A body of work across movement, image, and sound.

Panducada

Short dance film — 2021

A movement-based film exploring rhythm, repetition, and embodied presence through a choreographic and cinematic lens. Filmed outdoors, the work emphasizes the relationship between the dancing body and the surrounding landscape, with movement grounded through direct contact with the earth

Credits
Directed & choreographed by Vanessa Isaac
Music: Ami Molinelli
Cinematography: Christopher La Rosa

Film Produced by Vanessa Isaac

Support: San Francisco Arts Commission (composer support for Ami Molinelli); American Dance & Music, Inc. (subsidy grant to Vanessa Agle Isaac)

Alfazema

Short dance film — 2021

A short dance film rooted in gesture, memory, and atmosphere, exploring self-healing in relation to the body and its environment, set against the ocean.

Credits
Directed & choreographed by Vanessa Isaac
Music: Ami Molinelli, Clarice Cast, Liza Wallace
Percussion: Ami Molinelli, Clarice Cast
Harp: Liza Wallace
Cinematography: Christopher La Rosa

Film produced by Vanessa Isaac

Support: San Francisco Arts Commission (composer support for Ami Molinelli); American Dance & Music, Inc. (subsidy grant to Vanessa Agle Isaac)

Feita de Luz

Short dance film — 2019

A movement-based film celebrating Bahia, the Baianas, and women of the African diaspora, honoring lineage, presence, and cultural continuity through movement.

Credits
Directed & choreographed by Vanessa Agle Isaac
Dancers: Adriane Butler, Amber Giorgi Mallea, Anastasia Smith, Karen Madler, Tina Donaldson, Vanessa Agle Isaac
Videography: Eamonn McGeough
Photography & additional videography: Christopher La Rosa

Film produced by Vanessa Isaac

Notes: “Before It Kills Us All” is a film and video installation of Cambridge Documentary Films, produced and directed by the Academy Award Documentary Film Producer Margaret Lazarus and includes the work of several dancers including Vanessa Isaac.

In Development

Amazon Fields (working title)

Ongoing film research

An open-ended cinematic research project developed through field notes, movement, and observation in the Amazon region. This work unfolds over time and informs future short and feature-length films.