{"id":16115,"date":"2026-07-24T22:07:52","date_gmt":"2026-07-24T17:07:52","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/?p=16115"},"modified":"2026-07-24T22:07:52","modified_gmt":"2026-07-24T17:07:52","slug":"oscar-emmy-nommed-felipe-pacheco-leads-costa-rican-crew-talent","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/?p=16115","title":{"rendered":"Oscar, Emmy-Nommed Felipe Pacheco Leads Costa Rican Crew Talent"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><script>\r\n  atOptions = {\r\n    'key' : '644b717812d811d6a1c1fc5b6ccd6fa6',\r\n    'format' : 'iframe',\r\n    'height' : 90,\r\n    'width' : 728,\r\n    'params' : {}\r\n  };\r\n<\/script>\r\n<script src=\"https:\/\/www.highperformanceformat.com\/644b717812d811d6a1c1fc5b6ccd6fa6\/invoke.js\"><\/script>\r\n<br \/>\n<\/p>\n<div>\n<p class=\"paragraph larva \/\/ lrv-u-margin-lr-auto  lrv-a-font-body-m   \">\n\tIt\u2019s been a long time coming but Costa Rica can now claim an <a href=\"https:\/\/variety.com\/t\/oscar\/\" id=\"auto-tag_oscar\" data-tag=\"oscar\">Oscar<\/a>-nominated below-the-line talent, sound and music editor Felipe Pacheco, who was recognized for his sound editing work on Ryan Coogler\u2019s multi-Oscar winning \u201c<a href=\"https:\/\/variety.com\/t\/sinners\/\" id=\"auto-tag_sinners\" data-tag=\"sinners\">Sinners<\/a>.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph larva \/\/ lrv-u-margin-lr-auto  lrv-a-font-body-m   \">\n\tBased in Los Angeles, he moved there after earning a degree in film scoring at the prestigious Berklee College of Music. His extraordinary credits include Christopher Nolan\u2019s epic <a href=\"https:\/\/variety.com\/2026\/film\/news\/the-odyssey-imax-70mm-showtimes-will-there-be-more-tickets-1236816709\/\">Imax 70mm blockbuster \u201cThe Odyssey\u201d <\/a>and Oscar-winning \u201c<a href=\"https:\/\/variety.com\/t\/oppenheimer\/\" id=\"auto-tag_oppenheimer\" data-tag=\"oppenheimer\">Oppenheimer<\/a>,\u201d \u201cStar Wars: The Mandalorian and Grogu\u201d and Coogler\u2019s \u201cBlack Panther: Wakanda Forever.\u201d In television, he worked on Ben Stiller\u2019s \u201cSeverance,\u201d which snagged him an <a href=\"https:\/\/variety.com\/t\/emmy\/\" id=\"auto-tag_emmy\" data-tag=\"emmy\">Emmy<\/a> nomination.<\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph larva \/\/ lrv-u-margin-lr-auto  lrv-a-font-body-m   \">\n\tThroughout many of them, he has worked closely with Academy Award-winning composer Ludwig G\u00f6ransson whom he first joined when they needed a Spanish-speaking music editor for the many Spanish songs in \u201cBlack Panther: Wakanda Forever.\u201d His trial by fire came when G\u00f6ransson asked him to join him on \u201cOppenheimer.\u201d \u201cWe finished \u2018Black Panther\u2019 on a Friday, and that weekend Ludwig called: \u2018I need you on \u2018Oppenheimer\u2019 Monday.\u2019 I expected to join a team of music editors, but instead I was suddenly working alongside Nolan, learning his process on the fly. It was intimidating, especially as a young Costa Rican, but not knowing what I didn\u2019t know may have worked in my favor. It all came together\u2014 and that\u2019s why I was invited back for his next film.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph larva \/\/ lrv-u-margin-lr-auto  lrv-a-font-body-m   \">\n\tThat next film was \u201cThe Odyssey\u201d where he relates that Nolan wanted to avoid the traditional orchestral sound often associated with historical epics. Instead, he asked G\u00f6ransson to blend ancient Greek instruments with modern elements like synthesizers, creating a score that reflected a contemporary retelling of an ancient story. For the music team, it was a major creative challenge. Without the emotional power of strings or brass, they had to reinvent how the music conveyed intimacy and scale \u2013\u00a0using flutes, percussion and constant experimentation. \u201cIt was an absolute nightmare\u2026 but it was shockingly successful.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph larva \/\/ lrv-u-margin-lr-auto  lrv-a-font-body-m   \">\n\t\u201cWorking on \u2018Sinners\u2019 was fun because it had a lot of on-set performances so they brought me in even from pre-production. The whole music team was working with the actors teaching them how to play instruments, how to sing and teaching them all the songs,\u201d he recalls, adding that it was a highly collaborative job, with a lot of overlap between the music, dialogue and sound mixing departments.<\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph larva \/\/ lrv-u-margin-lr-auto  lrv-a-font-body-m   \">\n\tHe worked closely with the production sound team to capture every performance on set, avoiding re-records. \u201cWe just didn\u2019t want it to feel like a music video.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph larva \/\/ lrv-u-margin-lr-auto  lrv-a-font-body-m   \">\n\tHere are five other <strong>Costa Rican Below-The-Line Talents to Track<\/strong> whose hard work and commitment to their craft may just earn them the ultimate reward in the future.