Alejandra Cadena-Perez is a filmmaker, screenwriter, and multimedia artist. She primarily works in film and video, creating short fiction films, documentaries, video installations, semi-autobiographical vignettes, and meditations on various recurring subjects. Her work is diverse, but common themes include the human relationship with nature and our environment, the body in motion, and the female presence. Her films have been screened in the USA and around the world. She was born in Mexico City; however, she is a global citizen proudly holding three nationalities (Mexican, Canadian, and American). She holds three Master's degrees: an M.F.A., an L.L.M., and an M.B.A. Alejandra has a professional theatrical dance background and international corporate experience. She is also a marathoner and ultramarathoner. She has completed 22 marathons, including the World Six Major marathons, and is pursuing the goal of running a marathon on all seven continents. She is also the only woman in the world to have completed both the Arctic and Antarctic marathons in the same year (2024). Alejandra lives in San Diego, California, with her husband and their dog, Coco.

I am a multimedia artist, working primarily in film and video, comprising short documentaries, video installations, semi-autobiographical vignettes, and meditations on various recurring subjects. My work is diverse, but common themes include nature and the human body in motion; and the female presence—explorations of women in both universal and individual terms.

Women play a starring role in my art, but never as typical, symbolic aspects of female identity: the nurturer, the sensual being, the “earth mother,” etc. While these notions are rooted in actual dimensions of female identity, I’m far more interested in depicting individuals, whose femininity imparts a distinctive impact on their environment—the spaces they inhabit, the lives they lead, and the way they interact with their surroundings.

The boundaries/interactions between inner life and the environment—specifically nature in its grander manifestations (mountains, oceans)—is another major theme in most if not all of my work. For example, in “H2O: Home, Hope, Origin,” a three-channel video installation in development, I use the metaphor of “swimming through life” as a basis for exploring the difficult yet exhilarating process of finding/cultivating one’s inner voice through a sustained engagement with resistant, even dangerous external forces (as well as forces of the past/memories).

As a teenager in Mexico City, I was a professional dancer, performing in theaters, on television, and in movies. I now indulge my passion for movement as a runner, having completed all of the six worlds marathon majors (Tokyo, Boston, London, Berlin, Chicago, and New York). This is the basis of my film “YESPIRATION,” about the joys of being a long-distance runner. It is also a meditation on discipline, dedication, and communion with one’s immediate environment (all of which, not coincidentally, are defining aspects of my art as whole).

I have an MFA in film from California College of the Arts, in San Francisco. More importantly, though, I have lived and studied—everything from psychology and philosophy to international management and sports law—in multiple countries, including Canada, Switzerland, the Bahamas, the U.S., and Mexico (where I was born and raised). This education, broad range of interests, and international experience has deeply influenced my view of the world and my identity; and is intimately tied to the shape and substance of my artwork.

The common themes in my work include nature, the body in motion, beauty, exploration, transformation, and love. These themes are often inspired by personal life experiences. One of my works, "YESPIRATION," is a short documentary that reflects my passion for running. Another work, the hybrid fiction film "Her Mother’s Daughter," explores the complexities of a difficult mother-daughter relationship through dance. In "Midday Summer Meditation Dream," a five-channel video installation, I delve into the question of why I find solace in nature and beauty. Throughout my work, I often use the monarch butterfly as a symbol of freedom, transformation, and rebirth. This butterfly motif can be seen in "Midday Summer Meditation Dream" and also in "The Last Butterfly," a video light projection displayed on top of the "Salesforce Tower" in San Francisco. Each of these works has profoundly impacted my development as an artist.

EDUCATION

California College of the Arts. (M.F.A.) Film. San Francisco, U.S.A. 2018-2020

University of Zurich. Master of Laws (L.L.M.) International Sports Law. Zurich, Switzerland. 2010-2012

Centenary University. Master of Business Administration (M.B.A.) International Management. New Jersey, U.S.A. 2006-2008

New York University. Certificates, Broadcast Production & TV News Production. New York, U.S.A. 2003-2004

Humber College. Post Graduate, International Marketing, With Honors. Toronto, Canada. 2000-2002

Carleton University. Bachelor of Arts, Psychology. Minor, Philosophy. Ottawa. Canada. 1996-2000

ART

San Francisco Art Institute. Certificate. Digital Media, Art Installation & Writing. San Francisco. U.S.A. 2017

National Academy of Design. Certificate, Abstract Painting. New York, U.S.A. 2011-2012

