What is First-Person Cinema? Thank you for receiving the Cinepoetics series so openly.While the live study windows haven’t drawn many attendees, the response has been beautiful. For now, I’m pausing the Zoom gatherings and focusing on new offerings, including a longer-form essay film that expands this field. Thank you for witnessing.—L.A. Alfonso About the Course — Read More
Screenshot: Josh Rifkin in Memorial Day (2025)
Memorial Day (3:33 min. 2025) Director LA Alfonso, Cinematographer Rob Viscardis, Singer / Songwriter Josh Rifkin, Music Producer Leonardo Marques — Read More
MAY TWO FIVE, an immersive dance music journey from voice to electronica, takes over The El (P) on May 25th from 8 PM until 2 AM at 380 George Street North. — Read More
LA Alfonso poses in front of his "Hall-o-Ween Window" video installation in 2021.
Hall-o-Ween Window. (5 min. 2021) clip shows a video projection mapping installation conceived, created, and co-presented by LA Alfonso with Circus Vaccaro. — Read More
Marsala Lukianchuk as the Schoolteacher with her students as they witness the fire.
One Day in December (20 min. 2022) written and directed by LA Alfonso with lyrics by Rob Fortin and music by Susan Newman, featuring Marsala Lukianchuk. — Read More
Marsala Lukianchuk as the schoolteacher in One Day in December
Tickets are free for this community screening of One Day in December at 2PM on December 11th at the Bata Film Theatre, you have to register, details inside. — Read More
Imaginarium by LA Alfonso — Peterborough Public Library. 2018
Imaginarium is a large-scale video projection mapping work produced by LA Alfonso which transformed the front windows of the Peterborough Public Library. — Read More
Flight (7 min. 1991) Written and directed by Lester Alfonso, cinematography by Joshua Rifkin, voice-over added and remastered in 2020. — Read More
Backyard Jams — Summer 2020 (18 min. 2020) A video album of selected songs from the upcoming audio release by LA & Co. called “Pandemic Blues.” — Read More
Family at Hotel (32 sec. 1998) Directed, shot, and edited by Lester Alfonso using home movie footage to visualize a song recorded by Tammy Lin Foreman with baby Sunny audible in the background. — Read More
Tom Thomson — Tamaracks (detail)
“Masterpiece of a Man” — a song about Canadian painter Tom Thomson by Charlie Glasspool (3 min. 2008) Shot by Lester Alfonso capturing his live film mix that accompanies the performance, presented with subtitled lyrics. — Read More
Screenshot from The Resurrection of an Angel, 2009
The Resurrection of an Angel with a score by The Silent Film Ensemble (7 min. 2009) Performed at the historic Roxy Theatre in Owen Sound, Ontario, and re-mastered for this release. Choreography and performance by Wes Ryan in a film directed, shot, and edited by Lester Alfonso. — Read More
Wes Ryan in The Resurrection of an Angel, 35mm photograph by LA, 2009
The Resurrection of an Angel with a score by The Silent Film Ensemble (7 min. 2009) Directed, shot, and edited by Lester Alfonso. Choreography and performance by Wes Ryan. — Read More
Noise by Full Metal Booty is a collection of films ranging from performance to art documentation made by LA featuring the sounds of Peterborough’s noise band. — Read More
waterfront dining — snowbird (2 min. 2020) Directed, shot, and edited by Lester Alfonso. Artist: waterfront dining, Track: snowbird. — Read More
Painted Films is a showcase featuring videos of or about paintings created by Lester Alfonso which features artists Jérémie Giles, Tom Feenstra, John Climenhage, and more. — Read More
[Sound+Vision] — Watch the Paint Dry (33 min. 2005) Produced, directed and shot by Lester Alfonso. An event held at Cinema 379 in Peterborough, Ontario on June 13, 2005 where a painter, a saxophonist, a turntablist, and a videographer came together for a live cinema performance as a fundraiser for the school’s music program. — Read More
