# Laura Mora

Laura Mora Ortega (born 1981) is a Colombian director and screenwriter. She is best known for writing and directing the films Killing Jesus (2017) and The Kings of the World (2022), the latter of which won the Golden Shell at the 70th San Sebastián International Film Festival.

## Early life

Mora was born in Medellín. Her grandfather was one of the founders of the Medellín Metropolitan Theatre. She developed a love for film after watching Rodrigo D: No Future at the age of 13.
Her father, a lawyer, was killed by a hitman in 2002. Following his death, Mora moved to Australia to study film at the Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology.

## Career

In 2012, she co-directed the television series Pablo Escobar, The Drug Lord. She directed her debut feature film, Killing Jesus, in March 2016.
Her 2022 film, The Kings of the World, won the Golden Shell at the 70th San Sebastián International Film Festival. It was also selected as Colombia's submission for Best International Feature Film at the 95th Academy Awards. She co-directed the Netflix series One Hundred Years of Solitude, based on the novel of the same name by Gabriel García Márquez.

## Filmography
### Film

| Year | Title | Director | Writer |
| 2015 | Antes del fuego [es] | Yes | No |
| 2016 | Código Origen [cy] | Yes | No |
| 2017 | Killing Jesus | Yes | Yes |
| 2022 | The Kings of the World | Yes | Yes |

### Television

| Year | Title | Director | Writer | Notes |
| 2012 | Pablo Escobar, The Drug Lord | Yes | No | 83 episodes |
| 2015 | Los hombres también lloran | Yes | No | 31 episodes |
| 2019 | Green Frontier | Yes | No | 4 episodes |
| 2024 | One Hundred Years of Solitude | Yes | No | 3 episodes |

## Awards and nominations

| Award | Year | Category | Nominated work | Result |
| Ariel Awards | 2023 | Best Ibero-American Film | The Kings of the World | Nominated |
| Cairo International Film Festival | 2017 | Golden Pyramid | Killing Jesus | Nominated |
| Cairo International Film Festival | 2017 | Silver Pyramid | Killing Jesus | Won |
| Cairo International Film Festival | 2017 | FIPRESCI Prize | Killing Jesus | Won |
| Cartagena Film Festival | 2018 | Audience Award | Killing Jesus | Won |
| Cartagena Film Festival | 2018 | Colombian Cinema Award | Killing Jesus | Nominated |
| Chicago International Film Festival | 2017 | Gold Hugo | Killing Jesus | Nominated |
| Chicago International Film Festival | 2017 | Roger Ebert Award | Killing Jesus | Won |
| Chicago International Film Festival | 2022 | Gold Hugo | The Kings of the World | Nominated |
| Chlotrudis Awards | 2024 | Best Director | The Kings of the World | Nominated |
| Fénix Awards | 2018 | Best Director | Killing Jesus | Nominated |
| Fénix Awards | 2018 | Best Screenplay | Killing Jesus | Won |
| Films from the South | 2022 | Silver Mirror | The Kings of the World | Nominated |
| Gasparilla International Film Festival | 2018 | Best International Feature | Killing Jesus | Won |
| Huelva Ibero-American Film Festival | 2017 | Best New Director | Killing Jesus | Nominated |
| Macondo Awards | 2018 | Best Film | Killing Jesus | Won |
| Macondo Awards | 2018 | Best Director | Killing Jesus | Won |
| Macondo Awards | 2018 | Best Screenplay | Killing Jesus | Won |
| Macondo Awards | 2023 | Best Director | The Kings of the World | Won |
| Macondo Awards | 2023 | Best Screenplay | The Kings of the World | Nominated |
| Motovun Film Festival | 2018 | Best Film | Killing Jesus | Won |
| Munich Film Festival | 2023 | Best International Film | The Kings of the World | Nominated |
| Palm Springs International Film Festival | 2018 | New Voices/New Visions Grand Jury Prize | Killing Jesus | Nominated |
| Palm Springs International Film Festival | 2018 | Cine Latino Award | Killing Jesus | Won |
| San Sebastián International Film Festival | 2017 | New Directors Award | Killing Jesus | Nominated |
| San Sebastián International Film Festival | 2017 | SIGNIS Award | Killing Jesus | Nominated |
| San Sebastián International Film Festival | 2017 | EROKSI Youth Award | Killing Jesus | Won |
| San Sebastián International Film Festival | 2017 | Fedeora Award | Killing Jesus | Won |
| San Sebastián International Film Festival | 2022 | Golden Shell | The Kings of the World | Won |
| San Sebastián International Film Festival | 2022 | Feroz Zinemaldia Award | The Kings of the World | Won |
| San Sebastián International Film Festival | 2022 | SIGNIS Award | The Kings of the World | Won |
| Seattle International Film Festival | 2018 | Ibero American Competition | Killing Jesus | Nominated |
| Warsaw Film Festival | 2017 | Best Film | Killing Jesus | Nominated |
| Warsaw Film Festival | 2022 | Crème de la Crème Award | The Kings of the World | Won |
| Zurich Film Festival | 2017 | Best International Feature Film | Killing Jesus | Nominated |
| Zurich Film Festival | 2022 | Best International Feature Film | The Kings of the World | Won |