<\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph larva \/\/ lrv-u-margin-lr-auto  lrv-a-font-body-m   \">\n\t<strong>Jos\u00e9 \u201cChisco\u201d Arce, Colorist<\/strong><\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph larva \/\/ lrv-u-margin-lr-auto  lrv-a-font-body-m   \">\n\tThrough his production company, Maicero Prods, Arce has served as a colorist on a wide range of feature films, documentaries, episodic series and commercials. He has also worked as a filmmaker and cinematographer. His freelancer status has given him the freedom to tajke on jobs as far afield as Estonia, Saudi Arabia and Japan.<\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph larva \/\/ lrv-u-margin-lr-auto  lrv-a-font-body-m   \">\n\tHis main task is to balance the images so they all have a consistent exposure and correct any issues that may have occurred during filming, he explains. \u201cThen I create the film\u2019s final look. For example, a horror film might have a darker, more desaturated palette, while a comedy would have a brighter, more vibrant feel.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph larva \/\/ lrv-u-margin-lr-auto  lrv-a-font-body-m   \">\n\tHis long list of credits takes in the Saudi Arabian fiction series \u201cKahilan,\u201d Netflix Kuwait\u2019s series, \u201cThe Exchange,\u201d Japanese short \u201cTogether Alone\u201d and Estonian short \u201cAurora Laul.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph larva \/\/ lrv-u-margin-lr-auto  lrv-a-font-body-m   \">\n\tHowever, one of his most satisfying jobs has been closer to home, the Honduran film \u201cEva\u201d by William Reyes. \u00a0\u201cAlthough I joined the project later in the process, I collaborated closely with the director and cinematographer to shape the film\u2019s visual progression. We designed a clear emotional arc: a warm, natural beginning, a darker and grayer middle as the story unfolds, and a final act that returns to a more hopeful reality. It worked very well for the film, which has been well received,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph larva \/\/ lrv-u-margin-lr-auto  lrv-a-font-body-m   \">\n\tArce is currently working on a Colombian production that hasn\u2019t been officially announced yet, but will be revealed next week as part of the Toronto International Film Festival lineup.<\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph larva \/\/ lrv-u-margin-lr-auto  lrv-a-font-body-m   \">\n\t<strong>Mauricio Esquivel, Production Designer<\/strong><\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph larva \/\/ lrv-u-margin-lr-auto  lrv-a-font-body-m   \">\n\tEsquivel would really like to act, but in the meantime, he has become a much sought-after production designer, art producer and editor whose credits include some of the most acclaimed films to come out of Costa Rica and the region, including Cannes Director\u2019s Fortnight title \u201cClara Sola,\u201d Locarno multi-winner \u201cI Have Electric Dreams,\u201d Berlin Panorama Audience Awardee \u201cMemories of a Burning Body\u201d and most recently Neto Villalobos\u2019 \u201cLove is the Monster.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph larva \/\/ lrv-u-margin-lr-auto  lrv-a-font-body-m   \">\n\tHe has a degree in directing from the Veritas University and has written and directed two shorts, \u201cRefugio\u201d and \u201cPasajera.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph larva \/\/ lrv-u-margin-lr-auto  lrv-a-font-body-m   \">\n\t<strong>\u201c<\/strong>Each project has been challenging in a different way. \u2018I Have Electric Dreams\u2019 was my first time leading the art department on a feature film, so stepping into that role was a major challenge. But \u2018Love is the Monster\u201d was probably the most demanding because we were filming six hours away from San Jos\u00e9, in a difficult production environment, with only four weeks to shoot. The film also had a complex dystopian, alternate-world aesthetic that required a lot of conceptual work.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph larva \/\/ lrv-u-margin-lr-auto  lrv-a-font-body-m   \">\n\tMeanwhile, he is actively pursuing acting, currently training in the Meisner technique. \u201cAt heart, acting and directing are what I enjoy most, but I see every role as part of the same creative process. Sometimes a production design choice can achieve what a close-up or a line of dialogue cannot. If you want the audience to feel that a character is in love, for example, changing a costume from white to red might tell the story more effectively. That\u2019s how I tend to think when conceptualizing a film, regardless of the role I\u2019m in.