Current
These projects are currently in production or post-production. Click on the project you would like to explore.
Masika Learns to Swim
Masika – whose name means “born during rain” – explores her complicated relationship to water, leading to a deeper understanding of herself and the currents around her.
Masika – whose name means “born during rain” – explores her complicated relationship to water, leading to a deeper understanding of herself and the currents around her.
An early concept sketch for the project.
At a glance
Project scope: 30 minute documentary film & impact campaign
Target premiere date: June 2026, during the week leading up to Juneteenth
Fundraising goal: $TBD
This project is currently in pre-production.
Project stages and timeline
The current stage(s) in bold type.
Pre-production: Nov 2023 - Apr 2024
Production: Feb 2024 - Nov 2025
Post-production: Sep 2025 - Dec 2025
Premiere: Week of Juneteenth 2026
Distribution: Jun 2026+
Another early concept sketch for the project.
Artistic approach
Masika Learns to Swim will be a short documentary film with a total runtime of 30 minutes that will include the following creative elements:
Classic follow-me documentary filmmaking
Classic documentary interview setups
Animated sequences
Full custom musical score
Narrative voice over from Masika
Premiere
We’re aiming to premiere Masika Learns to Swim during the week of Juneteenth 2026.
Distribution & intended social impact
TBD
Budget & fundraising
TBD
Characters & creators of Masika Learns to Swim
Masika Henson
Co-Director & Protagonist
Masika is the main character of the film. She’s based in Oakland, CA.
Keenan Dailey
Dir. of Photography, Editor, & Composer
Keenan is a multidisciplinary artist based in Atlanta, GA.
Jay W. Austin
Director, Producer, & Writer
I’m a documentarian currently creating out of Atlanta, Georgia.
Aleisi // Rijst
At the edge of the Amazon in Suriname, a woman cultivates one of the rarest rices in the world. While researchers wonder if her rice could help other farmers adapt to climate changes, Albertina brings forth her cultural relationship with the aleisi.
At the edge of the Amazon in Suriname, a woman cultivates one of the rarest rices in the world. While researchers wonder if her rice could help other farmers adapt to climate changes, Albertina brings forth her cultural relationship with the aleisi.
Twin sisters holding a bunch of rice in front of their mother’s kitchen.
At a glance
Project scope: 15-35 minute artistic documentary film
Target premiere date: Late Oct - Early Nov 2025
Fundraising goal: TBD
This project is currently in post-production.
Synopsis: Aleisi // Rijst
At the edge of the Amazon in Suriname, a woman cultivates one of the rarest rices in the world. While researchers wonder if her rice could help other farmers adapt to climate changes, Albertina brings forth her cultural relationship with the aleisi.
300 years ago, a young woman from West Africa liberated herself from slavery in Suriname.
Other women on the plantation braided grains of rice into Ma Paanza’s hair before she and her husband – Adyako – fled into the forest. When Ma Paanza and Adyako reached the safety of the Amazon, they cultivated the rice.
Today, not far downstream from where Ma Paanza found refuge, there is a woman who protects the rice that Ma Paanza planted centuries ago.
Tall trees watch over Albertina’s farm. The sun rises in Brokopondo as her three young children help her put on her rubber boots before she goes to the field. Albertina knew that her rice was special – a descendant of Ma Paanza’s rice – but it wasn’t until researchers analyzed specimens from her plot that she began to understand how precious these rices were.
Albertina and the trees were protecting some of the rarest rices in the world.
On the other side of Suriname in Nickerie, there’s a seed bank at ADRON, the country’s rice research institute. Researchers study the rice samples found throughout the country, including those from Albertina’s plot. They’re searching for a variety of rice that is more resilient to climate change, saltier water, and a fungi preying on the commercial rice cultivated throughout the region.
Will Ma Paanza’s // Albertina’s dry land aleisi get them closer to what they’re seeking?
Suriname is culturally and ecologically beautiful, and like many other societies (and most other colonies), its people continue to grapple with what it means to be “Surinamese.” In Aleisi // Rijst, the comparison between the rice in Nickerie and Brokopondo symbolizes that quest of identity.
Albertina Adyako looking out over her plot.
Project stages and timeline
The current stage(s) in bold type.
