Ana María Ormaza talks about colour and instinct, storytelling and finding a creative home at WeMakeColor studio in Mexico City, continuously discovering colour and collaboration on Baselight.
Ana María Ormaza, colourist at WeMakeColor grading studio in Mexico City, spent the first years of her working life with the goal of becoming a cinematographer. But at that time, some 17 years ago, the filmmaking industry was very male-dominated, making it difficult for women to find their way. She worked as a focus puller before a friend introduced her to colour grading software during a visit to Germany.
“I completely fell in love with the idea of working with images in that way. Later, a cinematographer I was working with bought a FilmLight Baselight system and encouraged me to start grading. I knew nothing about colour grading at the time – I simply trusted my eye. I come from an artistic background, so I relied on instinct.
“But looking back now, I realise how lucky I was. In my first year I graded approximately ten feature films, and I'm still proud of that work today,” said Ana Maria.
Light, Emotion and Image
Interestingly, she feels her experience as a focus puller has helped her enormously, and influenced the way she approaches colour today. “As a focus puller working alongside cinematographers, you're responsible for keeping the image sharp, but you're also constantly watching how light is being used and how images are created.
“While that experience gave me a deep understanding of cinematography and the problems productions encounter most frequently on set, it also gave me a very strong technical foundation before I ever started grading.”
Though there hasn’t been a particular moment or project when she realised colour grading was the career she wanted to pursue, she remembers that the first time she graded an image, she felt something very emotional. “I've always loved painting, sculpture, photography and art. Colour grading felt like painting with moving images. You create something, step back and suddenly realise how much emotion an image can create. I fell in love with that feeling immediately,” she said.
Building a Network
The UP.GRADE professional training programme, run by the Deutsche Film- und Fernsehakademie Berlin, was another important milestone in Ana Maria’s career. UP.GRADE is an intensive long-form postgraduate training programme dedicated exclusively to colour correction.
“That experience gave me confidence. Before UP.GRADE I relied a lot on intuition, but the programme gave me the technical knowledge to support that instinct. It helped me understand colour science, workflows and how the tools really work. Just as importantly, I built a network of colourists from around the world. We still stay in touch today, sharing knowledge and supporting one another. That community has been incredibly valuable.”
Adaptive Creative Approach
Ana Maria believes that colour is an incredibly powerful storytelling tool that can completely change the meaning of an image. She noted, “It's not only about making something beautiful – it's about creating emotion. I think colour is just as important as sound when it comes to telling a story and influencing how audiences feel.
“I don't think I have one signature look because my job is to understand what the story needs and adapt to that. Every project needs something different, and every film, commercial and every director brings a different vision. I enjoy finding the right visual language for each one.
Consequently, although remote collaboration is very common now, whenever possible she prefers working with the people involved in the project in the room with her. “The technology is excellent, but there's something different about sitting beside a director or cinematographer. You understand each other much more easily, you can suggest ideas and have creative conversations that are harder to achieve remotely. I really enjoy that creative dialogue," she said.
Finding a Home
“Today, one of the things I value most is the culture of sharing. Colour grading can be a lonely profession, but at WeMakeColor we're constantly learning from one another, exchanging ideas and supporting each other.
“After completing the UP.GRADE programme I returned to Ecuador, but I felt there were limited opportunities to apply everything I had learned. Around that time I connected with Felipe Martínez, the founder and lead colourist at WeMakeColor in Mexico, and we started collaborating remotely.
"Eventually he suggested I visit Mexico City, so I finally moved there, and that completely changed my life. Through WeMakeColor I've had the opportunity to work on larger productions, collaborate internationally and continue growing as a colourist."
Ana Maria has gained experience working in Baselight, DaVinci Resolve and Nucoda grading systems. Baselight is the environment where she feels the most satisfied. “I like that everything is integrated into one system. I prefer to keep my grading process simple, and Baselight gives me everything I need inside the one software. Since WeMakeColor upgraded its Baselight systems, I've been working almost exclusively on Baselight again,” she commented.
In the Works
She has recently finished a collaboration with Felipe on a Netflix series, which was a great experience for Ana Maria because they could work together as colourists throughout the project. She is currently finishing a Peruvian feature film called Jesus, which she has especially enjoyed working on although, due to budget constraints, the entire project has been completed remotely.
She said, “That limitation has presented its own challenges – nevertheless, finding new ways to communicate effectively been a valuable experience. We have had to ensure that, despite everyone viewing the images on different displays, we could work through those differences together and achieve the creative result we wanted.
“I’m also preparing to start work on a new Ecuadorian feature film with WeMakeColor. Although I also enjoy working on documentaries, series and commercials, feature films remain my favourite projects and are where I feel most at home. They allow me to become fully immersed in the storytelling.”
That feeling is what still inspires her after all these years. She simply likes feeling connected and happy with the projects she works on. “Having a good work environment is what I value most these days. When I look at and grade an image, it evokes emotion in me and gives me a sense of purpose. That’s the best part of my job. That's why I became a colourist, and it's still what motivates me today.” wemakecolor.com
Ana María Ormaza, colourist at WeMakeColor, Mexico City
