In celebration of Black History Month 2021, I collaborated with Black Girl Film School to design a deck of "tarot cards" that highlight and explain filmmaking roles available in the industry. These cards honor black women already succeeding in film-related positions and provide a description of career skills for those interested in learning more about each role.
Black Girl Film School is a nonprofit education organization based in California that is dedicated to designing inclusive learning experiences for women of color in film production. Specifically, they aim to improve the academic performance of middle school girls by offering online film courses completely free.
More information on their amazing work can be found HERE.
TAROT CARD I - THE SCREENWRITER:
"I think I've always been telling people's stories. My audience just kind of got a little bigger." - Lena Waithe
Lena is a Chicago-born screenwriter, producer, and actress. She is well-known for her role as Denise in the Netflix comedy-drama series Master of None. From this, she won a Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Writing for a Comedy Series in 2017. Her other work includes The Chi, Hello Cupid, Twenties, Boomerang, and Queen & Slim.
TAROT CARD II - THE DIRECTOR:
"The best way to be invited back is to tell a good story visually and to make sure you honor the tone the creator has established for the entire show." - Regina King
Regina is an LA-born director and actress. She has earned several awards in her career, including an Academy Award, a Golden Globe Award, and four acting Primetime Emmy Awards. She is well-known for her role in the film Friday and has gone on to star in 227, Southland, American Crime, Seven Seconds, If Beale Street Could Talk, and Watchmen. She has also directed episodes for multiple series, including Scandal, One Night in Miami, and This is Us.
TAROT CARD III - THE VISIONARY:
"I'm not going to continue knocking on that old door that doesn't open for me. I'm going to create my own door and walk through that." - Ava DuVernay
Ava is a California-born filmmaker and visionary. She is well-known for her films A Wrinkle in Time, Selma, and 13th. In 2017, She was included on the Time 100 list of most influential people in the world and was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Documentary Feature for 13th.
TAROT CARD IV - THE EDITOR:
"There's no one thing you can do; you have to do everything. You have to throw all the hooks in the water." - Shannon Baker Davis
Shannon is a two-time Emmy Award winner and television editor from Augusta, GA. She is well-known for her work on Project Runway, Grown-ish, Black-ish, Insecure, and Queen Sugar. Shannon currently resides in Los Angeles, CA, and continues to work on her excellence.
TAROT CARD V - THE WORLD BUILDER:
"When you think it's impossible, just remember to say this piece of advice I got from a very wise woman: I did my best, and my best is good enough." - Hannah Beachler
Hannah Beachler is an American film production designer from Centerville, Ohio. She is well-known for her work on Black Panther, Moonlight, Creed, and Beyonce's Lemonade album. She is the first black woman to be nominated for an Academy Award in Production Design, which she won in 2019 for her work on Black Panther.