Pre-production: Oct 2023 - May 2024
Production: Aug 2024
Post-production: Feb 2025 - Jun 2025
Premiere: Late Oct - Early Nov 2025
Distribution: Jan 2026+
Artistic approach
Aleisi // Rijst will be a short documentary film with a total runtime of 15 - 35 minutes that will include the following creative elements:
Classic follow-me documentary filmmaking
Classic documentary interview setups
Experimental artistic interpretation using collages and animation
Full custom musical score
We hope to feature an element of hair art in the film and at the premiere.
Courtesy of The Folklore Group.
Premiere
We hope to premiere this film in Paramaribo, Suriname, in late October 2025 or early November. The premiere will be in collaboration with the Social Media Conference Suriname, hosted by INEFFABLE NV. It’s very important that the subjects and contributors of the film are in attendance.
Distribution & intended social impact
We will begin with local distribution. We would like this film to be screened in Albertina’s community before being screened anywhere else. Details TBD.
We will follow the premiere and screenings in Suriname with screenings in places with notable Surinamese diaspora: Netherlands and parts of the United States.
While these screenings take place, we will be submitting the film to several film festivals before submitting it for SVOD distribution.
The intended social impact of this project has two stages to it. First, at the premiere, we would like to present both Albertina and ADRON with financial contributions. These contributions further ADRON’s research into resilient rice, and funds Albertina’s efforts to organize women cultivators around Ma Paanza’s rice.
Budget & fundraising
The budget for the post-production and distribution of this film are TBD. To learn more about how to contribute to this project, please contact me here.
Characters & creators of Aleisi // Rijst
Javan and Shellen filming Albertina in her plot.
Main characters
Albertina Adyako
A mother, wife, farmer, and cultural advocate cultivating fruits and dry land rice.
Yves Diran
Leader of the Crop Management Program at ADRON, Suriname’s rice research institute.
Key creatives
Javan, Jair, and Shellen resting after a day in the field.
Shellen Arga
Co-director & Co-producer
Shellen is a Surinamese filmmaker currently studying in Belgium.
Jair Kertodikromo (left)
Javan Martokarijo (right)
Camera Operator & Director of Photography (respectively)
Jair & Javan are multi-disciplinary creators based in Suriname.
Jean-luc van Charante
Executive Producer
Jean-luc is the founder of INEFFABLE NV and a community leader based in Suriname.
Jay W. Austin
Co-director, Co-producer, & Writer
I’m a documentarian currently creating out of Atlanta, Georgia.
A note from Jay
Suriname is a beautiful, warm place.
I’ve visited every year for several years now (except for 2020), and on one of my recent visits, I approached Jean-luc with an intention to make a Surinamese film.
He was down.
While I’m many things, I’m not Surinamese. To make a Surinamese film would require Surinamese crew who bring themselves to a Surinamese story. My hope was not to make a film about Suriname, as much as it was to make a story from Suriname, of Suriname. To accomplish that, the initial team and I felt that we should tap into the Surinamese diaspora to create the film, and to find a story that might include that diaspora in some way.
Rice gave us that storyline.
People have been “brought” to Suriname by colonial powers for hundreds of years, and their descendants now make up nearly the entire population of the country. Africans were kidnapped and trafficked from their lands. The Hindustani and Javanese were deceived and indentured, similar to many of the Chinese to this very day.
Other than arriving to Suriname in order to work, one thing these peoples share with each other was a staple food: rice. And this happens to be something that was not shared with their colonizers.
Rice gave us an opportunity to approach an important question that sometimes remains unanswered in the hearts and minds of my friends in SU: What does it really mean to be Surinamese?
Thanks to all the people who have supported this project already. If you would like to know how you can contribute to the project, please contact me here.
Aftermath
Jay grapples with the aftermath of gun violence in Kansas City, MO — his hometown. With the help of his closest homies, he sets out to photograph more than 1000 locations around the city where people were killed by guns between 2019 - 2024. The further the project goes, the closer Jay comes to reaching out to a friend awaiting trial for murder.
Jay grapples with the aftermath of gun violence in Kansas City, MO — his hometown. With the help of his closest homies, he sets out to photograph more than 1000 locations around the city where people were killed by guns between 2019 - 2024. The further the project goes, the closer Jay comes to reaching out to a friend awaiting trial for murder.
The concept trailer for Aftermath.
