Francis Polo / Biography

Francis Polo was raised in Lagos, Nigeria. Although he was born in Long Beach, California - it wasn't until age 14 that he moved to the United States. Through his childhood habit of watching VHS with his aunt, going through literally thousands of films over the years, a regular pastime became his life's passion.After being convinced by his mom to try acting; at age seventeen Polo got his first experience on a film set. He appeared as an actor in a Pepsi Commercial and soon found himself in a variety of television commercials and independent films. Almost immediately after that chance to observe directors on the set, he went on to direct theatre at the Bruce Hayden Center in Malcolm X College (Theatre X). Polo refined his skills at Columbia College in Chicago, Illinois, from which he received a B.A. in Film & Video with Honors.Francis Polo's cinematic approach has been compared to two of his favorite directors, Fernando Meirelles and Spike Lee.