MEET ELIAS
Award-winning filmmaker, UCLA alumnus, and AI video specialist. Creator of the feature film Against the Grain (1M+ views), former head of video production for a financial services firm, and contributor to video training and model evaluation projects for leading AI companies.
MY STORY
My love for storytelling began growing up in Oakland, California and was refined at UCLA's School of Theater, Film and Television, where I graduated with honors. During my time at UCLA, I received several distinctions, including the Samuel Goldwyn Writing Award, the Motion Picture Association of America Award, and the Frank Glicksman Award for Artistic Merit in Film Directing.
Shortly after graduation, I wrote, directed, produced, and edited my first feature film, Against the Grain. The film screened at festivals around the world, earned multiple awards, secured worldwide distribution, and has been featured on major streaming platforms including Amazon Prime Video, Tubi, and Apple TV. The film has also generated more than one million views on YouTube, demonstrating its ability to continue reaching audiences years after its initial release.
Throughout my career, I have worked at the intersection of storytelling and content evaluation. I've provided screenplay analysis for Oscar-winning Participant Media, the studio behind films including Spotlight and Green Book; performed quality control and mastering work for major studios including Disney, Warner Bros., Sony, Universal, Netflix, and HBO; and led video strategy and production for a financial services firm, creating executive communications, educational content, marketing campaigns, and social media content that translated complex topics into clear and engaging stories.
Most recently, I have contributed to video training and model evaluation projects for leading AI companies, helping create and assess multimodal content used to improve next-generation AI systems. This work combines my background in storytelling, editorial judgment, content quality, and emerging technology.
Whether I'm creating a film, producing executive communications, developing marketing content, or helping shape AI-powered creative workflows, my goal remains the same: to turn complex ideas into stories that people understand, remember, and act upon.