Ayana Baraka Cinematographer

Ayana Baraka, named one of Variety’s 10 Cinematographers to Watch in 2024, is an Emmy-winning Producer and Director of Photography based in New York. A voting member of the TV Academy and one of only six Black female DPs in IATSE Local 600, she has had films premiere in consecutive years at Tribeca. Most recently, she shot ESPN’s In The Arena: Serena Williams (2024) and Paramount+’s Uncharted (2023), following Alicia Keys’ “She Is the Music” camp. Her credits also include Behind The Curtain: Eclipsed with Lupita Nyong’o and Danai Gurira, The Hunting Ground, United Skates, and Sundance 2022’s Aftershock.

Ayana has received numerous honors, including the Visionary Award from Black Film Space, the Innovative Storyteller Award from Nashville Film Festival, and a New York regional Emmy for My Asian. She was also recognized as a “person on the rise” in Hollywood by Mel Jones.

Her work extends into immersive storytelling with Greenwood Avenue: A Virtual Reality Experience, used to teach Black history in cities nationwide through partnerships with the Chicago Bulls, Oklahoma City Thunder, and others. A graduate of USC’s School of Cinematic Arts, she has been a YouTube VR Creator Fellow, Oculus Connect Fellow, and Black Public Media 360+ Incubator Fellow.