Natalia Almada

Content sourced from Wikipedia, licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0.

Natalia Almada is a Mexican‑American photographer and filmmaker who makes documentary films about Mexican history, politics, and culture. She was born in Sinaloa, Mexico, and grew up between Mexico and the United States. She earned a BFA from the College of Santa Fe in 1995 and an MFA in Photography from the Rhode Island School of Design in 2001. Her work has shown at major venues like the Museum of Modern Art, Sundance, the Guggenheim, and Cannes Directors’ Fortnight. She won the 2009 Sundance Directing Award for El General and was named a MacArthur Fellow in 2012, becoming the first Latina to receive the award.

Her films blend personal memory with social issues, often using a non‑linear, intimate style. Topics include drug trafficking, illegal immigration, violence, and Narco‑capitalism, explored through human stories rather than crime alone. Almada is the great‑granddaughter of Plutarco Elías Calles, a controversial former president of Mexico, who appears in El General.

Films to know:
- All Water Has a Perfect Memory (2001): an experimental look at memory and family after tragedy.
- Al Otro Lado (2005): about drug trafficking and migration, with a focus on economic forces and a personal, bicultural perspective.
- El General (2009): tells the story of her great‑grandfather through her grandmother’s voice, linking past and present.
- El Velador (2011): follows a night guard at a mausoleum of drug lords, using quiet imagery to reflect on violence.
- Everything Else (Todo lo demás) (2016): another part of her work exploring similar themes.