We were sent this press release on behalf of the North American Film Critic Association. They have announced the forming of their new critic group.

Press Release.

The North American Film Critic Association was created by three individuals who are on the rise inside the world of film. Ricky, Amanda, and Matthew have brought together some of the best of the best in the world of film with this diverse and qualified group. From Rotten Tomatoes to Coverage at Film Festivals to Film Students to Interviewing cast and crew, this group is filled with talented individuals. 

Our goal is to elevate the voices of underrepresented film critics across North America. During our search, we found some of the best and brightest that the world of film has to offer. We want to raise the bar in the world of Film Critic Groups. Each year, members will get together and present the year’s best films with their awards, beginning with the 2021 awards season.

Here is our team:

Amanda Guarragi

Amanda Guarragi is an Entertainment Journalist and film critic. She developed her own website http://candidxcinema.com and posts articles, interviews, reviews, and recent news daily. She has been building her brand for the past three years. She also has her own YoutTube channel, called Candid Cinema, where she posts video reviews as well. She has covered many festivals over the years and gotten opportunities to interview filmmakers from across the world. She also works at the publication called Geek Bomb as Editor and Head Writer. She is also a part of two podcasts, Cinemania World and MCDI. Amanda really enjoys collaborating with friends online and is a writer for a Toronto-based publication called 1st Reviews. She has covered all social platforms with her reviews and has collaborated with many people. Discussing films with friends and colleagues makes working in this field even better. Amanda’s goal is to always write a balanced review in order for readers to come to a decision to watch the film on their own. She is critical, fair, and honest when reviewing films.

Richard Valero

Richard Valero is an Entertainment Journalist and film critic. He has been writing for over 10 years about movies and television. His work can be found at the Music City Drive-In, Nashville Noise, and Geek Vibes Nation. He was the co-founder of the Music City Drive-In and the Drive-In Podcast Network, which has grown its audience to more than 30,000 readers and listeners a month. He is a part of the Music City Film Critic Association and he has covered festivals that include AFI Fest, Sundance, and Nashville Film Festival. He also hosts the Music City Drive-In Podcast where they talk about everything in the world of film but he also interviews people and has interviewed the likes of Florian Zeller, Paul Racci, Ann-Margret, Jack Dylan Grazer, and many more. 

Diego Andaluz

Diego is the Senior Awards Editor at DiscussingFilm. Currently based in Miami, Diego works as the Editor-In-Chief and Host of The Global Film Show and a Rotten-Tomatoes certified film critic, writing for Thrillist, AwardsWatch, and The Film Stage, among other notable publications. Apart from NAFCA, he is the Chairman and President of the Award Journalists Association and the Global Film Critics Circle, the Vice Chairman of The DiscussingFilm Critics Association, and has been accepted into the Critics Choice Association, the Hollywood Critics Association, and many more. A filmmaker as well, he has written, produced, and directed numerous award-winning short films (including the viral hit Dante: A Replication) and is currently writing a feature based on its concept.

Matthew Fox 

Matthew has been a film fan since he first started watching Jaws and Star Wars at age 5. That carried him through to college, where he earned a Bachelor of Arts in Radio, Television, and Film production from Biola University. He also honed his love of writing and criticism with his college newspaper, The Chimes, where he began as Sports Editor and served as Executive Editor and Editor of the Arts & Entertainment section as a senior. Post College, he began working for the Paso Robles Press & Gazette, serving as Sports Editor before becoming Managing Editor of those publications and its sister publication, The Atascadero News. Beginning in 2003, he served as Film Critic for all three publications, eventually expanding to serve as Film Critic for additional publications in News Media Corporation. He later served as Film Critic for the Paso Robles Daily News online publication. Since leaving full-time media to work in the Non-Profit sector, Matthew has been a regular contributor to online publications. He served as Editor for Football Content for the Fantasy Life App Blog and has contributed as a Fantasy Football Writer to Dynasty Nerds, Campus2Canton, and the Music City Drive-In. He was recently accepted as a member of the Fantasy Sports Writers’ Association. In addition, he has covered television and film content. For the Fantasy Life App Blog, he covered Box Office and performance as part of a weekly column on the Fantasy Movie League and continues to write reviews of films and television series for the Music City Drive-In. This Spring he also covered the Poppy Jasper International Film Festival. He’s also a regular guest and contributor on the Music City Drive-In Podcast and active on Letterboxd, where he has rated and reviewed more than 5,600 films.

Kolby Mac 

It’s ya boy KolbyMac the most SUBJECTIVELY OBJECTIVE Film and TV critic in the game. A true Flo-Yorker, born in Miami and raised in Yonkers, NY. After HS he spent some time in LA and jokingly became a man. He learned a lot during that time and cut his teeth in the industry in front and behind the camera. Now, he’s in Atlanta soaking up the south, still in love with movies and telling everyone who’ll listen about em’. He still very much dreams of getting an Oscar. Whether that’s as an incredible Actor, or as a Screenwriter and Producer. Until then you can catch him on a little bit of everyone’s podcast including his own–The KolbyToldMe Podcast. He’s a contributor to outlets such as Insession Film, Feelin Film, Minorities Report Film, and Cinemania World. He’s been a lover of all things movies, TV, and entertainment since he was a kid. Kolby hopes this love never dies and is excited to let you all journey with him so when they ask you where you heard it from, you can tell em’ KolbyToldMe!

Nadia 

Nadia is a freelance film and television critic from Ontario, Canada. She graduated from the University of Toronto with a Bachelor of Arts majoring in English Literature. In the spring of 2020, Nadia founded an online independent media publication called Earth to Films, with a focus on women-led projects. She is the editor, content writer, and graphics creator for the publication. Nadia is a member of Film Independent (@filmindependent) and the International Film Society Critics (@IFSCritics). Additionally, her reviews are published regularly on The Cherry Picks (@TheCherryPicks). 

Allison McCulloch

Allison is an independent writer/director in Los Angeles. As a film critic, she has covered Cannes, Sundance, AFI Film Festival, and SXSW, among film festivals. She has an MA in Communication from European Graduate School (Saas-Fee, Switzerland), and her thesis, Revising History: Acknowledging Female Film Directors of the Silent Era, was accepted with distinction.

Jacob Throneberry

Jacob Throneberry is a graduate of Western Kentucky University with a Major in History and a Minor in Film Studies. He is currently a member of the Music City Film Critics’ Association and co-founded the Music City Drive-In, a website that covers Movie Reviews, Awards Season, Entertainment News, and even Sports. Jacob specializes in the Awards Season for the Music City Drive-In as well as writing Reviews and Articles covering the world of Entertainment.

Gabriel Guerra

Gabriel is a film reviewer, primarily writing at www.filmopinionitis.com, and a frequent collaborator with Geekly Goods. His site is quite new (around two years old), but visits have increased substantially this year.He has also collaborated with Movies Matrix and will be collaborating with Plexreel starting this month. The majority of Gabriel’s articles are reviews, but many others are deep-dives into the complexities of older films that he really enjoyed. He also has a show named Cinespection, which airs Mondays on The Painted Lines network, where he reviews films and TV. Movies need to be appreciated in a sense that goes beyond “good” or “bad”, and Gabriel makes it his objective to find the complexity of filmmaking every time he pens a review.