FILMS

Her Mother's Daughter
Short Fiction Film. May 2019. Director – Writer - Editor

Official Selection – 58th Golden Knight Malta International Short Film Festival 2021, Malta

Official Selection – 2024 Great Lakes International Film Festival 2021. Erie, PA. USA

Official Selection – New Hope Film Festival 2021. New Hope, USA

Best Director Nomination/Best Female Eye Filmmaker – New Hope Film Festival 2021

Official Selection – YoFiFest -The Yonkers Film Festival 2021. Yonkers, USA

Official Selection – Studio City International Film and TV Festival 2021. Los Angeles, USA

Official Selection - Marina Del Rey Film Festival 2021. Los Angeles, USA

Official Selection – Global Film Festival Awards 2021. Los Angeles, USA

Best Experimental Short Winner – Global Festival Award 2021

Official Selection – Love Wins International Film Festival 2021. New York, USA

Best Student Film Nominee – Love Wins International Film Festival 2021

Official Selection - London International Filmmakers Festival 2021, UK

Official Selection – LA Indies Film Festival 2021. Los Angeles, USA

Official Selection - New York City Independent Film Festival 2021. New York, USA

Official Selection – Harlem International Film Festival 2021. New York, USA

Official Selection - San Francisco Latino Film Festival 2020. San Francisco, USA 

Official Selection - Montreal Independent Film Festival 2020. Montreal, Canada        

Official Selection - Bridges International Film Festival 2020. Corinthia, Greece

Honorable Mention– Bridges International Film Festival 2020

Official Selection - Cyprus International Film Festival 2020. Nicosia, Cyprus

Official Selection - San Francisco Independent Short Film Festival 2020. San Francisco, USA

Official Selection - Lady Filmmakers Festival 2020. Beverly Hills, USA

Official Selection - United Latino International Film Festival 2020. Cleveland, USA

Award Winner - 2nd Place Student Film - United Latino Film Festival 2020

Official Selection - San Diego Latino Film Festival 2020. San Diego, USA

YESPIRATION
Short Documentary. January 2019. Director – Writer – Editor.

Official Selection - Another Hole in the Head Film Festival 2021. San Francisco, USA

Official Selection – Cyprus International Film Fest 2021. Nicosia, Cyprus

Official Selection - Sport Movies & TV – Milano International FICTS Fest 2020. Milan, Italy

Honorable Mention – Special Guest - Sport Movies & TV (FICTS Fest) 2021. Milan, Italy

Official Selection, International Athletics Film Festival (FICA) 2019. San Sebastian, Spain

Official Selection, Maine Outdoor Film Festival 2019. Portland, USA


MULTI-CHANNEL VIDEO INSTALLATIONS

H2O: Home, Hope, Origin.

Three-channel video installation in development. A visual poem exploring identity, immigration, and the past.

Wobble YS.

Three-channel video installation. Burning Man SF Decompression. October 19, 2019

Midday Summer Meditation Dream

Five-channel video installation. California College of the Arts, December 2019

OTHER WORK

PUBLIC PRESENTATION

Diego Rivera, Pan American Unity Mural: Linguistics of Mexico. Film.

U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, EPA - Hispanic Heritage Month. September 22, 2021

Docent

Diego Rivera, Pan American Unity Mural. City College of San Francisco, Fall 2020-2021

PUBLIC VIDEO ART

The Last Butterfly.

Salesforce Tower Projection Video Display. San Francisco. December 12-15, 2019

PHOTOGRAPHY & PERFORMANCE INSTALLATION ART

And Not The Last One.

Photography. On Borders and Boundaries Exhibition. California College of the Arts, Hubbell Gallery, November 4-15, 2019 

You See it When you Believe it.

Performance Installation Art. The Nave, California College of the Arts. December 3rd, 2019

DANCE VIDEO ESSAYS

Heart in a Red Dress.

San Francisco Art Institute, SF. Summer 2018

SAMI AFRICA.

Cape Town, South Africa. 2023

CORPORATE EXPERIENCE

Caplan & Ross LLP –

Junior Associate. New York, 2012-2013

Pfizer, Inc.–

Project Manager, Marketing. Animal Health. New York, 2006-2008

Macmillan McGraw Hill –

Production Manager. New York, 2004-2006

SPECIAL PROJECTS

DOHA Goals Forum, World Cup. Ambassador, Doha, Qatar. 2012.

United Nations Documentary Film Festival-Millennium Goals. Film Judge. New York.

OTHER PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE

Imperio Dance Company,

Modern Dance. (Theatre Blanquita/Televisa). Mexico City.