Ann Marie Pace is a writer/director raised in Tennessee and based in Los Angeles. She has directed episodes of High School Musical the Musical the Series for Disney+, with her work consistently ranking among the show’s top-rated episodes on IMDb. Her episode “Admissions” earned a nomination for a Children’s and Family Emmy Award.

Selected for the Disney Launchpad Program, Ann Marie wrote and directed the short film Growing Fangs, a tale about a half-human, half-vampire teen. The short received critical acclaim, including a rave review in The New York Times, and was picked up for feature development with Ann Marie attached to write and direct. Growing Fangs also earned an Imagen Award nomination and won an Artios Award for casting. Ann Marie is also attached to direct the feature film Counting By 7’s based on the New York Times bestselling novel, starring Josh Gad and produced by Leslie Urdang and Paula Mazur.

As a queer Mexican American filmmaker, she is drawn to stories of identity and discovering your inner truth when you don’t fit in just one box. Raised in a family of anthropologists, Ann Marie puts an immense amount of care and consideration into being authentic to characters, their culture, and their truths. Her work combines humor and heart to craft engaging stories that resonate with audiences of all ages while celebrating individuality and authenticity. Ann Marie received her MFA in Directing and Screenwriting at UCLA. Her thesis film "Beyond the Gate", shot in the Brazilian Amazon, won 1st place in the DGA Student Film Awards.

New York Times - Growing Fangs Review
The real standout is “Growing Fangs.” It has supernatural elements, but Ann Marie Pace, who wrote and directed, illustrates the identity crisis of a Mexican American through a comedy about a teen girl who struggles to balance her human side with her vampire side. Pace creates such a vividly lived-in world — a glimpse into a bigger story. I’d be disappointed if “Growing Fangs” isn’t made into a feature film, and I’d be very disappointed not to see Pace’s name on bigger projects soon.

Full Article: https://www.nytimes.com/2021/06/02/movies/launchpad-review-disney-plus.html