Josefina Lopez

Josefina Lopez (born 1969, San Luis Potosi, Mexico) is a Chicana playwright.

Having had over 100 productions of her plays throughout the United States, Josefina Lopez is one of today's preeminent Chicana writers. She has written several plays such as "Simply Maria, Or the American Dream"; "Confessions of Women From East L.A."; "Boyle Heights"; "Lola Goes To Roma"; "Food For The Dead"; "Unconquered Spirits"; "Queen of the Rumba" and "Real Women Have Curves".

She is the co-screenwriter of the movie version of her play "Real Women Have Curves", starring America Ferrera ("Ugly Betty") and Ingrid Oliu ("Stand and Deliver"). The movie garnered much acclaim, including at the 2002 Sundance Film Festival where the film won the "Audience Award" and a "Special Jury Award for Acting." Josefina has written several other screenplays including "Loteria for Juarez" about the mysterious murders of women in the Mexico/US border town of Ciudad Juarez; "ADD Me to the Party", an original comedic screenplay about three Latinas addicted to adrenaline who drive around in an Impala looking for the next distraction; "Lola Goes To Roma", a mother daughter comedy that takes place in Europe; a biopic titled "Queen Of the Rumba", and a family comedy titled "No Place Like Home".

Josefina has won several awards including a Gabriel Garcia Marquez award from Mayor of Los Angeles in 2003. She was also recognized by the WGA as the cover story for the December 2002/January 2003 issue of the prestigious Writers' Guild magazine "Written By", entitled "Real Writers Have Courage." Josefina and cowriter George LaVoo won the "Humanitas Award for Screenwriting" for Real Women Have Curves. She was awarded a Screenwriting Fellowship by the California Arts Council for 2001 and in 1988 she was recognized by California Senator Barbara Boxer as a "woman who has made history in the entertainment industry".

Josefina moved to Los Angeles when she was five, and attended the Los Angeles County High School for the Arts. Lopez then moved to Wellesley, Massachusetts to attend the prestigious Wellesley College. She received an M.F.A. in screenwriting from the prestigious UCLA Film and Television Department and teaches playwriting and screenwriting to local youth at her CASA 0101 theatre art space in Boyle Heights. By this summer her first novel titled, "Hungry Woman in Paris" will be completed and the adaptation of Real Women Have Curves into a Broadway musical is in the works. She will also be making her directorial debut this summer with her screenplay "LA Nanny".