Jordan Shanks

Jordan Shanks is a young Afro-Latino screenwriter, filmmaker, and photographer born in Richmond, VA. In 2020, Shanks was named a Visual Arts Fellow by the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts, one of the top 10 comprehensive art museums in the nation. As a fellow, Shanks directed and produced his second short documentary, Never Again, which follows the dramatic removal of Confederate monuments in his hometown following the nationwide protests sparked by the police killing of George Floyd. 

The film was recently displayed during a special month-long exhibition alongside his latest photo collection “Love Letters to America,” which features a series of striking images captured over a span of nearly seven years as he’s traveled the country documenting the ongoing struggle for racial equality. The collection has been exhibited across the country, gaining national media attention, sparking meaningful conversations on American policing and social justice.

Shanks' debut film ,7, which serves as a cinematic diary of his experience as a first-generation college student at one of the nation's leading HBCU's, made its festival premiere at the Afrikana Independent Film Festival in September 2019 and is now on the festival circuit. 

Shanks graduated from Howard University in 2017, where he earned his B.A. in Media, Journalism & Film. He is currently pursuing his MFA in Film & TV Production at USC School of Cinematic Arts.

PRESS

PopSugar | What Does Social Change Look Like? Filmmaker Jordan Shanks Wants to Show You

The Root | Jordan Shanks' forthcoming film Never Again included in Trailer Roundup

Ebony Magazine | Jordan Shanks Shoots Love Letters to America 

Chicago Defender | Creative, Jordan Shanks, Documents Racial Awakening through Photography and Film

BeLatina | Jordan Shanks’ Love Letters to America Part II, An Exhibition on Racial Awakening

Voyage LA | Meet Jordan Shanks of Shanks Studio in Hollywood