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph larva \/\/ lrv-u-margin-lr-auto  lrv-a-font-body-m   \">\n\t<strong>Nayuribe Montero, Sound Designer<\/strong><\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph larva \/\/ lrv-u-margin-lr-auto  lrv-a-font-body-m   \">\n\tBased in Mexico, Montero has worked as a sound designer and production sound mixer over the past 10 years. She studied Film Sound at Cuba\u2019s prominent International Film and Television School and holds a Master\u2019s degree in Communication from the University of Costa Rica. Her credits include <a href=\"https:\/\/variety.com\/2025\/film\/global\/edgar-ramirez-it-would-be-night-in-caracas-venice-1236504853\/\">Edgar Ramirez-produced \u201cIt Would Be Night in Caracas\u201d <\/a>(Venice and TIFF), \u201cAurora\u201d(Rotterdam) and \u201cThe Moon Will Contain Us\u201d (Locarno).<\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph larva \/\/ lrv-u-margin-lr-auto  lrv-a-font-body-m   \">\n\tOf the recent pics she\u2019s worked on, \u201cIt Would Be Night in Caracas\u201d was probably the most arduous, she says. \u201cThe film was set in Venezuela, but we were shooting in Mexico, which created a lot of challenges. Many extras couldn\u2019t use their own voices because their accents didn\u2019t match, so we had to rebuild much of the sound in post-production with dubbing and additional recordings to create an authentic Venezuelan atmosphere. We also captured and collected many environmental sounds to help complete the world. It was a process of constant reconstruction and creativity, both in production and post, especially with so many extras and large crowd scenes.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph larva \/\/ lrv-u-margin-lr-auto  lrv-a-font-body-m   \">\n\tBeing a dancer has greatly informed her interest in filmmaking. \u201cAt film school, I started creating video dance pieces and became interested in documentary, so I\u2019ve been exploring the intersection of both. Right now, I\u2019m working on a documentary video dance project that combines these two worlds. For now, I feel more drawn to short films, although I\u2019m not sure I\u2019m ready to take on a feature yet,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph larva \/\/ lrv-u-margin-lr-auto  lrv-a-font-body-m   \">\n\t\u201cI also learned that movement is not just about choreography. A professor, Silvina Szperling, an Argentine biodanza teacher, helped me understand movement as a form of expression and how the body communicates on its own. That\u2019s what I focus on now\u2014not simply filming a dance, but exploring the physical language and expressiveness of the body.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph larva \/\/ lrv-u-margin-lr-auto  lrv-a-font-body-m   \">\n\t<strong>Kim Picado, Casting Director<\/strong><\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph larva \/\/ lrv-u-margin-lr-auto  lrv-a-font-body-m   \">\n\tPicado has expanded her roles from casting director to acting coach and most recently, intimacy coordinator during her 15+ years in the biz. Her approach is also informed by her training in non-violent communication.<\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph larva \/\/ lrv-u-margin-lr-auto  lrv-a-font-body-m   \">\n\tShe has worked as the casting director and acting coach on some of the top films from Costa Rica and elsewhere, including \u201cForever Your Maternal Animal\u201d (Cannes 2026, Un Certain Regard), \u201cI Have Electric Dreams\u201d (Locarno 2022) and <em>\u201c<\/em>If We Don\u2019t Burn, How Do We Light Up the Night\u201d (San Sebastian).<\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph larva \/\/ lrv-u-margin-lr-auto  lrv-a-font-body-m   \">\n\tShe led the casting for the acclaimed \u201cClara Sola,\u201d which earned her the Dams Award for Best Casting Direction at the Torino Film Festival.<\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph larva \/\/ lrv-u-margin-lr-auto  lrv-a-font-body-m   \">\n\tReflecting on how she developed her career, she says: \u201cWhen I started working in commercial casting, I noticed there was a gap between the language of audiovisual performance and the way actors were trained. Once I understood both worlds, I began creating processes that connected them. It became a personal mission, especially at a time when many directors preferred working only with non-professional actors.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph larva \/\/ lrv-u-margin-lr-auto  lrv-a-font-body-m   \">\n\t\u201cI created a role for myself within the filmmaking process: accompanying actors and directors from the very beginning of casting, through rehearsals and into the set. I support the direction and the performers throughout the process, especially during complex scenes. It\u2019s almost like an assistant director role, focused entirely on acting,\u201d she adds.<\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph larva \/\/ lrv-u-margin-lr-auto  lrv-a-font-body-m   \">\n\tWorking on \u201cI Have Electric Dreams,\u201d which entailed working with children and a mix of professional and novice actors taught her that every film and every performer requires a unique approach. \u201cEach process has to be designed individually, with a lot of attention to the actor\u2019s needs and communication\u2014something closely connected to my work in Nonviolent Communication.