ALEXIS

A woman finds herself uncontrollably weaving between three parallel lives, and must find out why this is happening and how to stop it before she loses her mind. ALEXIS is an exploration of identity and resilience, and what it means to fully be “oneself”.

Alexis, a woman in her 30s, wakes up floating near-naked in a natural pool in the middle of nowhere. She walks in a fog until she comes across an old friend, then a lover, who jolt her memory. But just as she thinks she’s sure of who and where she is, she jumps into an entirely different life. And then she jumps again... As she tries to make sense of these three very different lives with her enigmatic therapist, she's hounded by strange sounds and images that begin to fracture her sense of self and reality.

  • Renata Mellão
    Director
  • Renata Mellão
    Writer
  • Renata Mellão
    Producer
  • Lucio Gallo
    Producer
  • Briana Marin
    Key Cast
    "Alexis"
  • Erik Marmo
    Key Cast
    "Fred"
  • Renata Zhigulina
    Key Cast
    "Dr. Spinoza"
  • Brittany Lewis
    Key Cast
    "Nadia"
  • Jae Kim
    Key Cast
    "Ian"
  • Barbara Keegan
    Key Cast
    "Ellen"
  • Renata Mellão
    Composer
  • Lucio Gallo
    Cinematographer
  • Kevin Lavelle
    Editor
  • Maxwell Mahan
    Production Designer
  • Project Type:
    Short
  • Genres:
    Drama, Women, Mental Health
  • Runtime:
    26 minutes 53 seconds
  • Completion Date:
    April 1, 2021
  • Production Budget:
    85,000 USD
  • Country of Origin:
    United States
  • Country of Filming:
    United States
  • Language:
    English
  • Shooting Format:
    Digital
  • Aspect Ratio:
    2.39:1
  • Film Color:
    Color
  • First-time Filmmaker:
    Yes
  • Student Project:
    No
  • Big Apple Film Festival
    New York
    United States
    May 25, 2021
    Virtual Premiere
    Official Selection
  • Chain NYC Film Festival
    New York
    United States
    August 26, 2021
    Physical Premiere (East Coast)
    Official Selection
  • Pasadena International Film Festival
    Los Angeles
    United States
    September 10, 2021
    West Coast Premiere
    Official Selection
  • Imagine This Women's International Film Festival
    New York
    United States
    September 24, 2021
    Official Selection
  • Mystic Film Festival
    Mystic
    United States
    October 22, 2021
    Official Selection
  • LA Femme International Film Festival
    Los Angeles
    United States
    October 16, 2021
    Official Selection
Director Biography - Renata Mellão

I've wanted to tell stories for as long as I can remember while growing up in Brazil, then later studying in Europe and the US. Stories are how we learn as humans, how we understand life, how we expand our horizons and possibilities. Being fortunate enough to do so, I gave myself years to experiment with style and content, to really live a life, delve deeply into things, and develop various skills.

I write original scripts, sketch storyboards, photograph, compose music, and direct films together with my partner in life and work, Lucio Gallo (cinematographer/director/producer). My first professional work as a director is "Alexis", a 27-minute short based on an original feature-length screenplay I wrote while attending UCLA's Professional Program in Screenwriting. As with most of my work, it centers on a woman questioning her sense of identity and reality.

Although many of us now have more freedoms and choices than ever, it doesn't necessarily translate into us being much wiser or happier. There seems to be something beyond these things––a deeper level of being––waiting to come to the surface. To me, that's at the core of any intriguing story, and what I hope to bring to all my projects. Currently I'm reworking the "Alexis" feature script, as well as "Voyagers", another female-driven feature about facing the unknown, and discovering who we really are.

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Director Statement

I don't feel artistically drawn to social or political issues. Of course they matter, but to me, every issue in our world begins with what is inside each one of us. At their best, films are powerful mirrors and magnifiers of our inner workings, drawing them inexorably up to our conscious mind.

"Alexis" began with a couple of things I noticed within myself. One was entering my "late thirties" and realizing that I had somehow chosen a path in life. I felt that there were now more days where I had made choices than days where everything was still out there in front of me, ripe for the picking. Had I made the best choices? The right ones? Was I neglecting certain aspects of my life and my self?

The second thing that happened was realizing that those choices had led me to entwine myself entirely with the love of my life (also my co-producer and DP on "Alexis"). Being much older than me, sometimes I have this fear that he might go long before I do, leaving me to figure out how to continue to exist without him.

These two realizations began to dance together and feed into a feature script, which I was then forced to distill into only the most essential elements in order to make a short. Interestingly, this short developed into such a fully-realized experience that there are elements I am now synthesizing back into the feature script. Much of it was due to my stellar cast, most especially Briana Marin, who poured such soul into the role. The best feedback I keep getting: "I want more!" and "I want to watch it again", and "I see myself in her".