Abel Gonzalez was born in Murcia, Spain in 1971. He earned a degree in Spanish Language and Literature from the University of Murcia while simultaneously working as a director for a traveling theatre troupe, which toured throughout North America, the Caribbean, North Africa and Europe. Abel was awarded a full scholarship in 1995 to study Drama at the University of Puerto Rico. After graduating, he stayed on the island and worked as a TV writer before moving on as a full-time advertising copywriter. Abel’s successful advertising career would soon take him to Los Angeles, where he currently resides. In the years that followed, Abel’s creative work for top national advertising agencies has garnered accolades from industry insiders and prestigious award juries, including Cannes, Clio and the New York Festival. In 2003, after a brief stint in movie marketing, Abel abandoned “the 9 to 5” for freelance copywriting, allowing him the time and energy necessary to concentrate on his love of filmmaking. In early 2007, Abel finished production on his first short film, “Crossing Numbers.” The dark comedy premiered at The Havana Film Festival and has screened at more than 45 international film festivals to date, including the L.A. Short IFF, Phoenix IFF, and HBO Latino Film Festival and has received four awards (WorldFest IFF, Barcelona Human Rights IFF, We The People IFF, NYC Downtown IFF). His latest short “Forget Me Not”, completed in September 2009, is ready to make its run on the Festival Circuit.