About

Alex Curran-Cardarelli is a producer who’s worked in TV, podcasts, and events. She’s also a writer and photographer with a keen interest in storytelling.

Bio

After graduating from Denison University with a degree in Creative Writing and a minor in Art History, Alex moved to Laos to work as a Festival Coordinator at the Luang Prabang Film Festival (now called Blue Chair). Starting as Festival Coordinator and then Managing Director, she produced a series of screenings, networking events, workshops, and artist development programs. She then worked as an Industry Coordinator for the 2021 Tribeca Festival, and then as the Summit Project Manager for The Peace Studio. Since 2021, she’s worked as a producer for America’s Test Kitchen for their two flagship TV shows, America’s Test Kitchen and Cook’s Country, and for their podcast Proof.

Alex is also the producer of the anthology film MEKONG 2030, a collection of short narrative films that envision the future of the Mekong River from five different national and cultural perspectives. The film has screened at over 30 international events, including the Tokyo International Film Festival, Glasgow Film Festival, and Hawaii International Film Festival. The Vietnamese short, “The Unseen River,” screened at Locarno Film Festival and Sundance Film Festival.

She has written for CityScene Media Group and U.S. Figure Skating, and has been published in Z Publishing House’s Ohio’s Best Emerging Poets and Denison University’s literary magazine, the Exile.

Press

America’s Test Kitchen Turns 25 And Is Celebrating in A Big Way

With two million weekly viewers and over 600 episodes to date, America’s Test Kitchen has become a household staple and has revolutionized the way Americans cook. The 25th anniversary celebration includes an anniversary cookbook (released on September 17); an anniversary television special (aired September 20); and the season 25 premiere (aired September 21).

— Forbes

Morgan Bolling Launches New Cooking Show: The Grill Next Door

America’s Test Kitchen (americastestkitchen.com) personality and author Morgan Bolling recently launched the new show The Grill Next Door to take the fear out of the sear and get everyone playing with fire. Each episode not only shares tips and techniques but recipes for everything from burgers and brisket to Caesar salad, a smoked pork nacho table and a Greek-inspired girls’ night.

— Modern Luxury

How To Make A Battle-Ready Pizza

How did the U.S. military create a pizza that soldiers could eat on the battlefield? Our friends at the podcast Proof from America’s Test Kitchen follow the five-year journey to create the world’s most shelf-stable pizza. In the process, they learn about ration bars made with ultrasonic technology, and how to keep cheese the right color in extreme conditions.

— The Sporkful

Post-Screening Interview with Alex Curran-Cardarelli, Producer of the Mekong 2030 Film Project

East Asian Studies Center Guest Speaker Series: Alex Curran-Cardarelli and Brian Bernards

Alex Curran-Cardarelli, is the former festival manager and managing director of the Luang Prabang Film Festival. In 2020, she helped organize the production of Mekong 2030, an omnibus film (93 minutes) of five speculative shorts from directors from the five mainland Southeast Asian countries bordering the Mekong River.

— University of Southern California

Celebrating Stories on Film:
Luang Prabang Film Festival

In this week’s Radio Ock Pop Tok broadcast, we discuss stories, film and the Luang Prabang Film Festival (LPFF) with Executive Director Sean Chadwell, and Festival Manager Alex Curran-Cardarelli. LPFF brings together the boldest storytellers and the most talked about films in the ten SEA countries and screens them the first weekend in December every year in Luang Prabang. And, it’s the only film festival that committed to telling the region’s stories by local filmmakers.

— Radio Ock Pop Tok

Region’s filmmakers offer their visions of the Mekong river in 2030

With this broad appeal Pham found internal recognition. Curran-Cardarelli believes that storytellers are the ideal people to spread the Mekong’s message, and with 1,500 people watching “The Unseen River” between the 5-15 August at the festival in Locarno, she could be right… “It’s our hope that viewers will understand that any impact on the river flows downward,” said Curran-Cardarelli. “Causing literal ripple effects along the way.”

– Southeast Asia Globe

Conversation with Filmmakers: Making Films in a Time of Crises

A conversation between film scholars and filmmakers, join us discuss stories of inhospitality in selected films shown in this series. Listen and ask questions about the filmmakers’ experiences of producing and making films in this new world of growing inhospitality, and glimpses of hopes for a better future.

Panel Speakers: Alex Curran-Cardarelli, producer of Mekong 2030 / Festival manager of Luang Prabang Festival

– Asian Film Archive