Migdia Chinea Varela
Quick Facts
Biography
Migdia Chinea-Varela (also credited as Migdia Chinea) is a Cuban-American screenwriter and director She was a writer for the TV series Superboy, as well as for The Incredible Hulk, The Facts of Life, and Punky Brewster. She appeared in the second season of Sanford and Son as Maria Fuentes, the younger sister of Julio Fuentes, in the 1973 episode "Watts Side Story". She has written about theatre for the Los Angeles Times She lives in Glendale, California.
In 1988, Newsweek published an essay by Chinea in its "My Turn" column. The essay described her personal experiences with minority quotas.
In 2012, Chinea graduated with a master's degree from the UCLA School of Theater, Film and Television. She wrote and directed the short film Anonymous (Street Meat) as part of an experimental film course. The four-minute film, which is based on her experiences with faulty mortgage foreclosure notices, was selected to appear at the Cannes Short Film Festival and earned an honorable mention at the California International Shorts Film Festival. After the film's reception at Cannes, Chinea told The Daily Bruin that she hoped to be able to film a full length version.
Her film The Kninth Floor was a final selection at the 2012 Philip K. Dick Science Fiction Film Festival. It was also screened at the 2012 Cyprus International Film Festival. and the 2012 Los Angeles Polish Film Festival.
She is in production on The Prince of Old Havana, based on the life of Cuban pimp Alberto Yarini (1882–1910), known for the introduction of French prostitutes in the era after the 1895-1898 Cuban War of Independence.
Select film and television credits
Actress
- Mannix ("Wine from These Grapes", episode 102) (1971)
- Sanford and Son ("Watts Side Story", episode 32) (1973)
- Splash (1984)
Director
- The Prince of Old Havana (in production, for 2016 release)
- "Old Havana and the Great Pimp of San Isidro" (short film) (2014)
- "Kninth Floor" (short film) (2012)
- "Ard Eevin" (documentary short) (2011)
- "Anonymous (Street Meat)" (short film) (2010)
- Yes, Inc. (TV series) (1998)
Writer
- What's Happening Now!! (5 episodes, 1985-1986)
- Superboy (4 episodes, 1989-1990)