To The Girl That Looks Like Me - A Visual Poem By Ewurakua Dawson-Amoah
Photographer Saskia De Borchgrave | Photo Assistant Alexander Stavila | HMU Sterling Tull
Passionate writer, director, and sound mixer, Ewurakua Dawson-Amoah recently graduated from New York University’s Tisch School of the Arts. During her time in school, she noticed disparities in representation on and off-screen. In 2020 she launched The Melacast Network, a platform focused on connecting BIPOC actors, directors, and crew of color with the opportunities, talent, and resources needed to tell culturally rich & diverse stories in film. Her work has been recognized in numerous film competitions, including Fusion Film Festival, Raindance Festival, Cinequest, Toronto Black Film Festival, NFFTY, and the Tony Hawkins Award for Excellence in Sound Design. In August of 2020, her short film “To the Girl That Looks Like Me” was named a finalist in the Alternative/Experimental category of the 2020 Student Academy Awards.
“To The Girl That Looks Like Me” is an experimental poetry piece by Director Ewurakua that celebrates black women, who continue to thrive in a system that was not built for them. This visual poem explores culture, self-love and self-discovery through a string of vignettes that combine dance, folklore, modern culture and spirituality.
"This film celebrates the beauty and strength of black women, as we continue to thrive in a system that wasn't built for us. I wanted young black and brown girls to take away this simple idea, “there is room for you at the top.” I wanted to celebrate blackness in a way I never saw blackness celebrated on the screen, above all, this film is for the black and brown girls watching. My primary hope is that they recognize that their skin is beautiful and that their culture is sacred”
Director: Ewurakua Dawson-Amoah
DP: Gabriel Connelly
AC: Allison Cavanaugh, Kira Handel
Steady: Sam Stefan, Kira Handel
Gaffer: Dmitry Lesnevskiy
KG: Ruchit Negotia, John Anthony Mills
Color: Josh Bohoskey
Prod: Adrian Sobrado, Kevin Loh
Line Prod: Stephanie Garcia
PD: Kat Aman
Edit: Elliot Farinaro
AD: Farah Jabir
2nd AD: Jena Kaplaniak
Photography: Cherrie Haynes
Production Assistant: Patrick Knott
HMU/Wardrobe: Ramzi Shatara
Wardrobe Assistant: Amir Moverman