About

Ria Tobaccowala is an award winning writer and director. Her films have premiered at festivals around the world, including Tribeca Film Festival. Raised on Chicago’s South Side as a first-generation American, she explores womanhood, immigration, and multiculturalism in her work. Recently, she was selected as a finalist for the Shondaland Women Directing Mentorship program. Her narrative essay, The Patriot Act and Me, was published in New York Magazine. Her pilot script, Harpoon, has placed in several screenplay competitions and is on the Coverfly Red List for top TV Dramas.

Her short film, Shadows, premiered at Tribeca Film Festival and is now streaming on HBO Max. Her first short film, Life After, was selected for several prestigious film festivals and won best narrative short at the Chicago South Asian Film Festival. Her latest project User Zero, supported by the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation, won best short drama series at Seriesfest. She’s currently developing her first feature.

Before her career in film, Ria worked at Google. With a passion for storytelling and technology, she led the development of social web experiences and innovations using Google products with content partners, such as The New York Times, FOX, and NBC. Ria produced the 2015 YouTube interview with President Obama. She received her BA in Economics from Harvard University, MFA from the Graduate Film Program at NYU Tisch School of the Arts and MBA from NYU Stern School of Business.

Representation

MAKE GOOD Content | Paul Young, Devon Young | (310) 499-2879

WME | Erin Junkin, Grace Buting