Not One Loon: works in mixed media by Tom Feenstra (7 min. 2003) Directed, shot, and edited by Lester Alfonso from an exhibition at the Art Gallery of Bancroft. — Read More
hyphen (11 min. 2005) Directed, shot, and edited by Lester Alfonso about the art of Jérémie Giles and his exhibition “Art is a Mirror: a posthumous Homage to Seventy-Two Canadian Painters.” — Read More
Man with Fiber Lights, 2009, photo by LA
Disco Destructo by Red Audio Faction (4 min. 2009) Edit and film mix by Lester Alfonso captured from a performance at Electric Eclectic Festival in 2009. — Read More
Paper View: artwork by Hartley Stephenson (5 min. 2006) Directed, shot, and edited by Lester Alfonso combining footage of an exhibition at Artspace in Peterborough, Ontario with audio samples from office machines and noise band Full Metal Booty in which Stephenson is a founding member. — Read More
Instant Video #25 — He Listens by Tammy Lin Foreman (4 min. 2009) Directed, shot, and edited by Lester Alfonso for the collaborative weekly video project that ran from 2008 to 2010. — Read More
Instant Video #17 — Totally True by Tammy Lin Foreman (4 min. 2009) Directed, shot, and edited by Lester Alfonso for the collaborative weekly video project that ran from 2008 to 2010. — Read More
Instant Video #15 — Make Believe by Tammy Lin Foreman (4 min. 2009) Directed, shot, and edited by Lester Alfonso for the collaborative weekly video project that ran from 2008 to 2010. — Read More
The Silver Hearts Showcase compiles LA’s films about and inspired by the legendary Peterborough band. (Total running time 103 min.) — Read More
BAD ROAD (47 min. 2003) Documented by Brian Mitolo, edited by Lester Alfonso, this docu-road-trip captures The Silver Hearts — a 12-piece band from Peterborough early in their career on their first East Coast tour and in the studio for a recording of “Bad Road.” — Read More
The Shrimps comedy troupe parody The Silver Hearts, screenshot from The Silver Hearts Tribute Show
The Silver Hearts Tribute Show (30 min. 2005) Directed and edited by Lester Alfonso and filmed by Brian Mitolo in front of a live audience featuring performances by The Shrimps, Tammy Foreman, Kris Keating, Brian Wagner, Beau Dixon, Charlie Glasspool, and Kait Duek. — Read More
Dancer Jenna Morrison in Salutations
Salutations by Tammy Lin Foreman (3 min. 2003) Directed, shot, and edited by Lester Alfonso with outtakes from inter-arts project Rubies by Deepti Gupta. — Read More
From October 2008 to April 2010, Tammy Lin Foreman and Lester Alfonso released an original song and live music video every week and documented the process in a blog. The surviving Instant Videos are archived here with the original pictures and words that came with the blog. — Read More
Signing up for my monthly newsletter will ensure that you get digital premieres sent right to your inbox. I will never share your email. I will always be prudent. You’ll get my sincere thanks and honest wonder. — Read More
[Sound+Vision] — Places I Remember When I Think About Peterborough (103 min. 2005) Produced, edited, and curated by Lester Alfonso. This collection documents a presentation of old and local films accompanied by live musical scores in Peterborough, Ontario on February 14, 2005. — Read More
Title design by Ryan Kennedy
WHAT IS ART? Six Episodes (90 min. 2014) Directed and edited by Lester Alfonso as part of a creative residency to make collaborative community web-series about life and art in Peterborough, Ontario, and the region. — Read More
MeTV Malaysia — Nine Episodes for Nickelodeon Asia. Short interstitial content LA featuring Malaysian kids and the stuff that matters to them. — Read More
Balanced Rocks (30 sec. 2019) Sculptures created and shot by Lester Alfonso during a summer’s day canoe trip at Silent Lake Provincial Park. — Read More
Memory (9 min. 2020), Produced, directed, and edited by Lester Alfonso, sound design by Jared Bremner, audio story look at memory loss due to brain injury. — Read More
