Juan Olea was born in Santiago, Chile in 1984. In 2014 he directed the feature film El Cordero, selected at the Biarritz, Havana and San Francisco Festivals, and awarded Best Director of the year at the Santiago International Film Festival (SANFIC). In 2017 he directed the television mini-series Pega Martín Pega, which was successfully broadcast on Chilean television. Oro amargo is his second feature film.