Biography

Eva Aridjis is a Mexican-American director and writer. She has written, produced and directed five feature-length films, including the narrative films The Favor and The Blue Eyes and the documentaries Children of the Street, La Santa Muerte and Chuy, The Wolf Man. She also wrote on Narcos: Mexico and co-wrote the novella Monarca, to be published by Harper Collins in 2022.

Eva's narrative feature The Favor examines the strained relationship between a teenage boy (Ryan Donowho) and the man who adopts him (Frank Wood) and screened at art house cinemas across the U.S. and Mexico and on the Sundance Channel and Televisión Azteca. It received very good reviews in many publications including Variety, the LA Times and Film Threat and won prizes at several film festivals including CineVegas and San Diego.

Eva's second feature The Blue Eyes tells the story of an American couple (Allison Case and Zachary Booth) who travel to Chiapas, Mexico and encounter a shape-shifting witch (Ofelia Medina). The film screened in cinemas in Mexico in 2013 and features an original score by JG Thirlwell.

Eva's three documentaries were shot in Mexico and focus on marginalized people and/or communities. Children of the Street shows the daily struggles of four street kids living on the rough streets of Mexico City. It was nominated for two Arieles (Mexican Academy Awards) and won the Best Documentary Feature prize at the Morelia International Film Festival.

La Santa Muerte examines a religious cult of people who worship death as a female saint. La Santa Muerte has become the patron saint of millions of Mexicans, namely sick people and those who do not feel accepted by the Catholic Church- criminals, gays and transsexuals, prostitutes and people living in atmospheres of violence and danger. The documentary, narrated by Gael García Bernal, won festival awards and aired on the Discovery Channel.

Chuy, The Wolf Man is a portrait of a Mexican family with hypertrichosis- or werewolf syndrome- and shows the plight of the men, women and children in this family who suffer discrimination at school, the workplace and in their personal lives due to the hair which covers their faces. The film premiered in cinemas all over Mexico in September 2015 and received glowing reviews.

In addition to her feature films, Eva wrote and directed the shorts Taxidermy: The Art of Imitating Life, Billy Twist and The Passenger. Eva's films have screened at dozens of film festivals around the world, including Sundance, Edinburgh and the Los Angeles Film Festival.

In early 2018 Eva was a writer on El Candidato, a show about CIA agents in Mexico City (Televisa-Amazon). In June 2018 she shadowed director Johan Renck on the set of Chernobyl (HBO-Sky).

From August-December 2018 she worked in the writers' room for Narcos: Mexico S2 (Gaumont-Netflix) and wrote Episode 502 "Alea Lacta Est" with showrunner Eric Newman.

Eva attended Princeton University (1992-1996) and NYU's Grad Film Program (1996-2001). She taught Screenwriting at NYU Grad Film 2007-2009. Eva has also directed various music videos, including one for The Walkmen's hit song "The Rat."
- IMDb mini biography by: Dark Night Pictures

Eva Aridjis is a Mexican-American director and writer. She has written, produced and directed six feature-length films, including the narrative films The Favor and The Blue Eyes and the documentaries Children of the Street, La Santa Muerte, Chuy, The Wolf Man and Goodbye Horses: The Many Lives of Q Lazzarus. She also wrote on Narcos: Mexico and co-wrote the novella Monarca, published by Harper Collins in 2022.

Eva's narrative feature The Favor examines the strained relationship between a teenage boy (Ryan Donowho) and the man who adopts him (Frank Wood) and screened at art house cinemas across the U.S. and Mexico and on the Sundance Channel and Televisión Azteca. It received very good reviews in many publications including Variety, the LA Times and Film Threat and won prizes at several film festivals including CineVegas and San Diego.

Eva's second feature The Blue Eyes tells the story of an American couple (Allison Case and Zachary Booth) who travel to Chiapas, Mexico and encounter a shape-shifting witch (Ofelia Medina). The film screened in cinemas in Mexico in 2013 and features an original score by JG Thirlwell.

Eva's first three documentaries were shot in Mexico and focus on marginalized people and/or communities. Children of the Street shows the daily struggles of four street kids living on the rough streets of Mexico City. It was nominated for two Arieles (Mexican Academy Awards) and won the Best Documentary Feature prize at the Morelia International Film Festival.

La Santa Muerte examines a religious cult of people who worship death as a female saint. La Santa Muerte has become the patron saint of millions of Mexicans, namely sick people and those who do not feel accepted by the Catholic Church- criminals, gays and transsexuals, prostitutes and people living in atmospheres of violence and danger. The documentary, narrated by Gael García Bernal, won festival awards and aired on the Discovery Channel.

Chuy, The Wolf Man is a portrait of a Mexican family with hypertrichosis- or werewolf syndrome- and shows the plight of the men, women and children in this family who suffer discrimination at school, the workplace and in their personal lives due to the hair which covers their faces. The film premiered in cinemas all over Mexico in September 2015 and received glowing reviews.

Goodbye Horses: The Many Lives of Q Lazzarus is a portrait of Diane Luckey aka Q Lazzarus, who sang the cult hit song "Goodbye Horses" before mysteriously disappearing for 25 years. Eva and Q met by chance and spent three years filming together. The film premiered at the Morelia International Film Festival in October 2024 where it won the Best Documentary Feature Audience Award. It will have its theatrical release in the US and UK in March 2025 and in Mexico in April 2025.

In addition to her feature films, Eva wrote and directed the shorts Taxidermy: The Art of Imitating Life, Billy Twist and The Passenger. Eva's films have screened at dozens of film festivals around the world, including Sundance, Edinburgh and the Los Angeles Film Festival.

In early 2018 Eva was a writer on El Candidato, a show about CIA agents in Mexico City (Televisa-Amazon). In June 2018 she shadowed director Johan Renck on the set of Chernobyl (HBO-Sky).

From August-December 2018 she worked in the writers' room for Narcos: Mexico S2 (Gaumont-Netflix) and wrote Episode 502 "Alea Lacta Est" with showrunner Eric Newman.

Eva attended Princeton University (1992-1996) and NYU's Grad Film Program (1996-2001). She taught Screenwriting at NYU Grad Film 2007-2009. Eva has also directed various music videos, including one for The Walkmen's hit song "The Rat."
- IMDb mini biography by: Dark Night Pictures