Karyn Ellis Postcard 1 by Anonymous
Colouring Outside the Lines (13 min. 2005) Directed, shot, and edited by Lester Alfonso in 24 hours it was projected at the main stage of the Folk Festival. — Read More
Anamorphosia (2 min. 2008) Directed, shot, and edited by Lester Alfonso to document his VJ work as Original Plastic with Oya Collective in Peterborough, ON. — Read More
Star Wars Art, Collage by LA, 2020
Star Wars Art, Collage by LA, 2020, Happy May Fourth! If you’d like the latest news, highlights, and exclusive digital premieres, sign up for my newsletter! — Read More
Instant Video #32 — Twirl (5 min. 2009) Directed, shot, and edited by Lester Alfonso for the collaborative weekly video project that ran from 2008 to 2010. — Read More
Rigoletto…in Bluegrass, Trailer (3 min. 2006) Directed by Rob Swales, edited by Lester Alfonso, the film went on to win an award for originality. — Read More
A screenshot from Learn, Explore, Be showing the lens flares
Fleming College — Learn, Explore, Be (30 sec. 2006) Directed and edited by Lester Alfonso. Super8 film photography by Wayne Eardley. — Read More
Fleming College Student Recruitment Video (2 min. 2006) Directed and edited by Lester Alfonso with help from Wayne Eardley and Big Sky Design. — Read More
Head Swim (5 min. 1991) Conceived and directed by Lester Alfonso who stars, credited as Feltros Sloane, in this 16mm black and white short for film school. — Read More
Each Day (3 min. 2020) Excerpted from Nahko’s original song “Aloha Ke Akua” and performed on the ukulele by Lester Alfonso, captured in Peterborough, ON. — Read More
Secrets of Joyce Dale (5 min. 2005) Directed, shot, and edited by Lester Alfonso as an audition tape for a cooking show set in rural Ontario. — Read More
Brothers Ledoux (2 min. 2005) Directed, shot, and edited by Lester Alfonso documenting Andrew and Paul at work, with original music by Tammy Lin Foreman. — Read More
[Sound+Vision] Year of the Tiger, Visuals with DJ Recordings (185 min. 2010) Live visuals by Lester Alfonso captured with DJ mixes by Fever and Gnosys for an event to celebrate Chinese New Year on February 2010 at Kubo Lounge, Peterborough, Ontario, Canada. — Read More
Weavers (2 min. 1999) Directed, shot, and edited by Lester Alfonso for his sister’s import/export startup company Karavan. — Read More
When I Was Dead by 3c84 (3 min. 2007) Directed, shot, and edited by Lester Alfonso as a music video for the band headed by Charlie (Charles) Glasspool. — Read More
Motion8 (2 min. 2007) Directed and edited by Lester Alfonso as part of 8 Short Dance Films — Made Under Pressure choreographed by Kate Story with music by OFF THE INTERNATIONAL RADAR. — Read More
[hockn eye d] (13 min. 2002) Directed, shot, and edited by Lester Alfonso translating to video the photographic technique pioneered by artist David Hockney. — Read More
Macabre CirQuiTri (2 min. 2018) Video projections by Lester Alfonso on aerial silk performers Jennifer (Opal) Elchuk and Tegan Moss with music by Jared Bremner (aquapher.) — Read More
Revolutions, live at Market Hall (10 min. 2012) Live video design, edit, with performance by Lester Alfonso, co-created with Tegan Moss, Jennifer Opal Elchuk and Jared Bremner in 2012. — Read More
Chrysalis, live at Market Hall (12 min. 2013) Video-mapping performance and design by Lester Alfonso, captured in front of an audience on May 9, 2013. — Read More
Stunderthorm — The Emperor’s New Groove (5 min. 2008) Directed and edited by Lester Alfonso as a private commission for artist Johannes Welsh and Sonic Flame. — Read More
I Don’t Want to Set the World on Fire by Tammy Lin Foreman (3 min. 2002) Directed, edited, and shot by Lester Alfonso for a live performance event. — Read More
There was a Cabaret. (25 min. 2005) Directed, edited, and shot by Lester Alfonso as a private commission for the cast and crew of Cabaret at the Arlington Hotel in Maynooth, Ontario. — Read More
