Spark Artist

Ernesto Javier Martínez is a queer Chicano/Puerto Rican writer, educator, and filmmaker. He was born in Oakland, California, raised bi-nationally between Mexico and the United States, and currently lives in Eugene. He studied literature at Stanford and Cornell, becoming a university professor at the age of 28. Ernesto pivoted toward artistic work when he collaborated with illustrator Maya Gonzalez, authoring When We Love Someone, We Sing to Them, the first bilingual children’s book published in North America about a boy who loves a boy. This book earned two International Latino Book Awards and was selected for the American Library Association's “Rainbow Book List." He began working as a screenwriter and filmmaker when he collaborated with director Adelina Anthony, writing and producing his first short film, La Serenata, winner of 11 best film awards and distributed by HBO Max. He went on to apprentice in children's educational television, eventually writing for shows like Daniel Tiger's Neighborhood, Sesame Street, and Lyla in the Loop. He is best known for co-writing, with Jill Cozza-Turner, the animated kids’ movie Daniel Visits a New Neighborhood: The Movie (PBS Kids), which introduces a new Latinx family to the Emmy award-winning Daniel Tiger franchise. Ernesto’s work has earned him the Lambda Literary Award, Imagen Award, HBO Latinx Film Competition Award, and fellowships from the Ford Foundation, Mellon Foundation, and NALIP. Ernesto is currently working with Adelina Anthony on his first indie feature film, which is currently in postproduction. 

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