Writer, Director, Producer
Mexico-born and Chicana identified, Portillo's films have focused on the search for Latino identity. She has worked in a richly varied range of forms, from television documentary to satirical video-film collage. Portillo has collaborated extensively with noted directors Susana MuAoz and Nina Serrano and with Academy Award-winning editor Vivien Hillgrove. Working with other women artists has helped Portillo break down the proscriptions of traditional documentary making because "women, and women of color in particular, often come into filmmaking with a different set of objectives than their male counterparts." Portillo's films have received high praise at more than ten international women's film festivals.