Santiago Paladines is tv and film director, screenwriter, and producer born in Loja, Ecuador. He is known for his documentary Estrella 14 (2013) and the comedy Los Wánabis (2023). He graduated from Bethany College, with a BA in Film and Television and a minor in Music. He also studied documentary at NHK Japan with a full scholarship. He has MFA in film Directing at the American Film Institute where he directed 4 narrative short films three of which he also wrote.