History and Mission
Mezcla Media Collective is an arts collective dedicated to providing resources and equity to over 700 BIPOC women and non-binary filmmakers. Founded in 2017 by Elena Valentine and Colette Ghunim, the organization arose from the need for a centralized community and support system for BIPOC women and non-binary filmmakers. Despite being invaluable storytellers within their communities, our filmmakers face multiple challenges, including racial and gender discrimination, limited accessibility to opportunities in Chicagoland due to lack of outreach, and a lack of training and job opportunities, as well as access to costly workshops and seminars that delve into these topics.
Mezcla addresses these barriers through hands-on educational workshops that provide filmmakers of all experience levels with training in topics ranging from editing and fundraising to screenwriting and cinematography. We facilitate professional development opportunities through local mentorship, direct support for the creation of new work, and participation in panels and industry conversations.
Mezcla also creates pathways to economic security by connecting filmmakers with job opportunities in media storytelling, while building audiences through screening series and partnerships with organizations locally and nationally that advance artists’ careers and creative practices. Through hyper-local connection, instruction, learning, and career advancement opportunities, we work to level the playing field and cultivate inclusive spaces that respect and celebrate intersectionality.
leadership circle
As a member-based collective, our leadership is made up of actively working filmmakers who dedicate their time to contribute to the organization's longevity. Mezcla’s Leadership Circle guides the collective’s day-to-day operations, actively participates in decision-making to help set the organization’s direction and work collaboratively with fellow community members and partners to advance Mezcla’s mission and the broader independent film community.
Their work for the collective is on a part-time basis to allow space for their own artistic practice.
Naeema Jamilah Torres
Executive Director
Naeema Jamilah Torres (she/her) is an award-winning independent filmmaker, impact producer, and cultural worker. Raised in multigenerational, culturally diverse New York City households, she explores womanhood, complex ethnic identities, and historical legacies in the Americas through visual and audio storytelling. Her films have screened at festivals nationally, and she has produced storytelling content for social justice foundations and corporate brands across the U.S. Prior to dedicating herself fully to storytelling, she worked in media distribution, managing home entertainment releases for digital platforms. She has produced on projects supported by ITVS, Chicken & Egg Films, and Firelight Media, and served as associate producer of the 2025 George Polk Award–winning Audible Original The Parole Room. She holds a BFA in film and communications from CUNY City College and an MFA in Documentary Media from Northwestern University and currently teaches film at DePaul University.
Kenyetta “Yettiii” Johnson
Director of Operations
Kenyetta "Yettiii" Johnson (she/her) is a Chicago filmmaker with a passion for storytelling! She is a graduate from Columbia College Chicago, receiving her BA in Cinema and Television Arts in 2020. She has worked for companies such as WTTW, DC Entertainment, and The CW. Kenyetta is also a member of the Reservoir Collective, a mutual-aid collective established by and for Black artists to pool funds to financially and creatively support Black Queer, Trans, and/or disabled artists, as well as The Axis Circle, which is a collective dedicated to cross-disability solidarity that centers and celebrates disabled communities, prioritizing Black and LGBTQ+ disabled people.
Regina Emiliano
Director of Community
Regina Emiliano (she/they) is a first generation Filipina-American filmmaker, creative, thespian, and musician. With a love for the indie film scene, she aims to amplify BIPOC and womxn voices through storytelling and community-building. Often found in the art department, Regina has worked on projects for HBO Max, Apple TV, and Amazon and has supported brands like KitchenAid and Whirlpool. She also hosts and produces the upcoming podcast Let’s Chat Creative - a podcast examining the ups and downs of being an artist. Regina is a graduate of University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign with a BALAS in Communication. Focused on producing, art direction, and creative collaboration, Regina creates work that fosters connection.
Julia Relova
Media Storyteller
Julia Relova (she/her) is a queer Filipino-American filmmaker based in Chicago. She co-founded Rm. 19 Productions, a company dedicated to telling stories that center women—both on screen and behind the camera. Julia has produced indie features like ROLLER BABIEZ and YEAR ONE, the latter of which is a ReFrame-stamped film—a designation from Sundance and WiF that recognizes gender-balanced productions. She’s worked on a range of short films centering queer stories, both as a producer, director, and writer. In addition to her film work, Julia is a co-organizer of Film Girlz Brunch Chicago, a community dedicated to supporting women and non-binary creatives.
