FIFO 2025. Jalena Keane-Lee is a director, producer, and cinematographer. This year, she is presenting an 83-minute documentary Standing Above the Clouds at FIFO, out of competition.
An advocate for women’s rights, the filmmaker sought to offer a different vision of power through her feature-length film—a feminized power expressed through prayer, song, and collective dance.
“My Community, My Art, and My Freedom”—these are the three most important things to Jalena Keane-Lee, who is presenting Standing Above the Clouds at FIFO this year.
Raised by an activist mother, Jalena grew up in the San Francisco Bay Area, constantly surrounded by strong women. From a young age, she participated in protests and public hearings alongside these wahine. “These powerful women taught me that our society is built on injustice and inequality, but it is our responsibility to work toward change for future generations,” she emphasizes.
Jalena has always craved discovery and adventure. While growing up, she frequently visited Hawai‘i to see her family and explore the places where her mother was raised.
“I have always been inspired by the incredible women around me and by those around the world who fight for change without always being recognized,” the filmmaker asserts.
Defining herself as both an artist and storyteller, Jalena found her calling in documentary filmmaking during university. She studied both political science and film, discovering that documentaries perfectly combined her interests and passions. “This medium allows me to explore topics that intrigue me while meeting extraordinary people around the world,” explains the Hawaiian filmmaker.
In 2015, Jalena’s aunt, who lives on Big Island, sent her an article about protests featuring Pua Case and Hāwane Rios. “Their strength and convictions struck me immediately. In 2017, some of Pua Case’s cousins introduced me to her and her daughters. I asked them if they would like to collaborate on a film that would showcase the unseen aspects of activism. Since then, we have been working together to bring this story to life,” she shares enthusiastically.
Jalena loves authenticity, and it is the ingredient she sprinkles into each of her works.
When asked about her daily sources of inspiration, the nature and art lover smiles: “The moon, the sunset, the beautiful clouds, the funny and brilliant things my friends say, hearing a beautiful story, learning something new.” Through her various documentaries, Jalena enjoys meeting people and shining a light on women. She cherishes authenticity, and it is this quality that she infuses into all her creations.
“I made this film, Standing Above the Clouds, so that Hawaiian, Indigenous, BIPOC (Black, Indigenous, and People of Color) women, and gender-diverse individuals around the world can realize their power. I made it to show the strength of the sacred feminine,” states Jalena. She continues: “In a socio-political context where our rights over our own bodies are threatened, where our lands are poisoned, and where we are facing the greatest climate disaster in human history, fueled by capitalism and the U.S. military-industrial complex—the world’s largest polluter—I hope Standing Above the Clouds offers a vision of politically responsible hope.”
The co-founder of Breaktide Productions, a production company made up entirely of women of color, emphasizes one key point: “My film never questions whether women are capable of leading or whether the Hawaiian people have the right to self-determination over their ancestral lands. It simply gives the opportunity to see and feel that leadership in action. I didn’t want to focus on whether the telescope should be built or not. What mattered to me was showing that activism is intimate, spiritual, and intergenerational.”
Jalena is a filmmaker who explores intergenerational healing through storytelling change. With Standing Above the Clouds, she aims to “show the power of women and represent a feminine vision of power. We’ve been conditioned to see power in its masculine form—dominated by weapons and violence. My film offers another vision of power, a feminized power, manifested through prayer, song, and collective dance.”
A lover of travel and good food, she is thrilled to be in French Polynesia, meeting other filmmakers and, above all, “discovering beautiful films from all across Oceania.” For Jalena, FIFO embodies everything she cherishes: solidarity, a collective spirit that allows people to come together and move the needle.
Jenny Hunter
French