Mi vida dentro

At 17, Rosa illegally migrated to Austin, Texas. Some time later, she was arrested on suspicion of murder. The judicial process, the verdict, her separation from her family, and the helplessness of being imprisoned in a foreign country make this film a stark portrayal of the harsh reality faced by Mexican migrants in the United States.

She studied filmmaking at the Centro Universitario de Estudios Cinematográficos (CUEC), specializing in Directing. She has been nominated eight times for the Ariel Award, presented by the Mexican Academy of Cinematographic Arts and Sciences, and won the 2005 Ariel for her documentary short film Soy (2003). Her documentary debut, Mi vida dentro (2007), received numerous national and international awards and played a key role in securing the release from prison of its protagonist. Batallas íntimas (2016), her second feature film, explores domestic violence and received numerous national and international awards. The film has been instrumental in fostering discussions about domestic violence in academic, political, and social spheres in Mexico and other countries.

She has served on selection committees for documentary production projects for the former FOPROCINE and EFICINE programs, as well as for the National System of Art Creators, among others, and has served as a jury member at national and international film festivals. She has directed episodes of documentary series for HBO Latam, CNN Plus, Canal 11, and Canal 22, as well as fiction series for Star+.

Her work has been exhibited and screened at the Centre Pompidou in Paris and the Fondation Cartier. She is a member of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences in the United States and the Mexican Academy of Cinematographic Arts and Sciences. In 2012, she received the Universidad Nacional Award for Young Academics in the field of Cultural Creation and Outreach, presented by UNAM.

Vidas en la orilla (2025), her third feature film, follows the story of Rosa Estela, the protagonist of Mi vida dentro.

Year of Production: 2007

Time: 120’

Country: Mexico

Language: Spanish, English. Original version with Spanish subtitles.

Director: Lucía Gajá

Cast: Rosa Estela Olvera Jiménez

Production: Rodrigo Herranz

Script: Lucía Gajá

Director of Photography: Érika Licea

Production Companies: IMCINE, Ultra Films

Ariel Awards 2008  (Nominee for Best Documentary Feature)

Morelia International Film Festival 2007 (Winner, Best Mexican Documentary Feature; Special Mention for Best Documentary Directed by a Woman)

DocumentaMadrid 2008 (Best Reportage Award)

Official Selection: Tribeca Film Festival 2008 and Cannes Critics’ Week