Private Project

The Cleaning Lady

Over a decade ago, a loving mother of three, Marisol Reina, crossed the Mexico-U.S. border to provide a better life for her family, today she moves back home in hopes to reconnect with the family she once had to leave behind.

  • Ericka de Alexander
    Director
  • Carlos Ibarra
    Producer
  • Andrew McLain
    Producer
  • Ericka de Alexander
    Producer
  • Noémie Sornet
    Associate Producers
    The First Color, If The World Was Ending
  • Trisha Golec
    Associate Producers
    The First Color
  • Project Type:
    Documentary, Short
  • Genres:
    Documentary, Drama, Verite
  • Runtime:
    11 minutes 19 seconds
  • Completion Date:
    February 28, 2024
  • Production Budget:
    4,000 USD
  • Country of Origin:
    United States
  • Country of Filming:
    Mexico, United States
  • Language:
    Spanish
  • Shooting Format:
    Digital
  • Aspect Ratio:
    1:85
  • Film Color:
    Color
  • First-time Filmmaker:
    No
  • Student Project:
    No
Director Biography - Ericka de Alexander

Ericka de Alexander is a queer Mexican-British writer/director and actress. She obtained her B.A. in TV and Film Production from the University of Southern California in 2019. As an immigrant, Ericka’s life experiences have drawn her to dramatic themes of hopefulness, loss of innocence, and otherness. Ericka co-wrote, produced, and directed the short film, "The First Color", which was sponsored by the ALS Association, and premiered at the "LA Shorts International Film Festival" in 2020. She’s currently in the festival circuit with her most recent project, a short documentary titled "The Cleaning Lady", which is fiscally sponsored by Film Independent. This story follows the journey of an undocumented immigrant, Mari Reina, who spent 15 years in the US to be able to provide a better life for the family she left behind. The documentary explores the sacrifice, fragmentation, and reunification of this family. She is currently in the post-production phase of her most recent dramatic short film project, “FLAMES”.

Add Director Biography
Director Statement

While there are many documentaries about immigration and its politics, this one is about the journey of a multi-layered undocumented immigrant, Marisol Reina (pseudonym), who lives as an invisible citizen of the United States, while working as a domestic worker who moves mountains to secure a better future for her and her loved ones living in the homeland she left behind. Her family thanks her for her sacrifice, yet resents her for leaving them.

Ultimately, this documentary explores the “what is it that makes this all worth it” for so many fragmented families who immigrate to the U.S. without a path to legal residence.

Our documentary explores the sacrifice, fragmentation, and reunification of Mari's family.