Jump to content

Jenn Nkiru

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Jenn Nkiru is a Nigerian-British artist and director. She is known for directing the music video for Beyoncé's "Brown Skin Girl" and for being the second unit director of Ricky Saiz’s video for Beyoncé and Jay-Z, "APESHIT" which was released in 2018.[1] She was selected to participate in the 2019 Whitney Biennial.[2][3][4][5]

Early years and education

[edit]

Nkiru was born in Peckham, South London.[6][7] She studied law before moving to the United States,[8] where she attended Howard University and graduated with a MFA in Filmmaking.[2][4][5]

Career

[edit]

Short films

[edit]

Her directorial debut was En Vogue, which was shot by Bradford Young and Arthur Jafa was released in 2014. In 2017, Nkiru created a film titled Celebrating Women In Art for the Tate Modern gallery that showcased female contemporary artists in celebration of International Women's Day.[9] That same year, her second movie Rebirth is Necessary was released. This movie was featured on Nowness and won several awards including, the Canal+ Award at the Clermont Ferrand Film Festival and the Best Documentary at the London Independent Film Festival. Rebirth is Necessary was also nominated for the 2018 best short film award at Sheffield International Documentary Film Festival.[1] Her video work is included in the Afrofuturist Period Room exhibition Before Yesterday We Could Fly at the Metropolitan Museum of Art.[10]

Music videos

[edit]

Nkiru has directed music videos for Beyoncé, Kamasi Washington and Neneh Cherry. She was the second unit director of Ricky Saiz’s video for Beyoncé and Jay-Z, "APESHIT" .[3][5][6] In 2020 she directed the critically acclaimed music video for Beyoncé's "Brown Skin Girl",[11] which won the Best Music Video award at the 2021 Grammy Awards.[12]

Works

[edit]

Awards

[edit]
  • 2018 - Voice of a Woman award at Cannes [1]
  • 2019 - Aesthetica Art Prize[15]
  • 2021- Grammy Award for Best Music Video for BROWN SKIN GIRL [16]

References

[edit]
  1. ^ a b c "Jenn Nkiru". Somerset House. 9 July 2018. Retrieved 30 December 2019.
  2. ^ a b "Jenn Nkiru". frieze.com. Archived from the original on 30 December 2019. Retrieved 30 December 2019.
  3. ^ a b "Jenn Nkiru". OKAYAFRICA's 100 WOMEN. Archived from the original on 23 October 2019. Retrieved 30 December 2019.
  4. ^ a b "Jenn Nkiru". Black Women Directors. Retrieved 30 December 2019.
  5. ^ a b c d "Filmmaker Jenn Nkiru Shares Her Light with Frieze LA". Cultured Magazine. 14 February 2019. Retrieved 30 December 2019.
  6. ^ a b Little, Harriet Fitch (7 February 2019). "Film-maker Jenn Nkiru's brain-bending vision". Financial Times. Retrieved 30 December 2019.
  7. ^ "Jenn Nkiru". Free The Bid. Archived from the original on 17 December 2019. Retrieved 30 December 2019.
  8. ^ "Meet Jenn Nkiru: The Nigerian-British Director Of "Brown Skin Girl" Video". The Guardian Nigeria News - Nigeria and World News. 17 March 2021. Retrieved 6 February 2022.
  9. ^ "Celebrating Women In Art: A Tate Modern + Jenn Nkiru Film". The NATIVE. 9 March 2017. Retrieved 5 February 2022.
  10. ^ "In 'Before Yesterday We Could Fly,' Visions of a Fictive Black Future Take Flight at the Met". Vogue. 2 November 2021. Retrieved 5 February 2022.
  11. ^ "'Brown Skin Girl' Director Jenn Nkiru Talks Creating An Unapologetic Video Celebrating Blackness". Essence. Retrieved 6 February 2022.
  12. ^ "Beyoncé and Blue Ivy Win Best Music Video at 2021 Grammys". Pitchfork. 14 March 2021. Retrieved 6 February 2022.
  13. ^ a b "Jenn Nkiru". www.nowness.com. Retrieved 30 December 2019.
  14. ^ Liscia, Valentina Di (5 November 2021). "Met Museum Reimagines the Period Room Through the Lens of Afrofuturism". Hyperallergic. Retrieved 2 February 2022.
  15. ^ "Aesthetica Magazine - Success Stories". Aesthetica Magazine. Retrieved 30 December 2019.
  16. ^ "Beyoncé and Blue Ivy Win Best Music Video at 2021 Grammys". Pitchfork. 14 March 2021. Retrieved 6 February 2022.
Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Jenn_Nkiru&oldid=1249683844"