“Rewardment” (0:00), Kira shares her story from acting to directing, and the work and exploration that led her along this journey (7:30), Kira’s perspective on storytelling 15:00), Kira on pursuing a master’s degree in film, continuing to grow creatively, and what it means to follow your artistic calling (22:30). WATCH ON YOUTUBE @ https://youtu.be/3EGm49tZ5QU Support Us via Patreon @CreativeMamasUnplugged Hosts: Cherice Barton and Shelly Hutchinson Guest: Kira Powell Producer: Jessica O’Keefe, Breatheasy Productions Follow Kira: Website: https://www.kirapowell.com/ Instagram @itskirapowell IMDb https://www.imdb.com/name/nm2451581/ Alliance of Women Directors https://www.allianceofwomendirectors.org/find-a-director/director/kira-powell/ Kira’s Linktr.ee @ https://linktr.ee/KiraPowell Follow Us: Instagram @creativemamasunplugged Facebook @creativemamasunplugged Apple Podcasts @CreativeMamasUnplugged Spotify @CreativeMamasUnplugged Amazon Music @CreativeMamasUnplugged YouTube @CreativeMamasUnplugged iHeart Radio @CreativeMamasUnplugged Podbean @CreativeMamasUnplugged BIO: Kira Powell is an award-winning, NAACP Image Award-nominated writer-director and SAG-AFTRA actor of African American and Ecuadorian descent. She holds an MFA in Directing from the American Film Institute Conservatory. Whether in coming-of-age drama or psychological horror, her films explore identity and inheritance, often through multiracial and immigrant experiences, examining the consequences of love under pressure — how devotion, protection, and survival shape people, for better and for worse. Kira received a Directors Guild of America Jury Award at the 2024 DGA Student Awards for Outstanding Directing for her AFI thesis coming-of-age short BEST EYES, which premiered at the Academy Award®–qualifying Los Angeles Latino International Film Festival (LALIFF) and has been nominated for Outstanding Short Form (Live Action) at the 57th NAACP Image Awards. BEST EYES also won First Place in the Afro-Latino Short Film Competition sponsored by Lexus and presented by the African American Film Critics Association (AAFCA) and the Latino Entertainment Journalists Association (LEJA). Kira’s short films have screened at festivals including Urbanworld, Screamfest, Tallgrass, and Black Harvest Film Festival. Her award-winning one-woman show CAUGHT IN THE MIX, about Black–Latinx identity, was staged at multiple venues across Los Angeles and recognized for its social impact, laying the groundwork for the themes she continues to explore on screen. As an actor, Kira has appeared in film, television, and numerous national commercials. Her credits include the indie cult hit THE ENDLESS, directed by Justin Benson and Aaron Moorhead (Moon Knight, Loki), which premiered at the Tribeca Film Festival; Jif’s “That Jif’ing Good” campaign—named one of Adweek’s Top Commercials of the Year; and collaborations with directors Larry Charles (Seinfeld, Curb Your Enthusiasm) and John Hillcoat (The Road). She is currently developing a slate of film and television projects. Outside of filmmaking, she’s traveled to over 40 countries and has a deep love for the theater. You’ll usually find her discovering a new restaurant, in the audience at a live show, or onstage. GRANTS & ACCOLADES 2026 57th NAACP Image Awards nominee - Outstanding Short Form (Live Action), Best Eyes. 2025 AAFCA/LEJA Afro-Latino Short Film Competition, sponsored by Lexus — 1st Place, Best Eyes. 2025 Grand Jury Award, Narrative Short— Awareness Film Festival, Borders. 2025 Georgia Latino International Film Festival — Best Student Short, Best Eyes 2024 DGA Student Jury Award, Student Film Awards — Best Eyes (national honor from the Directors Guild of America for outstanding directing) 2024 Perenchio Family Endowed Scholarship – AFI Conservatory (awarded for artistic excellence) 2023 Gary Winick Scholarship – AFI Conservatory (recognizing directing talent and creative promise.) 2023 Scott Patte