Gabriela Garcia Medina

Gabriela Garcia Medina

Poet

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  • 2016 Hedgebrook Screenwriting Fellow
  • Nominated Poet Laureate 2015
  • Performer of the Year APCA 2010/2011

Gabriela Garcia Medina is a Cuban-American spoken word poet and filmmaker whose work blends humor, heart, and social impact. Her poetry explores themes of identity, immigration, womanhood, and social justice, always with a sharp comedic edge and deep emotional truth. A 2013 Poet Laureate Nominee, Gabriela has performed at over 1,000 colleges and universities across the United States, and her international performances include the Havana Jazz Festival (2003) and the World Social Forum in Brazil (2005). Her one-woman show was the best-selling act on the U.S. National College Circuit from 2007–2011 (APCA and NACA), with a run at REDCAT Theater (Los Angeles), the Yale Peabody Museum, and Casa 0101 Theater.

Her poetry has appeared in national commercials for Dove, Coca-Cola, and Toyota, and she has opened for artists and public figures including the Black Eyed Peas (Cesar Chavez March 2006), Pitbull (NCLR Conference, Miami), Kamala Harris (Sony Studios, 2010), Barack Obama, Hillary Clinton, Mayor Villaraigosa, and Thich Nhat Hahn. She has taught Poetry, Spoken Word, and Creative Writing at Emory University (2016).

Gabriela’s filmmaking career has expanded her storytelling reach. Her short comedy LITTLE CON LILI (2019) and THE 90 DAY PLAN (2020) won the HBO Women in Comedy Festival and streamed on HBOMax, LILI was then optioned by Netflix (2021). She has since directed award-winning shorts for WarnerMedia and Latino Public Broadcasting, with work distributed on PBS. Her dark-comedy single-take film WHAT TO EXPECT will debut on PBS in 2026, and her Netflix-funded heist-action short SKRRRT!, produced by Cate Blanchett’s Dirty Films premiered at Netflix Tudum Theater and will tour festivals in 2025–2026. SKRRRT! feature film won The Athena List/Disney Development grant (2024). Gabriela is a TriBeCa Through Her Lens fellow (2025), a TriBeCa Untold Stories fellow (2024), a NALAC grant recipient (2024), a Rideback Rise fellow (2024), an Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences Film Accelerator fellow (2022).

Gabriela is a graduate of UCLA School of Film and Television (BFA) and holds two masters from California Institute of the Arts (MFA). Gabriela’s voice lives at the intersection of art and social justice: bold, funny, Cuban, unapologetic, and deeply human.

Additional Programs/Workshops

The Art of Spoken Word
The purpose of this workshop is for students to write one complete rough draft of a spoken word poem. We will explore poetry structure, developing a creative voice, finding a story through unconventional means (such as newspaper clippings, current events, Facebook, music, art. etc.) Students will learn editing skills through workshopping their poems in class, and offering creative constructive feedback to one another.

Identity and Self Awareness through Poetry
The purpose of this workshop is for students to use poetry as a medium for self-awareness. We will explore creative writing activities to delve deep into personal questions about identity. Although students will be encouraged to share their writing with one another, it is not a requirement, they only requirement is honesty, openness, and a willingness to participate. This workshop has been taught for College students, High School students, Social Entrepreneurs, non-profit organizations, etc. It’s great for community and team building as well as bringing self-awareness.

Screenwriting 101
Students will learn screenwriting fundamentals. The technical format of a screenplay, and will develop short 5-10 page short films/scenes (these can be original scenes, or spec scripts for existing shows). Students will critique each other’s work and offer creative feedback, and ideas for edits and revisions. Students should leave this workshop with ‘sellable’ short scripts that adhere to industry standards. This class will not only be fun, and creative, but will also introduce students to the mechanics of a powerful and marketable skill.

Short Story Workshop
This is an intensive creative writing workshop. Student will write a complete rough draft of a short story by the end of the hour. We will have in class writing activities to develop structure, character, awaken the subconscious, and construct plot. We will create a skeleton using the three Act structure. We will share our work, and offer creative constructive criticism to our peers, that can help further edit and polish our stories.



Location: Los Angeles, California

What our clients have to say...

Gabriela’s performance was incredible. We had a big crowd and her poems got a lot of positive feedback. She was a pleasure to work with and I really appreciate everything you both put into the event!
- Quinnipiac University

I still receive rave reviews from faculty, students and staff who attended the event. Gabriela selected very relevant and powerful poems from her repertoire that really resonated with our students and faculty alike. She was personable as she introduced herself and her work, which made the audience very receptive to her from the start. Moreover, Gabriela was the consummate professional and I know that our aspiring poets walked away from her performance inspired by her delivery and message. As one of the coordinators for the event, I worked with Gabriela behind the scenes and she couldn’t have been more easygoing and pleasant to work with.
- St Leo University

It was great! I've heard really great feedback from a lot of students on campus saying that they loved how open and honest she was. She talked about a lot of things that have been very prevalent on campus and I think because of that she connected with a lot of our students!
- Augustana College