"The Bond" (2022) by Jahmil Eady (she/her)
The Bond follows an incarcerated pregnant woman as she gives birth behind bars. Eady wanted to explore human connection and inject empathy into an isolating and dehumanizing environment. She immersed myself in the world of birthing behind bars by interviewing her mother, who lived this experience. She also read news articles, anti-shackling bills, testimonies, and books by doctors who treated that population. When Jahmil was confident she could tell an authentic and nuanced story, she began writing. While this film highlights reproductive injustice and mass incarceration, The Bond is also about the transformative power of compassion. Eady's message is that even in the most divisive atmosphere, bonds of empathy can bloom and help us persevere.
Jahmil Eady is an award-winning writer, director and producer from Charleston, SC and NYC. She earned her BA in Media Studies from Pomona College and studied at the Prague Film School in the Czech Republic. Jahmil holds an MFA in Directing from UCLA where she was the inaugural Graduate Class Artist, representing over 14,000 Bruins for the class of 2023. She is also the Princess Grace Foundation's inaugural Sir Roger Moore Honoree in Filmmaking. Her work blends genre with social impact and often unpacks contemporary social issues. Jahmil began her career in unscripted film and television and was an associate producer on documentary projects for the Oprah Winfrey Network (OWN), Viceland and Discovery Networks. Collectively, her short films have screened at over 50 film festivals worldwide, including several Academy Award® and BAFTA-qualifying film festivals.
"Kesh" (2023) by Seeret Singh (she/her)
Singh made this film to memorialize the sacrifice her father was forced to make upon immigrating to America. The film explores the shape Orientalism takes in today's world, the effect it has on the individual, and how it continues to survive. Singh chose to document this by contrasting visual elements emblematic of the American dream - a white picket fence, a suburban house, a nice car, a beautiful wife & dog - with the process of tying one's turban, or dastar, (ਦਸਤਾਰ), an article of faith in Sikhism.
Seeret Singh is an actress, filmmaker, and writer based in LA. She graduated from USC last May with a degree in Theatre and Race, Ethnicity, and Politics. Her work lies at the intersection of art, activism, and the diaspora.