There was a Cabaret, trailer (30 sec. 2005) Directed, shot, and edited by Lester Alfonso to promote the digital release in 2015 for the 10th anniversary. — Read More
Manila Nearly Blew My Mind (3 min. 2005) Lester Alfonso stars, directs, and sings a song written by Chaz Greyhound for the Gorgeous Georgie Revue IV concept album. — Read More
Live Visuals, Open Mind Festival 2015 (2 min. 2015) Video projections by Lester Alfonso. Stage construction and design by Scott Guy. — Read More
Andy with a Spinning Head (1 min. 2001) Directed and edited by Lester Alfonso for Techno-Bondage pop-up art performance event in Maynooth, Ontario. — Read More
Static (11 min. 2007) Arzoo Dance Theatre with choreography, performance by Deepti Gupta, video design by Lester Alfonso, sound design by Matthew Boughner. — Read More
VJ Promo, Public Energy’s 25th Anniversary After-p(art)y (1 min. 2019) Directed and edited by Lester Alfonso to demonstrate the use of documentation footage. — Read More
An Invitation to Public Energy’s 25th Anniversary P(art)y Ball (1 min. 2019) Directed and edited by Lester Alfonso for the Peterborough arts organization. — Read More
The Best Waitress in the World (11 min. 1992) Written and Directed by Lester Alfonso. Produced and edited by Lester Alfonso and Joshua Rifkin. — Read More
The Best Waitress in the World, trailer (1 min. 1997) Edited by Lester Alfonso for a film he wrote, directed, narrated, co-produced with Joshua Rifkin. — Read More
The Peterborough Vampire, teaser (30 sec. 2007) Edited by Lester Alfonso from a film by Brian Mitolo for a rare screening with live score performance. — Read More
Bookmark this page for the Archive Showcase player, it can play all the videos continuously or you can select videos using the controls. Updated daily! — Read More
The Gold Rushes — Clip (7 min. 2006) Directed, shot, and edited by Lester Alfonso, a first look at the completed film buried in the vault for fifteen years. — Read More
[Sound+Vision] — Beau Dixon and Hiscox Bros. perform a live score to “The Empty Gallery” by David LaRiviere (8 min. 2005) Produced and edited by Lester Alfonso. — Read More
Lester Alfonso finalist in the Outstanding Mid-Career Artist category, Peterborough Arts Awards 2019, photo by Andy Carroll
Peterborough Arts Awards — Outstanding Mid-Career Artist Finalists, announcement video (3 min. 2019) Directed and edited by Lester Alfonso — Read More
The Infinite Moment of My Life is Now Becoming (2 min. 2001) Produced and edited by Lester Alfonso with footage from Zero, a Hijack pop-up art/performance. — Read More
Instant Video #34 — Low by Coldplay, ukulele cover by Tammy Lin Foreman (6 min. 2009) Directed, shot, and edited by Lester Alfonso for the collaborative weekly video project that ran from 2008 to 2010. — Read More
Kanehsatake (6 min. 2009) Directed, produced and edited by Lester Alfonso, from Alanis Obomsawin’s film, music by Baader-Meinhof Gruppe / Red Army Faction. (Official Selection, ReFrame Film Festival 2010) — Read More
Lester Alfonso, Jason Bortnick, and Josh Rifkin in Runes, circa 1997 (publicity shot)
The Mixtape Chronicles — It’s like your photo collection. (2min. 2002) Directed, shot, and edited by Lester Alfonso in San Francisco, California for his web series on this cultural artifact. — Read More
The Mixtape Chronicles — I’ve got a mixtape problem. (4 min. 2002) Directed, shot, and edited by Lester Alfonso for his doc series on the cultural artifact. — Read More
The Mixtape Chronicles — Scott Williamson (1 min. 2002) Directed, shot, and edited by Lester Alfonso as part of his ongoing series on this cultural artifact. — Read More
The Mixtape Chronicles — Barbara Maclean (2 min. 2002) Directed, shot, and edited by Lester Alfonso as part of his ongoing series on this cultural artifact. — Read More
Brown Girl in the Ring — Sizzle Reel (2 min. 2015) A video sound-designed, edited by Lester Alfonso helped director Sharon Lewis successfully get financing. — Read More
