Yareli Arizmendi (1964) is a Mexican actress, writer, and director. Born in Mexico City, Arizmendi went to high school in Kansas (Academy of Mt. St. Scholastica), then received a BA in Political Science and her MFA in Theatre from the graduate acting program at the University of California, San Diego. She played Rosaura in the film Like Water for Chocolate, written by Laura Esquivel and directed by Alfonso Arau. Yareli met her husband Sergio Arau on the set of the film. They immediately collaborated on the political satire La Envidia Del Penny ("Penny's Envy"), which played in Mexico and the United States.