M.A. in Documentary Film, Universidad del Cine in Buenos Aires
B.A., Northwestern University, summa cum laude

Mateo Hinojosa is a filmmaker, artist and educator. A mestizo Bolivian-American with Quechua ancestry based in the San Francisco Bay Area, he works worldwide, exploring issues of individual identity in collective struggle; spirituality and health; public space, land and art; politics and performance. His debut feature documentary, Spectacular Movements, follows young Indigenous actors in Bolivia as they struggle to embody their people’s collective voice to revive the spirit of the recent revolution on stage and in the street. This film and much of his work includes mixing elements of fiction and documentary, poetry and narrative. His productions specialize in facilitating collective creative articulation of the spirit of movements and communities. He has put art on screen and on stage in Turtle Island, Bolivia, Argentina, Spain and Cameroon, teaching and making art at orphanages and in the mountains, leading theater workshops in prisons, and filming everything from Indigenous Land Back projects to neurosurgery to street art.

Mateo worked as The Cultural Conservancy’s Media Director 2013-2026, where he led arts and media projects, including dozens of video projects, numerous short films, and five seasons of the Native Seed Pod podcast, in collaboration with Indigenous communities in Northern California and worldwide.

Mwende has produced videos and documentaries for non-profits, news spots and long-form stories for public radio, interactive panel discussions, and immersive storytelling experiences for tech. Her radio work has aired on PRI’s Living on Earth, KUOW Seattle Public Radio, KQED Public Radio, KALW Local Public Radio, WAMU, Vocolo.org, and PRX Remix. She worked as Production Manager at the Center for Investigative Reporting's Reveal radio show.

Mwende's work has taken her to the living rooms of former Black Panthers, to brain surgery operating rooms in Bolivia, and to the largest gathering of indigenous food producers in the world. She graduated from the Jackson School of International Studies at the University of Washington. She has worked as producer of interactive audio documentaries for platforms such as Detour and as consultant with cultural institutions such as the Oakland Museum of California.

She currently works heading up strategic storytelling at the Sustainable Economies Law Center.