{{short description|Mexican-American filmmaker}} {{Infobox person | name = Alex Kahuam | image = File:Alex Kahuam.jpg | caption = Kahuam at the 2020 Sitges Film Festival | birth_name = | othername = | birth_date = | birth_place = Mexico City, Mexico | alma_mater = New York Film Academy | occupation = {{hlist|Film director|screenwriter|film editor|film producer}} | known_for = {{hlist|''Forgiveness''|''Failure!''|''Red Light''}} | notable_works = | years_active = 2011–present | spouse = }}
'''Alex Kahuam''' is a Mexican-American filmmaker best known for the films ''Red Light'' (2020), ''Forgiveness'' (2021), and ''Failure!'' (2023).
==Early life== Kahuam was born in Mexico City, Mexico.<ref>{{Cite web |title=ALEX KAHUAM |url=https://www.nyfa.edu/nyfa-news/alumni/alex-kahuam/ |access-date=June 15, 2022 |website=New York Foundation for the Arts}}</ref> He is third generation of a Lebanese family who immigrated to Mexico.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Haas |first=Lupe R. |date=2017-07-14 |title=Mexican Director Alex Kahuam's Films Influenced By Mexico's Violence |url=https://cinemovie.tv/Interviews/mexican-director-alex-kahaum-s-films-influenced-by-mexico-s-violence |access-date=June 15, 2022 |website=Cinemovie}}</ref> After moving to Los Angeles in 2012, he graduated with a B.F.A in filmmaking at the New York Film Academy.<ref>{{Cite web |title=New York Film Academy (NYFA) BFA Filmmaking Alum Alex Kahuam Profiled in VoyageLA |url=https://www.nyfa.edu/film-school-blog/alum-alex-kahuam-voyagela/ |access-date=June 15, 2022 |website=New York Foundation for the Arts}}</ref>
== Career == Kahuam's short film ''Red Light'' starred Ted Raimi and premiered at the Sitges Film Festival in 2020.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Corrigan |first=Kalyn |date=2020-10-30 |title=Everything We Learned From Ted Raimi's Online Chat At The Telluride Horror Show |url=https://www.slashfilm.com/577505/ted-raimi-telluride-horror-show-chat/ |access-date=June 15, 2022 |website=Slashfilm}}</ref> In 2021, his third feature film ''Forgiveness'' premiered at Frightfest.<ref name="thehollywoodnews">{{Cite web |last=Hughes |first=Kat |date=2021-08-29 |title=Forgiveness' review: Dir. Alex Kahuam [FrightFest] |url=https://www.thehollywoodnews.com/2021/08/29/forgiveness-review-dir-alex-kahuam-frightfest/ |access-date=June 15, 2022 |website=The Hollywood News}}</ref> His 2023 film ''Failure!'' was shot entirely in a single long take making him the first Mexican filmmaker to make a one shot feature film in the United States.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Hughes |first=Kat |date=2023-08-28 |title='Failure!' review: Dir. Alex Kahuam [FrightFest 2023] |url=https://www.thehollywoodnews.com/2023/08/29/failure-review-dir-alex-kahuam-frightfest-2023/ |access-date=2023-08-29 |website=The Hollywood News |language=en-GB}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=DiVincenzo |first=Alex |date=2025-01-30 |title=Single-Take Thriller 'Failure!' Starring Ted Raimi Available Now |url=https://bloody-disgusting.com/movie/3852772/single-take-thriller-failure-starring-ted-raimi-available-now/ |access-date=2025-02-05 |website=Bloody Disgusting! |language=en-US}}</ref>
