Safiyah Chiniere

Safiyah Chiniere is a director and self-taught cinematographer based in NYC. Safiyah uses film to amplify the stories and voices for people of colour, women, femmes, and the LGBTQIA+ community, particularly those whose identities encompass all three. She presents a stimulating and refreshing approach to capturing the faces, bodies, and various expressions of intimacy; slowing down the pacing and magnifying spaces to highlight that which is so often overlooked, dismissed, or delegitimize, all while maintaining her wholehearted and sincere storytelling. 

There’s a raw earnestness to Safiyah’s work which would capture in a very nuanced way the concept of a ‘chosen family’; her doco style only adds to this intimacy and ‘real people’ feeling.