A discussion with Filmmaker, Performer and Educator, Cherise Pascual

Cherise Pascual is a filmmaker, performer and educator based in Hollywood. She was born in Carson, CA and raised by wolves. Being Filipino, she is an overachiever with degrees in Psychology, Biology and Chemistry. She almost became a doctor but saved more lives giving up the med school dream - trust me, I’m her, writing this in the third person, from the future - it was for the best. Cherise earned her MFA in Screenwriting from the American Film Institute and is a member of the LA Female Playwrights Initiative. She writes observational humor, funny female characters who are often scientists and stories about family, identity, trauma and relationships - all with deep psychological underpinnings. She’s currently writing multiple projects including a six-figure short film on prison medical reform, which she is also producing. You can find her acting on the series, Life’s A Joke - streaming on Amazon Prime - end plug. Her one-woman-musical - Herpes: A Love Story won an Encore Award at Hollywood Fringe - where she plays over 20 characters and sings semi-decently. Cherise works for the Latino Film Institute, teaching Middle-Schoolers how to make movies with the Youth Cinema Project, whose mission is to bridge the opportunity gap in Hollywood for LatinX and BIPOC students by creating lifelong learners through filmmaking. Recently, Cherise served as volunteers coordinator for the Los Angeles Latino International Film Festival (LALIFF) - LA’s first city permitted event since the pandemic - gathering over 100 fully vaccinated volunteers in less than a month. Pascual also dabbles in production design between teaching gigs, making her a one stop shop for all your filmmaking needs - hire her - Mama’s got bills to pay and she’s passed the “Sell By” date.

https://laliff.org/
https://youthcinemaproject.org/team/