Education
He entered Occidental College in 2009 and studied Media Arts & Culture.
He entered Occidental College in 2009 and studied Media Arts & Culture.
Cortina is a native of Spanish Harlem, New York City. He co-created the college"s first student-run television station CatAList television, premiering in April 2010. Cortina was head of production and secured regular funding from the college for station.
He wrote, directed and produced award-winning short films including Bottled Up.
The movie features two characters, a baker and a dockworker, who bottle up their wishes and send them down a river in hopes that someday their wishes will be fulfilled. In 2014, Cortina was named as Number.
4 in Master of Science in Nursing’s 10 Latinos to Watch.
He won the 2013 Student Academy Award from the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences for his thesis film, Bottled Up. He was awarded the Gold Medal at the 40th Student Academy Awards from the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences on June 8, 2013 for the Alternative category. Cortina is the first Occidental College student to win the award.
