Even in Hollywood, not many can say they’ve directed their first film at age 18. Senior Branden Estrada can.
From a young age, Estrada has always been doing something with art, starting with drawing as a kid. It ran in the family: his grandfather was an architect and his grandmother was a colorist. His passion for storytelling and creativity has led him through different types of art including, drawing, filmmaking and digital content. Hailing from Greek and Guatemalan parents, his cultural diversity and perspective have influenced and contributed to his work. “I’ve drawn my whole life, I love characters from the DC comics, particularly Superman, Batman, the Flash and Green Lantern. They inspired me to tell better stories,” Estrada said.
When Estrada came to this school as a sophomore, he arrived halfway through the school year and had to settle into a new environment. This experience of being the new kid gave Estrada the idea that would eventually become the Instagram account called What’s Up Wootton. “What’s Up Wootton was a dream/idea I had even before I came to Wootton. I liked the idea of a student-led show that is super attention-grabbing yet super-human focused. I feel that when we get into the student body, we ask pretty real questions, and we cover real events that are happening. I wanted to bring people together who were like me. I didn’t have a place to go and express that filmmaker, content creator’s goal of making videos, and put them all in a room where we can share a space, an idea, a name, and make something special,” Estrada said.
What’s Up Wootton is a web series in which Estrada, along with co-presenters senior Brandon Bartee and juniors Max Nguyen and Urielle Ngako-Tankeu, interviews students and staff about topics and news surrounding this school. “I think What’s Up Wootton gives us an interesting perspective on our school and can create a discussion about things at our school,” senior Alvand Fallahi said.
What’s Up Wootton was a way for Estrada to begin telling stories, something he is passionate about. He plans to build on this passion and become a filmmaker and producer. “I’ve always loved stories; one of my favorite things to do is tell stories and I love writing about people, and I like to explore that in a lot of my writing and movies and I like being able to tell or reflect on something can make someone look at it and be like ‘Oh my god I relate to this’ or ‘I’m inspired by this’ and it just makes me feel good,” Estrada said.
Estrada started his filmmaking career by entering the MCPS Heads Up, Phones Down video contest in 2023 and 2024; he additionally entered the Speak Up, Save A Life contest in 2024.
In 2024, Estrada started his production company, Aetos Pictures, which is named after the town where his Papou — grandfather in Greek — is from. Under Aetos Pictures, Estrada released his first short film, a good cup of coco, on his YouTube channel, ‘Branden Estrada’, in late December of that year. The film stars seniors Artin Noori and David Doerfler.
Estrada’s directing philosophy is one of immersing his film crew in the story, further enhancing the final product for audiences to enjoy. “I’d say he is extremely creative and kind-hearted. When he directs his movies, he gives you very clear directions, when I was on-site he was very nice, he told me what to do even though I had no experience. And once you see everything finished, it turns out really well and all plays in with his ideas,” senior Ian Huang said.
Estrada and Aetos Pictures are currently in the process of making a longer film to be released later in 2025, called where’s my card? “It’s going to be roughly 30 minutes long and it’s going to be a good drama and comedy. It’s going to get people’s heart racing, it’s going to be fun,” Estrada said.
