Luis Eduardo Fernández Oliva (born 14 March 1973) is a Venezuelan actor, writer, producer, and director. He is known for his role in the 2016 film Tamara, and for his stand-up show It's not you, it’s me (No eres tú, soy yo). He has worked extensively on stage and in film and TV, and has published books, essays, and newspaper columns.

Early life and education

Luis Eduardo Fernández Oliva was born on 14 March 1973 in Caracas, Venezuela. Fernández graduated in architecture in 1991 from the Universidad Simón Bolívar, in Caracas, and attended the Harvard Graduate School of Design from 1990, graduating in 1993. His thesis, "The Boston Studio", was published by Cuadernos Lagoven in Caracas. From 2008 he attended the New York Film Academy, graduating in Filmmaking in 2012.

Career

Fernández started his career on stage at age 19, and developed his directorial skills on stage. His directorial debut in filmmaking was with the short film Blue Sky produced at the New York Film Academy, which was selected to the official competition in several international film festivals. The 2016 film Tamara, inspired by the life of Tamara Adrián, is about a successful lawyer who takes the decision to start a gender transition, and Fernández plays the lead role as Teo/Tamara. In 2022, Fernández directed and shot a film using his smartphone, based on a story by Venezuelan screenwriter Mónica Montañés, and workshopped with the actor Veronica Oddó in Santiago, Chile. His wife Mimi Lazo was producer and lead actor of the film, called Desconocidas (Unknowns). He described it as a very personal project: "The opportunity to tell a story by Monica Montañés about the loss of identity that comes with having to leave your home, your family, your country, your house, is the story of 7 million Venezuelans scattered all over the world". The scenes were captured via Zoom, in front of an invited live audience. Lazo was in Madrid at the time, Oddó in Chile, and Nina Rancel in Los Angeles, but the film shows them in one apartment. Unknowns was screened at the SmartFone Flick Fest in Sydney, Australia.

Radio and stand-up

For over three years Fernández was the creator and host of the radio show The Sex Sense, that premiered in May 2004 to become an audience phenomenon on Venezuelan radio. He interviewed more than a thousand successful professional women from Venezuela, Latin America and Spain. This show became the basis of his ongoing stand-up show It's not you, it’s me (No eres tú, soy yo).

Other activities

Fernández established "Broadway En Español", an international and multi-disciplinary production company that creates shows for Broadway in Spanish. Fernández is an ambassador for SmartFone Flick Fest (SF3), a film festival held annually in Sydney, Australia.

Recognition and awards

His stage work has been showcased Ibero-American International Theater Festival of Bogota, the largest theatre festival in the world. Fernández has won several acting awards, including five international film festival awards for best actor for his performance in Tamara (2016), including at the Milan International Film Festival, the Fine Arts Film Festival in Dominican Republic, and the Yale University Film Festival.

Personal life

Fernández married Venezuelan actress Mimí Lazo. he lives in Los Angeles.

Theatre

Director and producer

Other leading roles

Publications

Filmography

As director

As actor