Andrew Ledoux — Patterns in Chaos (2 min. 2001) Directed, shot, and edited by Lester Alfonso to showcase his friend’s paintings. — Read More
Golden River (15 sec.) Video photography by Lester Alfonso. A stock clip that was previously only available on iStock now available for free download. — Read More
Backstage at The Sound of Music in Maynooth (30 min. 2002) Directed by Lester Alfonso edited from footage he shot as a cast member on a rural Ontario stage. — Read More
Birthmark: Lindy [rough cut] (6 min. 2016) The woman with a cat-shaped birthmark. Directed and produced by Lester Alfonso, shot and edited by Rob Viscardis. — Read More
What is Art? Erring Edition, Trailer (2 min. 2014) Directed, produced, and edited by Lester Alfonso as a sizzle reel for the web-series season two. — Read More
Ode’min Giizis Festival (30 sec. 2010) Directed, shot, and edited by Lester Alfonso for a local TV broadcast combining footage and music that they provided. — Read More
Ode’min Giizis Festival (3 min. 2012) Directed, produced, edited by Lester Alfonso (is also graphic designer) for this extended YouTube commercial. — Read More
Welcome Message (14 sec. 2001) Directed, shot, and edited by Lester Alfonso to convert into a looping gif for the Original Plastic website landing page. — Read More
In the Skin of a Killer by Make It Your Business (3 min. 2006) Directed, shot, and edited by Lester Alfonso for a high school band, a day in their lives. — Read More
Meadows Back (11 min. 2007) Directed, shot, and edited by Lester Alfonso for the Back Meadows Music Festival Peep Show screening event in Peterborough, ON. — Read More
Feature Documentary Filmmaker, Demo Reel (1 min. 2020) Produced by award-winning multi-media artist Lester Alfonso best known for his film Twelve. — Read More
The Kid on the Beach (5 min. 2005) Directed and edited by Lester Alfonso, featuring The Kid, music by The Kid, an outtake from the unreleased film The Gold Rushes. — Read More
Case Study: All Good Things vs. The Jinx (13 min. 2017) Directed, produced, edited by Lester Alfonso for York University course taught by Amnon Buchbinder called Biology of Story. — Read More
MeTV Malaysia — Secret Handshake (2 min. 2001) Directed, shot, and edited by Lester Alfonso, a Nickelodeon Asia interstitial about kids’ secret handshakes. — Read More
MeTV Malaysia — Bedroom (1 min. 2001) Directed, shot, and edited by Lester Alfonso. A Nickelodeon Asia interstitial mixing super8 film photography and video interviews. — Read More
Me Movie, Opener (14 sec. 2000) Directed and edited by Lester Alfonso, a deleted scene from his trip to Philippines film Trying to Be Some Kind of Hero. — Read More
How to Use Classroom Films (2 min. 2007) Directed and edited by Lester Alfonso for a filmmaking challenge to provide images to a randomly picked soundtrack. — Read More
Brian Wagner, Talking to Wayne Elliott, Peterborough, 2007, photo by Lester Alfonso
[Sound+Vision] — Brian Wagner performs a live score to “Hexagon(e)” by Lester Alfonso, Clip (1 min. 2005) Produced and edited by Lester Alfonso. — Read More
Black Angels by George Crumb performed by The Rolston String Quartet with live film mix by Lester Alfonso — in Rehearsal, Toronto 2018, Exclusive Clips — Read More
Postcard from Bobcaygeon (3 min. 2016) Story by Kathleen Shea Gehmair. Produced and edited by Lester Alfonso and developed through CNFW. — Read More
Memories of my Father (5 min. 2016) Story by Anne Fischer. Produced and edited by Lester Alfonso, developed through Creative Nonfiction Filmmaking Workshop. — Read More
I Remember (3 min. 2016) Story by Lorna Green. Produced and edited by Lester Alfonso and developed through the Creative Nonfiction Filmmaking Workshop 2016. — Read More
I Am a Camera ( 2016) Story and Photographs by Rose Anne Sheehan. Produced and edited by Lester Alfonso. Developed through CNFW. — Read More
I Want to Know Why (3 min. 2016) Words by Rob Steinman, aerial photography by Sean Daniels. Produced and edited by Lester Alfonso, developed through CNFW. — Read More
