Human Stories.

Honestly Told.

Community-driven storytelling for love, life, and everything in between.

Life stories

Photography and videography for life’s most important moments.

San Francisco Bay Area and beyond

Weddings, Elopements & Engagements | Pregnancy, Family & Legacy Portraits | Friendship & Individual Portraits

Documenting the living history of love, lineage, and community

Elenita Makani O’Malley

Hi there, my name is Elenita!

I am a queer Filipina and Irish American storyteller based in the San Francisco Bay Area. I am a multi-passionate who loves to switch hats as a photographer and video producer documenting everything from life’s special moments to the wonders of how the natural world works.

My background is in cultural anthropology and museum studies, so I bring a curiosity, care, and deep respect for the many ways people build connection, community, and meaning in their lives.

Across film, photography, and social media, my approach is thoughtful and unobtrusive, shaped by a documentarian’s eye for real moments, relationships, and the feeling of being there. Whether collaborating with couples, families, or creative teams, I approach each story with intention and consideration.

Right now I’m centering documenting life stories through weddings, elopements, engagements, and family shoots. If that’s you, scroll up on my page!

But I’ve never been one to stick to a niche, so if you’re looking for information on my science communications, documentary film work, or my short film, Oakland Ilokana, there’s more information below.

About my film,

Oakland Ilokana

Oakland Ilokana follows a 90-year-old Filipina American grandmother — one of the first Filipino children born in 1930s Oakland — as she reflects on a lifetime shaped by migration, community, and resilience. her stories become a bridge across time and place, carrying the weight of a family’s legacy and revealing the untold histories of a community finding its place in America.

Seen through the lens of her granddaughter — a filmmaker tracing the threads of their shared past — four generations of Bay Area Filipinas come into focus. The film explores displacement, cultural inheritance, and the enduring power of memory to connect across generations, across place, and across life itself.

other Offerings

Film Production

Film production and video editing for independent documentary films

Producing & Project Management | Marketing & Fundraising | Editing & Asst. Editing

Science Videos

Translating complex ideas into engaging media for science & tech organizations

Video Production | Exhibition Development | Research | Writing | Footage Licensing