Who is PushStart?
Shilpa Sunthankar is a screenwriter, director, and producer with a drive for stories about different cultures in coexistence, thanks to her background as an Indian-American woman raised in the “cowboy country” of Colorado. Armed with award-winning screenplays, licensed short films, and a robust variety of industry work, she is poised to join any writer’s room conjuring the cross-cultural experience, and produce or direct a broad range of narratives, be it commercial or independent.
The feature films Shilpa is currently developing include Generation Loss, a coming-of-age story about two Indian American sisters growing up in middle America in the 90's, which is inspired by events from her life; and Continental Divide, a dynamic outdoor thriller taking place on the U.S- Mexico border, for which she was awarded the SAGIndie Fellowship to attend the 2019 Stowe Story Lab. Her feature script Seeta’s Demon was showcased as part of the C3 Conference at the Los Angeles Asian Pacific American Film Festival.
Her newest short film, A Day In Color, which she made with the Montavilla Jazz Festival, screened at the Portland Film Festival, and was selected to play the Hollywood Theatre in the Portland International Airport in 2024. Her other short films, Working Lunch, The Company of Thieves, and Biography of an American Hostess, have won several awards including Best Director at the Los Angeles FirstGlance Film Festival, and the Regional Arts & Culture Council’s Project Grant, and have been licensed by the ShortsHD Channel, IndieFlix, and the Canadian Broadcast Corporation.
Originally, she graduated from New York University’s Tisch School of the Arts after interning for BBC London and attending the 35mm Filmmaking Master Class at FAMU in Prague.
When she is not crafting award winning work, Shilpa is a powerhouse on her bicycle.
PushStart Productions, LLC
10380 NW Cornell Rd. Portland, OR 97229
503.957.4764
pushstart@pushstartpictures.com
Got an Idea?
Have something in mind that you'd like to concept and bring to life with story, sight and sound? Gimme a shout. Or we can just get together for coffee too.