[Sound+Vision] F.W. Murnau’s Faust — Read More
Lenny Dorfman, Julie Drazen, Wieden & Kennedy Team, and Lester Alfonso, New York 1998
Coca-Cola Commentary (30 sec. 1997) Director: Lenard Dorfman, editor: Julie Drazen, assistant editor: Lester Alfonso for @radicalmedia New York late 90s. — Read More
Circus Boy, Trailer (1 min. 2020) Directed and edited by Lester Alfonso from his nonfiction short about a family expanded when mentor meets his apprentice. — Read More
Mistakes, Trailer (2 min. 2005) Directed by Sunny Paxton (age 8), shot and edited in-camera (by her dad) Lester Alfonso for a home (film) school project. — Read More
Sample Horses (9 min. 2002) Shot, directed, and edited by Lester Alfonso; a private commission needing a video file size small enough to be emailed in 2002. — Read More
Retreat from the Concrete: Ski Devil’s Elbow (30 sec. 2002) A spec ad using found footage directed and edited by Lester Alfonso to music by WEBmadman. — Read More
MeTV Malaysia — Sports (2 min. 2001) Shot, directed, and edited by Lester Alfonso. An interstitial for Nickelodeon Asia asking Malaysian kids about sports. — Read More
Snowday — live visuals (2 min. 2016) Live Video Mixing (visuals) by Lester Alfonso (LAVJ) Snowday performance excerpt captured by Lester Alfonso at Hive stage Solstice Festival 2016. — Read More
McCool vs. Mettler (6 min. 2004) A mash-up of Picture of Light by Peter Mettler and band Finn McCool’s performance recorded and edited by Lester Alfonso. — Read More
Walk, Wheel, and Ride for Dignity (30 sec. 2005) Shot, directed, and edited by Lester Alfonso with Super8 photography by Wayne Eardley. — Read More
Water Star (15 sec.) A stock clip created by Lester Alfonso by shooting thorough a triangular prism (Toblerone) made up of three mirrors facing inward. — Read More
Plateau Montreal (30 sec. 2001) Shot, directed, and edited by Lester Alfonso. Super8 film photography and video for a Travel Channel spec ad. — Read More
Roy Votes (1 min. 2001) Shot, directed, and edited by Lester Alfonso. A deleted scene from a film shot in the Philippines shows how voting is done. — Read More
Nickelodeon: Big Day Out (2 min. 2001) Directed and edited by Lester Alfonso. A contest promo for a Nickelodeon Asia Channel broadcast shot in Malaysia. — Read More
Maynooth Celtic Festival (1 min. 2006) Shot, directed, and edited by Lester Alfonso a quick look at Maynooth, Ontario’s annual gathering. — Read More
Building the Bandshell with John Foreman (3 min. 2006) Shot, directed, and edited by Lester Alfonso. The lost art of broadaxe hand hewing wood. — Read More
Snow Dogs (2 min. 2006) Shot, directed, and edited by Lester Alfonso about a dog sledding competition in Bancroft, Ontario. — Read More
ReFrame Spark (1 min. 2019) Directed and animated by Lester Alfonso from art by Joe Andrus for ReFrame Film Festival; this was made to pitch an idea. — Read More
Niagara Falls: the View from the Parking Lot (30 sec. 2001) Shot, directed, edited by Lester Alfonso. Super8 film photography with two unlikely interviews. — Read More
Supershow (30 sec. 2006) Motion graphics and editing by Lester Alfonso. This was a local commercial for a Buffalo, New York TV station. — Read More
Static from Hijack: Zero (6 min. 2001) Choreography and Performance by Deepti Gupta, Video Design by Lester Alfonso. — Read More
FRONT Showreel (3 min. 2001) Directed and Edited by Lester Alfonso; a new look and sound for the branding agency headed by legendary producer Jeff Rustia. — Read More
triangles (3 min. 2001) Created by Lester Alfonso. A visual study of the Killaloe fair “pyramid.” Dating back to the 70s, the structure finally burned down in the early 2000s. — Read More
It Happens in Florida by The Burning Hell (2 min. 2005) a music video by Lester Alfonso and Jared Raab created for the Sound+Vision series of silent films accompanied by live performances. — Read More
