INSTIGATORS

Born in New York City to Panamanian parents and having grown up in Panama and the U.S., filmmaker Bravo’s work captures confusing feelings of dislocation mixed with a strong sense of assured selfpossession. Her two features to date, “Lemon” and “Zola,” are both playfully provocative, pushing audiences to confront their own cultural assumptions. By turns very funny and laceratingly insightful, Bravo’s work uses humor to slowly turn up the heat, catching viewers off guard when they realize they are in the boiling waters of the contradictions and paradoxes of modern life. “Zola” in particular feels like something of a landmark, an outrageous adaptation of a viral Twitter thread that bristles with electric energy and observational specificity. Bravo also easily transitions to directing for television, working on shows such as “Atlanta,” “Mrs. America” and “In Treatment,” putting her personal stamp on what could just be for-hire work. — M. Olsen