Alex Prager (b. 1979, Los Angeles, California) is a director, screenwriter and artist based in Los Angeles. Prager is known for her uncanny images and films that blur the line between artifice and reality to explore the human condition.
Her films have a distinctive visual and narrative style; often psychological thrillers characterized by depictions of humanity, fear, illusion, and the need for connection. Prager’s use of archetypes, everyday objects, humor, and allegory—along with her signature technicolor facades—allow her to explore dark and complex topics. Existential concerns are central to her storytelling, including collective and individual identities and the impact of technology on society.
Prager’s expansive oeuvre includes 10 short films, which feature classically-influenced and often original scores. Her most recent short film, “Run,” premiered at the Santa Barbara Film Festival and was nominated for the 2023 SXSW Grand Jury Award. In 2023, Prager was named one of the 25 New Faces of Independent Film by Filmmaker Magazine. Prager is currently shooting her debut feature film, “DreamQuil,” that she co-wrote with her sister Vanessa Prager and is directing—a cautionary tale about identity, automation, and what makes us human.
Prager won an Emmy in 2012 for the short film series, Touch of Evil, which was commissioned by the New York Times and depicted cinematic villainy, inspired by nefarious icons. Prager is noted for her work with several actors including Cate Blanchett, Brad Pitt, Elizabeth Banks, Gary Oldman, Riley Keough, Michael Shannon, Jessica Chastain, George Clooney, Ryan Gosling, Kirsten Dunst, Glenn Close, Rooney Mara, and Viola Davis, amongst others as well as her regular collaboration with cinematographer Matthew Libatique.
She has directed several commercials for prominent international brands such as Apple, Hermés, Miller, Anheuser-Busch, Vimeo, as well as a Booking.com Super Bowl commercial starring Melissa McCarthy and most recently, Cartier, starring Elle Fanning.
Her photography has received numerous awards, including the FOAM Paul Huf Award (2012), the Vevey International Photography Award (2009), and the London Photographic Award (2006). Her work has been featured in prominent publications, including Vogue, Vanity Fair, New Yorker, New York Magazine, New York Times Magazine, W Magazine, The Times London, Financial Times, Dazed, AnOther, The Guardian, Interview Magazine, Garage and L’Official.
Prager’s work has been featured in countless museum exhibitions globally, including the Museum of Modern Art, New York; Corcoran Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C.; The National Gallery of Victoria, Melbourne, Australia; The Photographers’ Gallery, London, United Kingdom; Fotografiska, Stockholm, Sweden; and the Los Angeles County Museum of Art, CA, among many others. Prager’s work is held in the collections of the Whitney Museum of American Art, New York; the Los Angeles County Museum of Art, Los Angeles; the Museum of Modern Art, New York, and many other international public and private collections.