Subcommittee
Mezcla’s Leadership Subcommittee are members of the Mezcla community who work on specific initiatives and projects for the organization. While they are not part of the day-to-day workings of the organization, the Leadership Subcommittee promotes and enables the development of the Leadership Circle by sharing their expertise and knowledge to help Mezcla reach our goals and find solutions.
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Screening Coordinator
Joyy Norris (she/her) is a writer, creator, creative consultant, producer and arts/film programmer, and arts administrator who works with organizations, productions, artists, and small businesses to realize their creative visions and put them into practice. Her career in cultural arts and media includes working as the Cultural Arts Coordinator for the City of Evanston, a Co-Producer and Artist Facilitator with Soham Dance Space, the Operations and Programs Manager with Sisters in Cinema, Assistant Director and Production Manager with RMB Studios, the Interim Theatre and Performing Arts Program Manager with the University of Chicago’s Arts and Public Life Initiative, and Operations Manager for the Rebuild Foundation.
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Accessibility Consultant
Ry Douglas (they/he) is a Chicago-based artist and cultural worker from Detroit. Moving primarily between performance art, activations, printmaking, and textile art, their work explores spirituality, disability, mad divinity, death, labor, and Black migrations. He’s also a proud grad school dropout after completing some coursework towards a Master of Arts degree in Museum and Exhibition Studies at the University of Illinois at Chicago with research interests exploring the connections between disability justice and labor justice in critiques of the nonprofit industrial complex and the impact of these relationships on justice-centered arts organizations.
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Developmental Support
Natalia Salazar (she/her) is an Emmy-nominated filmmaker that has worked in production for shows like WORK IN PROGRESS (Showtime), LOVECRAFT COUNTRY (MAX), the feature film, YOU ARE MY HOME (Netflix), and the WE GO HIGH music video for Chance the Rapper. She recently served as Producer for MISTER ABBOTT, a documentary short on Robert S. Abbott, one of America’s first Black millionaires and the founder of The Chicago Defender newspaper, now streaming on AMC+ and nominated for a Chicago/Midwest Emmy.
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Community Development Coordinator
Erika Valenciana (she/her) is an award-winning Chicana filmmaker from Chicago. She has a Film degree from Columbia College Chicago. Her work has been supported by Tribeca Film Institute, Kartemquin Films, Stowe Story Labs, Cine Qua Non Lab, Chicago’s Department of Cultural Affairs, Illinois Arts Council, Puffin Foundation, Allied Media Conference, DC Environmental Film Festival, Chicago International Film Festival, and Full Spectrum Features. Valenciana uses film to share underrepresented stories building towards a media landscape where diverse experiences are visible and celebrated. She is very big in Sheboygan.
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Gear Access Program Consultant
Ashley O’Shay (she/her) is a director and DP living in Chicago. Her work focuses on illuminating marginalized voices, bearing witness to communities in their full light. She’s brought her unique style beyond the documentary space, collaborating with a number of national brands, including Lyft, Nike, Vox, and Dr. Martens. Most recently, her cinematography appeared in THE NEXT MOVEMENT, a co-production between Kartemquin Films and Joffrey Ballet, premiering on PBS.
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Digital Coordinator
Elodie Edjang is a Chicago-based creative dedicated to helping people feel seen, heard, and understood. A third-culture kid with ties to Cameroon, France, and the American South, she is deeply invested in questions about community and what it means to belong. Her films have screened at festivals such as Tacoma, Black Harvest, and Reeling. Her current project, Queer Christians, has received funding and support from NeXt Doc, Chicago DCASE, Sisters in Cinema, and Mezcla Media Collective. Elodie holds an MFA in Documentary Media from Northwestern University and dual BAs in Anthropology and Advertising from the University of Georgia.
Board of Directors
Erin Turney
Board Chair
Julie Keck
Vice Chair
Sarah Minnie
Officer
Patrick Dahl
Officer
Partners
FUNDERS
