Carlos López Estrada’s feature directorial debut, Blindspotting, opened the 2018 Sundance Film Festival and was lauded for its unflinching take on gentrification, race, police discrimination and masculinity.

Weaving in spoken word poetry and ever building tension, its setting in Oakland, California serves as a looming protagonist, as the audience is eased into the narrative through the humorous but complicated friendship between stars and co-writers, Hamilton’s Daveed Diggs and his collaborator Rafael Casal. Carlos was nominated for a Directors Guild of America Award for Outstanding Directing and a spin off TV sequel premiered in 2021.