Three young, daring African-American women at Jackson State University are pursuing film careers in a male-dominated industry.
Of the 250 top domestic-grossing films in 2015, women made up only about 20 percent of directors, writers, executive producers, producers, editors and cinematographers. The study was conducted by the Center for the Study of Women in Television and Film
Those JSU students are Dashawna Wright of Chicago, Orionna Brumfield of Brookhaven, Miss., and Breyionna Nashay Flowers of North Little Rock, Ark. Each is a senior mass communications major with a concentration in media production.
“What made me want to be a filmmaker is the process of creating. I love to work with others and create films. I enjoy everything about creating films from the paperwork down to editing the film. I love taking an idea and watching it be executed,” Wright said.
The ambitious student, who loves action films, said the process is even more interesting when it’s gruesome. “I’m that girl who loves to see cars crashing into buildings, blood spilling, things getting blown up, etc. It’s weird, but it all adds to the impact of the action captured in the film,” Wright said.
Of all filmmakers, she says John Singleton has influenced her talent and work ethic the most. “He has done so many movies and all were well-directed, well-written and enjoyable,” she said. “I like to watch the making of movies as well, and I like how he interacts with the actors, the crew and his choice of style when it comes to making or directing a film.”
Wright also says she enjoys filmmaking so much that she, along with Brumfield and other students from the School of Journalism and Media Studies, helped found in fall 2015 a student organization on campus called Students of Cinema (S.O.C.).
“It was established to help provide film resources for students,” Brumfield said.
S.O.C. has produced several films and has already begun its annual S.O.C. Film Festival. Brumfield said, “We have to learn that we cannot wait around for others to make things happen for us if we can do it ourselves.”
Orionna Brumfield, the editor of JSU’s eXperience magazine, changed her career path from journalism to filmmaking after attending a two-week film course with renowned actor/director Tim Reid. She said, “A real passion for film quickly developed afterward.”
Along with Tim Reid, other film professionals who inspired her include Spike Lee, Oprah, Autumn Bailey-Ford, Curtis Nichouls and Monty Ross. Brumfield said they have film experience in either writing, directing, producing, editing, or all aspects related to creating films.
Breyionna Nashay Flowers, a transfer student, met Wright and Brumfield through S.O.C., and they bonded over their mutual love for film.
“It’s not often that you meet other young, Black women who want to actually make films professionally, so we connected through that and began to helped one another with our homework assignments and studying for tests,” Flowers said.
With a digital filmmaking degree from the University of Central Arkansas, Flowers plans to be a director and screenwriter. “Storytelling has always been a huge part of my life. When I was a child I found myself imagining worlds and creating characters, and I got really good at it,” Flowers said.
“When I began to heavily study the African Diaspora, civil rights and Afrocentricity,” said Flowers, “it all began to influence my stories of telling the Black story from African Empires and slavery to oppression. No one can tell our stories like we can, so why aren’t we trying to tell them?”
Flowers refuses to tell her stories in a stereotypical manner and said, “Most black films hold characters with negative, cultural stereotypes. It’s become the norm for black films, and I can’t support that in good conscious. Why must we have fatherless children, drug dealers and mad black women in every black film? I feel that is what will set my films apart from other writers.”
Her diverse narratives, said Flowers, will distinguish her in the field. “I’ve studied the works of filmmakers such as Oscar Micheaux, F. Gary Gray and Martin Scorsese. I’ve also analyzed narratives such as Beasts of the Southern Wild, the Harry Potter series and Do the Right Thing,” Flowers said. “I don’t believe in narrowing myself to fit the expectations of others. I gain knowledge through many different avenues.”
Meanwhile, Flowers plans to attend graduate school in Texas or California and continue her studies in film and writing. “I’m not interested in conventional film genres that people normally associate with black filmmakers. I actually want to write epic and science-fiction/fantasy films. I’m currently working on a novel based on African and Native American folklore that I plan to turn into a book series and films.”
Though there is clearly a shortage of African-American women in the film and television industries, the trio – Wright, Brumfield and Flowers – says it’s their mission to help create more opportunities for people of color.