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph larva \/\/ lrv-u-margin-lr-auto  lrv-a-font-body-m   \">\n\tShe is currently working on \u201cQuemada\u201d by Ardelia Maurel and at an acting workshop in Ecuador led by director Sarah\u00ed Echeverr\u00eda.<\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph larva \/\/ lrv-u-margin-lr-auto  lrv-a-font-body-m   \">\n\t<strong>Esteban Quesada, Line Producer<\/strong><\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph larva \/\/ lrv-u-margin-lr-auto  lrv-a-font-body-m   \">\n\tThroughout his 17-plus years in the industry, Quesada has worked in Europe, Latin America, the U.S. and South Africa. His credits range from E! Entertainment TV\u2019s \u201cKeeping Up with the Kardashians\u201d to the first \u201cPaddington Bear\u201d in the beloved franchise.<\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph larva \/\/ lrv-u-margin-lr-auto  lrv-a-font-body-m   \">\n\tHe also made more than 10 documentaries on a variety of subjects, winning the best documentary award at the Chelsea Film Festival, New York with the docu\u00a0\u201cJoaquim Batica.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph larva \/\/ lrv-u-margin-lr-auto  lrv-a-font-body-m   \">\n\tQuesada\u2019s most recent line producing gig was with \u201c<a href=\"https:\/\/variety.com\/t\/breaking-bad\/\" id=\"auto-tag_breaking-bad\" data-tag=\"breaking-bad\">Breaking Bad<\/a>\u201d creator-producer Mark Johnson on \u201cHope,\u201d the debut fiction feature of Emmy-winning documentarian Abigail Fuller, \u201cHope.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph larva \/\/ lrv-u-margin-lr-auto  lrv-a-font-body-m   \">\n\t\u201cIt was the first time Mark Johnson had worked in Costa Rica. He told me he\u2019d been interested in filming there for years but the right project had never come along. The shoot lasted eight weeks, beginning with four weeks in the remote town of Pacaya, Cartago, followed by San Jos\u00e9, where we filmed inside the National Theatre with support from the Costa Rican government. We also shot at several beaches and a waterfall in Guanacaste, showcasing a wide range of locations across the country.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph larva \/\/ lrv-u-margin-lr-auto  lrv-a-font-body-m   \">\n\tMost importantly, several key creative roles were led by Costa Rican professionals, including costume and makeup. \u201cThat gave the local team a much greater creative voice and allowed the production to reflect Costa Rican culture more authentically.\u201d The crew grew to around 150\u2013200 people, bringing together professionals from Costa Rica, the United States and Mexico.<\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph larva \/\/ lrv-u-margin-lr-auto  lrv-a-font-body-m   \">\n\tFor a line producer, budgeting is a key part of the process, he notes. \u201cYou have to calculate what the production will cost in the country, account for exchange rate fluctuations between the U.S. dollar and the Costa Rican col\u00f3n, and factor in any available incentives. For this project, they applied for Costa Rica\u2019s 11.7% tax incentive, so all of those financial details had to be carefully considered throughout the planning process.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<script async=\"async\" data-cfasync=\"false\" src=\"https:\/\/pl30214220.effectivecpmnetwork.com\/9ab3d4df8a7e1a6171e16ddbf732cc19\/invoke.js\"><\/script>\r\n<div id=\"container-9ab3d4df8a7e1a6171e16ddbf732cc19\"><\/div>\r\n\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>It\u2019s been a long time coming but Costa Rica can now claim an Oscar-nominated below-the-line talent, sound and music editor Felipe Pacheco, who was recognized for his sound editing work on Ryan Coogler\u2019s multi-Oscar winning \u201cSinners.\u201d Based in Los Angeles, he moved there after earning a degree in film scoring at the prestigious Berklee College&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":16116,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/variety.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/6-BTL-Talents.png?w=1000&h=563&crop=1","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-16115","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-pics-news"],"brizy_media":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16115","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=16115"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16115\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/16116"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=16115"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=16115"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=16115"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}