From Pixar to the Director's Chair: Giovannie Espiritu Brings Hollywood Craft to Creative Mentorship
From Young Sheldon to Pixar coaching to directing Eric Roberts and Bai Ling, Giovannie Espiritu brings Hollywood craft to creative mentorship through Her Hunger Media.
Few people have seen the entertainment industry from as many angles as Giovannie Espiritu. Over more than twenty years, the Filipino-American creative has worked as an actor, writer, director, producer, and acting coach. Now, through her company Her Hunger Media, she is turning that hands-on experience into mentorship, workshops, and keynotes for creatives and organizations.
A Résumé Built on Set
Espiritu’s credits span both sides of the camera. As an actor, she has appeared in Young Sheldon, NCIS: Origins, and 9-1-1: Lone Star. As a director, she has worked with Oscar nominee Eric Roberts and international star Bai Ling on Love & Karma.
Her work as a coach has taken her to Pixar, where she served as an on-call acting coach, including work with Rosalie Chiang on Turning Red. She also taught the workshop “The Rhythms of Sitcom” through the SAG Conservatory for three years.
Her film and television work has been recognized by the Telly Awards, independent film festivals, and industry organizations. She is a Silver Telly Award winner, with recognition including Legacy and the Hyundai Evolve Innovation Award, and a member of the Producers Guild of America, the Television Academy, and the Alliance of Women Directors.
Doing More With Less
What sets Espiritu apart, she says, is that she has held nearly every role in the process. She has built productions, developed talent, and learned how to bring people together around a shared vision, often with limited resources.
That last part matters. On an independent set, nobody can be forced into giving their best work. A director has to create the conditions where cast and crew genuinely want to show up. Espiritu took that lesson from the set and built a philosophy around it.
The Art of the Enthusiastic Yes
Her signature philosophy, The Art of the Enthusiastic Yes, holds that meaningful collaboration and influence aren’t about convincing people to say yes. “They’re about creating the conditions where people feel seen, heard, valued, and genuinely excited to participate,” she says.
It applies as much to a writers’ room or a startup team as to a film set. “Getting people to participate isn’t the same as inspiring them to want to participate,” Espiritu notes.
The philosophy also honors what she calls the Sacred No. In her words, “A genuine yes is only possible when someone is free to say no.”
Helping Creatives Take the Next Step
Through Her Hunger Media, Espiritu works with actors, filmmakers, creatives, entrepreneurs, and organizations. Whether she’s helping someone develop a performance, bring a film to life, or navigate their next chapter, her focus is on helping people recognize what’s possible and take the next step.
The people she works with, she says, often have the talent, ideas, and ambition but struggle with self-doubt, creative blocks, overwhelm, or not knowing where to begin. She helps them find clarity and build confidence.
Her own story is proof that a non-traditional route can work. She became a mother young and built her career without a traditional educational or industry roadmap. “Your unconventional path might actually be your competitive advantage,” she says. “Don’t underestimate the value of being someone people genuinely enjoy working with.”
In Development: Into the Motherland
Espiritu’s current film project is Into the Motherland, a documentary exploring five generations of Filipinas and the evolving stories of identity, heritage, motherhood, and intergenerational connection. The film draws on her own family’s story, including her child’s journey as a first-generation college graduate who is now an MIT researcher.
“Ultimately, I want to create work that lives at the intersection of storytelling, human connection, and possibility,” Espiritu says, whether that means helping someone discover their creative voice, inspiring an audience through a keynote, or preserving stories that deserve to be heard for generations.
She is currently seeking partners and supporters for the documentary and welcoming opportunities to speak, lead workshops, and mentor creatives. Explore her work at herhunger.com and on IMDb.