Meet Jana Naomi Smith | Interdisciplinary writer/filmmaker & cultural worker.

We had the good fortune of connecting with Jana Naomi Smith and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Jana Naomi, how does your business help the community?
I come from a tradition of Black artists who created with their people––past, present, and future in mind. And they did so with the utmost intentionality, care, and love. Time and time again, the work of Margaret Walker, Kathleen Collins, Ruby Dee, James Baldwin, Langston Hughes, Gwendolyn Brooks, Vinie Burrows, Beah Richards, Lorraine Hansberry, Alice Dunbar Nelson, August Wilson, Lena Horne, Dr. Maya Angelou, Abbey Lincoln, Ossie Davis, and many others saved us––so many people–––including myself, a few times over.  I strive to continue this tradition; it is my offering to my community and the world.  I practice this tradition through storytelling, typically through writing and filmmaking. The stories I tell resurrect erased historiographies and illuminate the interior lives of Black women; our joy, struggles, secrets, loneliness, and our dreams.
With everything I create, I hope to encourage intergenerational healing; I hope to honor the people I love and that people feel the love in the work; I hope to put a smile on our ancestors’ faces; and I hope to contribute to the expansion of our collective imagination. I hope this world will find use in my work. There is no way to know if one’s work will resonate with people, if it will be accepted, or if it will help anyone at all––but I persist with the faith that it can and will.

Let’s talk shop? Tell us more about your career, what can you share with our community?
I’ve truly gotten to where I am today on a whim and a prayer with the love and support of my family, friends, loved ones, and God who continues to work things out on my behalf.

I can’t quite say I’ve mastered this lesson, but it is one that I find myself learning over and over and over again, and that is to be in constant practice and pursuit of surrender.

As I previously mentioned, I come from a tradition of Black artists who created with love and intentionality. I do my best to practice this tradition on a daily basis. I wrote and directed an audio drama that just premiered at Tribeca over the summer called Red for Revolution––it’s a six-part audio drama centering intergenerational stories of Black women, queer love, and liberation starring Jordan Hull, S. Epatha Merkerson, Loretta Devine, Rutina Wesley, Renée Wilson, Jennifer Beals, Aunjanue Ellis-Taylor, Danny Glover, Alimi Ballard, Vanessa E. Williams, adrienne maree brown, Caro Guzmán, and Don Daniels with sound design by Collin Gerald Thomas, music direction by Tammy L. Hall, and produced by Liz McBee. We hope our series will inspire radical love and healing.
I am quite proud of the show and can’t wait to launch the series to the public!

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
I haven’t been in Los Angeles for very long, but there are a few places that I’ve come to love. First, Lé Trois a Pop Up Apothecary. Lé Trois is a Black and queer-owned incense, tea, and, intention shop and I’ve taken almost everyone I know to one of their events or pop-ups and will continue to do so. I also love and greatly appreciate Reparations Club, a Black-owned bookstore in Culver City. They put on wonderful, soul-feeding, community-centered events and they always have the books I’m looking for. I really enjoy eating at Pijja Palace, an Indian-Italian-American fusion restaurant with wonderful food. Lastly, I love going to the movies; Los Feliz Theater is a great spot, and I love seeing the films that American Cinematheque programs at Los Feliz Theater.

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
I often say that I grew up COGIC, and thus I also come from the tradition of giving honor to God, first and foremost. With every project I’ve embarked on, so many extraordinary people came together to make it all possible. And I am so thankful to each individual who offered their time, talent, and spirit. I owe a special thank you to my family and my community––those who support me, every single day, no matter the hour or the need––the people who hold me up after we’ve wrapped production and when all the celebrations and applause have settled. I am because WE ARE. Thank you for your continued support and faith in not only myself but in us. Shoutout to my parents, my siblings, my aunts, grandparents, cousins, as well as friends and mentors who have become chosen family.

Website: https://www.redforrevolution.com/

Instagram: https://jns.jana

Other: https://www.jnsmeditations.com/

Image Credits
Bethanie Hines
GiGi Jackson
Willie Smith III
Liz McBee

https://www.bethaniehines.com/

https://www.lensofher.com/