KBJ
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"As a filmmaker, Baker-Johnson shows a style and grace
that is rare these days, ​particularly in the Indie space."


​​- Film Threat

ABOUT ME

"I strive to make social-issue-driven neo noir films (not necessarily detective stories), with protagonists from the margins of society who confront, and in turn become complicit in, the world’s corruption. I have a soft spot for characters who feel like they’re stuck between two worlds, lowbrow art forms like comic books and hip hop, and the point at which spoken dialogue becomes music. I’m not interested in good, evil or preaching to the choir. I aim for realism when writing, but I direct with an eye toward mythology."
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Kali Baker-Johnson is a Brooklyn-based, New Jersey-born filmmaker, college professor, and comic book writer. His feature film debut, Feel Like Ghosts, won the Best Director and Best Screenplay awards at the 2022 American Black Film Festival. His screenwriting has been recognized by the Academy Nicholl Fellowships, the Sundance Institute and the Austin Film Festival. He was a Directing Fellow at Chapman University’s graduate film program in Orange, CA and during his time on the West Coast he collaborated with Oscar-winning producer Cathy Schulman as one of Chapman’s O.L. Halsell Scholars, worked in development for Oscar-nominated producing duo Ron Yerxa and Albert Berger, and shadowed Emmy-winning director Millicent Shelton. His short films have screened internationally in film festivals, as well as in programs for domestic abuse education, in centers for at-risk youth, and in New York's Time Square. As a freelance videographer, Kali has over 15 years of experience creating media across multiple genres and formats and has worked with brands such as NBC, VH1, Foot Locker, EbonyJet, and Avalon Television. He used to be able to dunk and, every once in a while, he still has a good day on the basketball court.
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PRESS

"8/10 'Feel Like Ghosts'" Film Threat Reviews - November 2022
"The American Black Film Festival Announces Festival Award Winners; 'Our Father, The Devil And 'Feel Like Ghosts' Win Big" Deadline - June 2022
"9.5 Review: Zahra: The Shadow Flame #2" Graphic Policy - June 2019
"****1/2 Review: Zahra the Shadow Flame" Sirens of Sequentials - May 2019
"Author Interview: Kali Baker-Johnson and Rakan Sindi" The Metaworker - September 2018
"Chapman film alumni honored, make the First Cut at Leo Freedman Foundation event" OC Register - October 2015​
"American Black Film Festival Names 2022 Best of Fest Award Winners" Variety - June 2022
ABFF Announces Winners of the American Black Film Festival 2022 - BlackFilmAndTV. com - June 2022
"'Zahra the Shadow Flame' Tackles the Rise of Women in the Middle East" Dorkaholics - May 2019
"9.7 Review: Zahra: The Shadow Flame #1" Graphic Policy - November 2018
Interview for We Are Moving Stories - February 2018​
​"'**** Trap Boys'" Film Threat Reviews - November 2013 

IMDB Link

RESUME

baker-johnson_resume.pdf
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FILMOGRPAHY

baker-johnson_filmography.pdf
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© 2024 Kali Baker-Johnson

  • FILMS
  • COMICS
  • IN DEVELOPMENT
  • ABOUT ME
  • CONTACT