The creator behind Almost Out Loud
Cristina Rodríguez
Creator · Writer · Director · Composer
About me
Telling the story, shot by shot and note by note
I’m Cristina Rodríguez, a creator based in Calpe, Spain. I spent ten years working in television and radio. Today I write, direct and edit Almost Out Loud, and compose and produce its original soundtrack — so the music is part of the same authored emotional world as the script and the direction.
I was one of the organisers of Olagirls, the Lesbian Mediterranean Festival, and previously served as Spain country lead for the queer dating and community app Queeraz. Those experiences shaped my commitment to telling stories in which LGBTQ+ women have room to be complex, funny, uncertain and in love.
Creative intent
Why I created this series
I wanted to tell a love story about two women who already carry a history together. Instead of a meet-cute, the series explores what happens when two people fit back into each other’s lives too easily — and when that familiarity makes the truth harder, not easier, to hide.
Mara and Leah’s story lives in the glances, the pauses and the jokes that land too close to the truth as much as in the dialogue. Their chemistry depends on restraint: what they don’t say matters as much as what they do.
I want audiences to feel the particular ache of a slow burn: watching two people who are clearly right for each other almost say it, almost reach for it, and stop just short.
How it’s made
Story first. AI as a production tool.
Every episode begins with conventional story development: scene structure, full dialogue and a defined emotional beat. Only once the script is locked does production move into AI-assisted image and video generation.
- Write — break the episode into scenes, write the dialogue and define the emotional turn.
- Build — create reusable visual references for characters, wardrobe and locations.
- Direct — generate each shot with detailed direction for lens, framing, blocking and performance.
- Edit — assemble the footage, shape the pacing, add sound design and integrate the original score.
Character consistency is the central challenge: Mara and Leah must keep the same faces, builds, relative height and wardrobe logic across shots and episodes, and individual shots are often regenerated several times before they are usable.
AI generates the raw footage. The concept, script, dialogue, pacing, performance direction, camera choices and final edit are human decisions.
Made independently
An independent series, with a community behind it
Almost Out Loud is an independently created vertical series. I lead its story, visual direction, editing and music. Friends and family contribute valuable ideas, encouragement and enthusiasm, while all creative and production responsibility remains with me.
What has surprised me most is how quickly people became invested in Mara and Leah — even before the premiere. Viewers are already asking for the series in Spanish, Portuguese, Italian and French; some send me photos of themselves listening to the songs in the car or adding them to their Spotify favourites, and some even write to ask for the sheet music. Those messages fill me with gratitude and give me the energy to keep the project moving forward.