Pooja Gupta

Pooja “Lavika” Gupta is a filmmaker working across documentary and narrative forms, with a practice rooted in memoir, personal archives, and questions of identity, diaspora, and belonging.

Beginning her career as a researcher at PBS, Gupta developed a foundation in nonfiction storytelling before moving into scripted television and film. Early work on Pete Seeger: The Power of Song, directed by Jim Brown, and Undefeated, John Leguizamo’s HBO directorial debut produced by the team behind Gummo, shaped a career spanning both documentary and narrative storytelling.

Her work in television development and production includes projects for Netflix, Hulu, ABC, MTV and MGM Television, with experience across nonfiction, series development, and writers’ rooms. She has also served as Head of Creative Development for Vicky Jewson’s U.K.-based film fund, designing a development pipeline supporting women-led genre films from concept through production.

With a background in performance training at Shakespeare & Company, RADA, and The Actors' Gang, Gupta brings an interdisciplinary approach to filmmaking that informs both her creative practice and teaching.
Gupta serves on the Shorts Jury for the RiverRun International Film Festival and is a member of the Writers Guild of America West.

My teaching bridges documentary and narrative filmmaking, encouraging students to move fluidly between forms while developing a strong point of view. I approach storytelling as a process of inquiry rooted in observation, research, memory, and personal experience. Across screenwriting, documentary, and cinema studies courses, I emphasize workshop-based learning, experimentation, and the development of an individual artistic voice.

Pooja Gupta