Comet Commentary (7 min. 2005) Written, Directed, and Edited by Lester Alfonso. Created from NASA footage, accompanied by a haunting soundscape by Brian Wagner, this premiered at the Cinema 379 during the Sound+Vision series in Peterborough, Ontario featuring silent films accompanied by live performances. — Read More
Freedom is a bicycle. (6 min. 2018) Directed by Tegan Moss, Produced by LA. Hear the story behind a large (and locally significant) bicycle-themed mural. — Read More
The Flying Canoe (14 min. 2018) Creator and Director: Jennifer (Opal) Elchuk. Video by LA with help from Angel Hamilton. — Read More
LA Alfonso, December 2019
I’m announcing a new project that I’m tagging “360.” The project is posting one-video-a-day for the next 360 days in the year 2020 starting tomorrow! — Read More
“It’s not only about the marks we are born with but the marks we imagine for ourselves.” BIRTHMARK is now available on Vimeo On Demand. — Read More
Ten years ago, I had the great opportunity to write and direct a film for the National Film Board of Canada. Naturally, I wanted to do what I can with this opportunity as a director of a studio film. So, I asked my editor Gordon Thorne to help me screw around with the NFB vanity plate logo at the beginning of the film just like so many directors I’d admired had done with their studio logos before me. — Read More
BIRTHMARK — free film screening, panel discussion, and reception at Bagnani Hall, Catherine Parr Traill College, 315 Dublin Street, Saturday, November 9, 2019, 8 PM. — Read More
TICKETS — BIRTHMARK at www.commffest.com BIRTHMARK screens as part of Commffest Global Community Film Festival next week, about the marks we are born with, and the marks we imagine for ourselves.Nominated for a MADA (Making a Difference Award) by Commffest Global Community Film Festival! Awards ceremony Friday, October 4th 2019, 6pm. (LEARN MORE ABOUT THE — Read More
A gay man finds reconciliation with his mother when he and his husband adopt a boy that he’s training for circus school. — Read More
The subject of this short documentary is dance as presented by the cultural catalyst that is Public Energy but there are so many different ways one can stitch together dance. Consider the work that goes into grouping similar moves or costumes so that one performance seems to continue in the next although the clips themselves may be years apart. — Read More
This little village on Highway 7, forty-five minutes east of Peterborough, was home to Catholic holy site where faithful pilgrims, many of them coming from as far away as the Philippines, had visions of the Virgin Mary. — Read More
Michael Poulton talks about art and his life as an artist. (Artspace, Peterborough, February 2007) — Read More
SoundProof is a creative nonfiction audio series with field recordings, personal journals, musical investigations, and more. — Read More
The challenge with a recent comissioned video for singer/songwriters Pam Norris and Pat Jeffries (aka. Fold) was simple: interpret the song Water using only public domain footage from the Prelinger Archives. — Read More
Public Energy 25 (1min. 2019) A trailer for Public Energy's 25th Anniversary afterparty where Lester Alfonso will draw on 25 years of video documentation from Public Energy’s archives to create visuals for the dance party that will take the event into the wee hours. (photo: screenshot)
As a VJ, Lester Alfonso will be upcycling videos from the Public Energy vault very soon. For its 25th Anniversary, he will draw from the 25 year-old collection to create visuals for a dance party. It’s all happening at The Theatre on King on May 25, 2019 starting at 10pm. (Buy tickets at publicenergy.ca) — Read More
Plastic Anniversary Film (4:20 2019) Baltimore-based electronic duo, Matmos recently released an album called Plastic Anniversary with soundscapes created by using only plastic materials. For a video interpretation, the industrial films of the 50s and 60s on plastics were the obvious choice.