==Filmography== {|class="wikitable sortable" |- !Year !Title !Director !Writer !Editor !Producer ! Note |- || 2011 | ''Disaster Date'' |{{yes}} |{{yes}} |{{no}} |{{no}} | Short film |- || 2012 | ''Escondida'' |{{yes}} |{{yes}} |{{yes}} |{{yes}} | |- | rowspan="3"| 2014 | ''Night Lights-Make Me Smile'' |{{yes}} |{{yes}} |{{yes}} |{{yes}} | Short film |- | ''What's in the Case?'' |{{yes}} |{{yes}} |{{yes}} |{{yes}} | Short film |- | ''So, You Want to Be a Gangster?'' |{{yes}} |{{yes}} |{{yes}} |{{yes}} | Short film |- || 2015 | ''Salvador Santana: Till the Mornin' Light'' |{{yes}} |{{yes}} |{{yes}} |{{no}} | Short film |- | rowspan="2"| 2018 | ''LAX'' |{{yes}} |{{yes}} |{{yes}} |{{yes}} | Short film |- | ''So, You Want to Be a Gangster?'' |{{yes}} |{{yes}} |{{yes}} |{{yes}} | |- || 2020 | ''Red Light'' |{{yes}} |{{yes}} |{{yes}} |{{yes}} | Short film<ref>{{Cite web |date=2022-02-01 |title=RED LIGHT (Short Film) |url=https://www.starburstmagazine.com/reviews/red-light-short-film |access-date=June 15, 2022 |website=Starburst}}</ref> |- || 2021 | ''Forgiveness'' |{{yes}} |{{yes}} |{{yes}} |{{yes}} |<ref name="thehollywoodnews" /> |- || 2023 | ''Failure!'' |{{yes}} |{{yes}} |{{yes}} |{{yes}} |<ref>{{Cite web |last=Unsworth |first=Martin |date=2023-08-28 |title=FAILURE! [FrightFest 2023] |url=https://www.starburstmagazine.com/reviews/failure/ |access-date=2023-08-29 |website=Starburst |language=en-GB}}</ref> |- |2025 | ''The Remedy'' |{{yes}} |{{yes}} |{{yes}} |{{yes}} |<ref>{{Cite web |last=Ling |first=Jamie |date=May 2, 2025 |title=Cannes’ Fantastic Pavilion Unleashes Sinister Slate With Ghost Ships, Cursed Coffee Tables and a Mexican Horror Surge |url=https://variety.com/2025/film/global/cannes-fantastic-pavilion-lineup-1236384824/ |website=Variety}}</ref> |- |}
==Awards and nominations== {| class="wikitable" |- !Award !Year !Film !Category !Result !Ref. |- |Sitges Film Festival | rowspan="2" |2020 | rowspan="3" |''Red Light'' |Best International Short Film | style="background: #ffdddd" | Nominated |<ref>{{Cite web |date=2020 |title=RED LIGHT |url=https://sitgesfilmfestival.com/cat/film?id=10006609 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200924121618/https://sitgesfilmfestival.com/cat/film?id=10006609 |archive-date=2020-09-24 |access-date=June 15, 2022 |website=Sitges Film Festival |language=CA}}</ref> |- |Telluride Horror Show |Best Short Film | style="background: #ffdddd" | Nominated |<ref>{{Cite web |last=Millican |first=Josh |date=2020-10-09 |title=Complete Lineup Announced for TELLURIDE HORROR SHOW 2020 "Shelter-in-Place" Edition |url=https://www.dreadcentral.com/news/349374/complete-lineup-announced-for-telluride-horror-show-2020-shelter-in-place-edition/ |access-date=2023-08-29 |website=Dread Central |language=en-US}}</ref> |- |Strasbourg European Fantastic Film Festival |2021 |Best International Short Film | style="background: #ffdddd" | Nominated |<ref>{{Cite web |title=Red Light |url=http://strasbourgfestival.com/red-light-2-en/ |access-date=June 15, 2022 |website=Strasbourg Film Festival}}</ref> |}
==References== {{reflist}}
==External links== * {{IMDb name|6462148|Alex Kahuam}} * {{Rotten Tomatoes|celebrity/alex_kahuam}} * {{Official website|http://alexkahuam.com}}
{{Authority control}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Kahuam, Alex}} Category:Living people Category:Year of birth missing (living people) Category:Mexican film directors Category:Mexican film producers Category:Film directors from Mexico City Category:Mexican film editors Category:Mexican people of Lebanese descent Category:Mexican expatriates in the United States Category:Film directors from Los Angeles