Ximena Rios is an indie filmmaker from Acapulco, Mexico. From an early age, she knew she wanted to be a filmmaker. She is a very methodical and meticulous filmmaker, whose uncompromising vision has allowed her to craft heart felt stories. She graduated from SAIT’s Television and Video Production program in 2017, with her final film project being an ambitious 30-minute post-apocalyptic film titled ‘SURREAL’ which she co-wrote/directed with Mark. Surreal would go on to screen and win several awards at film festivals for Best Film & Screenplay, as well as accumulating over 200k views on L120’s YouTube channel.

Her next project was a 6-episode crime mystery web series called ‘COMPLACENCY’ (which she co-created with Mark). The series follows two detectives interrogating a woman whom they believe may have information that is key to capturing a decades-long serial killer. In 2019 Ximena was selected to be a participant in the Herland Mentorship program, which allowed her to write, produce, and direct the short film ‘FADED’. The film follows a young artist using her art to reconnect with her deceased father. Faded was also produced in part by Telus StoryHive and Calgary Society of Independent Filmmakers (CSIF). During the fall of 2019, Ximena would then direct a proof of concept short ‘A GOOD NIGHT’S SLEEP’ for Virescent Cinema. After wrapping production on A Good Night’s Sleep, Ximena immediately jumped into production for her newest web series ‘CREATIVE CANVAS’, a documentary series that showcases unconventional art styles and the masterminds behind it. She received a grant for $20k from StoryHive to produce and direct a pilot episode for the series.

In 2021, Ximena directed a series of documentary shorts for cSPACE, which featured several different artist for each film. Her follow up project had her working as a cinematographer and editor for the short film ‘NOT THAT DEEP’, written and directed by Misha Maseka. The film had its premiere at the Calgary International Film Festival in September 2022. Ximena would work with Misha again on the music video ‘Sirens’ by caedance. Ximena has currently been working as a cinematographer and director for a documentary short series for Humainologie.

Her films have screened at festivals in Vancouver, New York, LA, and London. Ximena's web-series Complacency has won the award for Best Series at numerous festivals and award shows, and she has been nominated multiple times for her writing and directing. She was nominated for Best Editor and Best Documentary Short at the 2020 Stinger Awards in Calgary, for her film Creative Canvas.