Filmmaker & AI Thought Leader
Joe Penna is an acclaimed Brazilian filmmaker whose work spans feature films, short films, commercials, and music videos. His debut feature, Arctic, starring Mads Mikkelsen, premiered to critical acclaim at the Cannes Film Festival, establishing Penna as a rising talent in the industry. He co-wrote and directed the gripping Netflix sci-fi thriller Stowaway, featuring stellar performances from Academy Award nominees Anna Kendrick and Toni Collette.
Most recently, Penna produced Anna Kendrick's highly anticipated directorial debut, Woman of the Hour, which had its world premiere at the prestigious Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF).
Penna's journey in the entertainment industry began on YouTube, where his creative and engaging videos amassed over 400 million views. His unique style and storytelling abilities quickly caught the attention of major brands and musicians, leading to numerous opportunities to direct commercials and music videos.
In addition to his directing work, Penna is actively involved in the AI space, focusing on developing innovative models for filmmakers. He has co-authored several research papers and led the applied machine learning team at Stability AI, contributing to the development of groundbreaking models such as Stable Diffusion XL. Penna's expertise in both filmmaking and AI technology positions him at the forefront of the rapidly evolving entertainment industry.