing up in communist Romania was a strange mixed narrative with paradoxical features: fascinated, terrifying, humorous, dark but also full of light, love and magic nature. 

As a child, I remember listening to the grown-ups around me, and noticing that most of them had one major single story to tell. They will repeat it a lot in social gatherings. I never dreamt of being an artist at the time (why - it is another story to share), but I made a pact with myself: “when I grow up, I said, I will have many stories to tell, not just one”. 

Lo and behold, I became a director, screenwriter, cinematographer and professional mediator. The story of how and why is waiting to be told when the time is right. 

Currently, I have two decades experience in filmmaking, and I am lucky to say I worked on four continents and I met amazing people along the way. I’m always up on taking a creative and production challenge. My most loved films were shot in Bucharest, New York, New Haven (CT),Teotihuacan (Mexico), the Peruvian jungle, Ouagadougou (Burkina Faso) and Los Angeles. A large part of my work is independently produced, and I was recognized internationally in film festivals (last notable prize is the Special Jury Prize in Bangkok 2020 for La Jaula del Gallo). My Columbia University thesis film Still Center (Buricul Pamantului) was acquired under a 3 year contract by IFC, and broadcasted nationally in the US - a lyrical and funny tale of the resilience of Romanian women, it took  a strong stance about women's reproductive rights at the time of Bush administration. 

For over a decade,  I delivered commissioned films, I collaborated with known entities, most notably as segment producer for Thirteen/WNET for Time For School, and completed numerous commercial projects. I am proud to say that I bring to the commercial work a solid and wide expertise in production, plus a finely trained artistic eye with no ego. I’m mindful of a client’s budget and I can maximize it creatively. Think of me as an architect - I can deliver a house by your liking, but when needed and asked for, I can make suggestions to improve things creatively, without loosing the aim of maximum impact on your target audience. 

Last but not least, I also given my time as a teacher, program director and curator. A deeply rewarding work was my decade spent with the inner city youth, teaching film, leadership and collaboration. At the helm of some famous non-profits like Youth Rights Media in New Haven, I did not shy away to learn about American culture and get involved in advocating anti-gun violence and bringing awareness about  "school to prison" pipeline. Most recently, I'm the Jury and Industry Coordinator at Los Angeles Greek Film Festival (as I'm partially Italian and Greek). 

Fun Facts: 

The silk string was chosen to hold pearl beads together for hundreds of years because its durability. The spider silk thread is the most durable of them all. In Romania, an old fairy tale associates putting pearls on a string with telling a story for each bead added. In Native American folklore, I learned that the Spider Woman is weaving the world.  

I keep putting these stories together, and this is how Silk String Pictures was born. 

Carina earned a MFA in Directing from Columbia University in New York, and MSc in Neurobiology from University of Bucharest, was trained in the Romanian National Film School UNATC for film directing. In 2019 she earned a Master in Dispute Resolution from Pepperdine Caruso Law School/Straus Institute of Dispute Resolution.

Combining her passion for documentary films and peacemaking/dispute resolution, Carina is currently the host and producer of Mediator's Talk, a web series produced in collaboration with Beverly Hills Bar Association (BHBA) in Los Angeles and featuring top mediators in US and abroad. 

You can watch the series on the Media section of her EQ For High IQ site:

www.eqforhighiq.com

Carina is a former member of the Romanian National Figure Skating team. She skated with Columbia University Synchronized Skating Team at the National Collegiate Championship during her MFA studies in New York.

She practices Ashtanga yoga, contemplative arts, and her latest passion is Argentine Tango. 

Currently, she lives in Los Angeles, California with her black cat Cloud, 

adopted during the 2020 pandemic.