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Ryan Firpo is an American screenwriter, director, and editor whose work spans documentary filmmaking and major studio features. He was born in Berkeley, California, and grew up in Benicia, where skateboarding became an early creative outlet. He briefly attended San Francisco's Academy of Art University before leaving after one semester and using his refunded tuition to make his first film, an experience he has described as his true film school. Firpo made his feature debut with the documentary Bet Raise Fold (2013), which he directed and edited. He later contributed to the collaborative documentary Ten Years (2016). Working with his cousin Kaz Firpo, he co-developed the story for Marvel Studios' Eternals (2021), with the screenplay credited to Chloé Zhao, Patrick Burleigh, Kaz Firpo, and Ryan Firpo. In interviews, he has noted that the film's sweeping, historical structure drew in part from his own interests in archaeology, history, and world cultures. His Bay Area upbringing—especially the region's multicultural environment—influenced the film's emphasis on a diverse ensemble of characters. For his work on the film, Firpo received a 2022 Honourable Mention on the Gold List for Best Adapted Screenplay, shared with Chloé Zhao, Patrick Burleigh, and Kaz Firpo. Outside of Eternals, Ryan and Kaz Firpo have collaborated on multiple original screenplays. Their script, Ruin, drew significant attention in Hollywood, and they later sold the sci-fi feature Mimi From Rio to Netflix. Ryan had also been involved in adapting Mark Millar's Prodigy for Netflix as part of the planned Millarworld Cinematic Universe.
The Eternals are a powerful race of cosmic beings who have existed in our solar system for millions of years. While most Eternals look perfectly human on the outside, their advanced biology gives them incredible strength, long lives and powers that set them far above mortal men. Both the Eternals and their genetic cousins, the Deviants, were created by the cosmic gods known as the Celestials through experiments on early proto-humans. And where most Eternals have chosen to follow the path of peace, the Deviants are hateful and warlike, with their hideous outer appearance reflecting their twisted inner nature. The two races have been locked in a never-ending war since those early days, with humanity sometimes paying the price.