I took a shot in the dark in October 2017. I asked Matmos for permission to use their music for my film Birthmark. A rough cut of the film used their track called Sun on 5 at 152. It was a refrain at the beginning of each new chapter that I called “The Blinking Cursor.” — Read More
Media Lab (30 sec. 2013) A few years ago, I was given the task to create a teaser video to introduce Artspace art gallery’s new initiative — the Media Lab and its brand new logo. (This was the rough idea.) — Read More
Directed, shot, and edited by a Winter Wheels participant himself; Lester Alfonso wore a GoPro attached to his helmet to shoot most of the riding footage in this video. — Read More
Lester Alfonso’s IMAGINARIUM to premiere on library windows this Friday! Video-installation imagines imagination September 17, 2018 | Peterborough, Ontario — Award-winning filmmaker and media artist Lester Alfonso has been working closely with Artsweek Peterborough and the main branch of The Peterborough Public Library to present a free kid-friendly multi-media event this weekend that utilizes the — Read More
(3 min. 2005) To use as backdrop/video-projections while the band played, Lester Alfonso originally added effects and created short video loops from footage of the Silver Hearts by Brian Mitolo taken from various performances. These short video loops were later recycled to cut together a “music video” for the Silver Hearts track “Harry Tracy.” — Read More
Om (11 min. 2005) Peter Mettler, Lester Alfonso I had the great opportunity to be of service to filmmaker Peter Mettler when I was invited to edit together a “sizzle reel” for a documentary project that was to be called Om. It was 2004, I met Peter at the Om Solstice Festival where he was — Read More
B!KE Community Cycling Hub commissioned a short video to explain how their Pedal Power program teaches bike skills to school kids. — Read More
B!KE Community Cycling Hub commissioned a video to explain their concept of an “open shop.” — Read More
BURNING MAN 2010 — Metropolis By LA — Read More
What you see is what you get. This is real untouched photography. I do not take these shots through a photo editing program. — Read More
Twelve, Lester Alfonso, provided by the National Film Board of Canada (44 min. 2009) If you could go back and speak to your 12-year-old self, what would you say? Through this documentary, Philippine-born filmmaker Lester Alfonso attempts to answer this question by interviewing twelve diverse subjects, each of whom moved to Canada at age 12, — Read More
TRYING TO BE SOME KIND OF HERO (37 min. 2003) A surprisingly fresh take on the personal documentary, which deftly sidesteps the genre’s potential for exploitation and solipsism. Armed with a couple of cameras and an intimate visual flair, Alfonso travels to the Philippines to find out the truth about his real grandfather. With the — Read More
WHAT IS ART? 1.3 “Art is my passion.” — Read More
WHAT IS ART? 1.2 “Art captures a feeling.” — Read More
WHAT IS ART? 1.1 “Art is everything.” — Read More
Lester Alfonso shoots and edits a fan video for Kelly Clarkson’s “Stronger (What Doesn’t Kill You)” Not Just Another Monday: a spinner’s lipdub features the circus talents of Thomas Vaccaro. — Read More
EIGHT DAYS LOST (37 min. 2013) Concert video Eight Days Lost — a post-rock instrumental suite performed by experimental rock trio The Burgess Shale with an accompanying “film” by members of the band is now available online. “Eight Days Lost” is a multi-disciplinary / multi-media performance that is based on the eight days in 1917 — Read More
WINNER “Best Cinematography” at the Millbrook International 3 Minute Film Festival 2010 — Read More
Untamed! — Read More
BROWN GIRL IN THE RING – SIZZLE REEL (1:27 2015) Lester Alfonso sound designed and edited this sizzle reel to promote a project to bring Nalo Hopkinson’s 1998 Afro-futurist novel to the screen. Director Sharon Lewis and her company Urban Soul Inc. were able to get the financing with the help of this video. — Read More
Lester Alfonso’s submission to Artspace’s Cinepoetry event is a cinematic interpretation of slam poet Tessa Nasca’s performance and poetry. Part Zero of the WHAT IS ART? web series. — Read More