At a glance
Project scope: 60-120 minute documentary film, photo exhibition, & impact campaign
Target premiere date: April 2026
Fundraising goal: $TBD
Current phase: Production
Beneath 40 Highway, near a creek.
Synopsis of the film: Aftermath
A documentarian grapples with the aftermath of gun violence in Kansas City, MO — his hometown. With the help of his closest homies, Jay sets out to photograph more than 1000 locations around the city where people were killed by guns between 2019 - 2024. They’re working on an exhibit. The further the project goes, the closer Jay comes to reaching out to a friend awaiting trial for murder.
Despite Jay’s intimate knowledge of the city and news reports listing out KC’s murders, it turns out that it’s not that easy to find where things went down. In addition to that, they must put boundaries on what types of gun violence they could include in the project.
Jay interviews survivors, witnesses, first responders, funeral home directors, lawyers, spiritual leaders, and people who pulled the trigger, leading him to form a nuanced comprehension of gun violence; a view that does not make things simpler, but may make things clearer.
It ultimately becomes apparent that Jay is not just an artist with a vision. He’s navigating his own way through the aftermath of gun violence. And the further the project goes, the closer Jay comes to reaching out to a friend awaiting trial for murder.
Aftermath is about more than gun violence in one Midwestern city. It is a project that asks, Is restoration possible in the aftermath of gun violence? Even if it is, is it even worth it to try?
A memorial where a personal dispute on a basketball court led to gun violence.
Project stage & timeline
The timeline for the overall project is listed in the first line. Film & Premiere- and Photo Exhibition- specific timelines are listed in the sub-points.
Pre-production: February 2024 - as needed
Film & Premiere: February 2024 - as needed
Photo Exhibition: February 2024 - as needed
Production: May 2024 - Late 2026
Film & Premiere: May 2024 - April 2026
Photo Exhibition: May 2024 - Late 2026
Post-production: October 2024 - Late 2026
Film & Premiere: May 2025 - April 2026
Photo Exhibition: October 2024 - Late 2026
Premiere: April 2026+
Film & Premiere: April 2026
Photo Exhibition: Late 2026
Distribution: April 2026+
Film: April 2026+
Photo Exhibition: Late 2026+
Project description & background
This project has 2 primary creative components:
A documentary film.
A photography exhibition.
The film will premiere before the photography exhibition opens.
Filming a location in the West Bottoms.
Artistic approach
Aftermath will be a feature-length documentary film with a total runtime of 75-120 minutes that will include the following creative elements:
Classic follow-me documentary filmmaking
Classic documentary interview setups*
Except in special circumstances, we will not feature footage of interviewees whose stories are featured in vignettes of violence.
Artistic representations of difficult truths
Animated sequences
Full custom musical score
Public art
Narrative voiceover from Jay
Premiere
We’re looking to premiere the film to a hometown audience in Kansas City, MO, in the Spring of 2026 in conjunction with a soft opening of the exhibit.
Distribution & intended social impact
The premiere will be followed by a well-planned series of local public and private screenings, followed by a short film festival run, and ultimately distributed on streaming platforms.
Getting picked up by a reputable streaming platform is cool, but I care most about the Kansas City distribution of the film. Here’s the vision:
Living room screenings – At the premiere, I will invite the audience to host small screenings at their homes with their neighbors, family, and friends. I’ll join them for those screenings, and would love to include others from the film.
High schools, alt schools, and universities – Screen the film in high/alt schools & universities in the Kansas City Metro, providing clear routes to restorative support at each stop.
Carceral and transitional facilities – Screenings and visitations at carceral and transitional facilities in KC, followed by processing and conversation.
The local screenings will be followed by a 3-6 month festival run. Unless the film is picked up by representatives through the film festival process, Aftermath will then be submitted to an aggregator for wider distribution.
Regarding the project’s impact, my vision is to leverage the film, photos, and exhibition into creating real life opportunities for people to seek personal and communal restoration in the aftermath of gun violence.
Budget & fundraising
The overall budget is TBD. To contribute to the project, please contact me.
Characters & creators of Aftermath
Main characters
Jay W. Austin
A documentarian and son of Kansas City grappling with the consequences of gun violence.
That’s me. This is the first time I’ve been my own protagonist (in a film, anyways).
As someone forever living in the aftermath of gun violence, I felt a responsibility to show myself on screen as I attempt to heal. My attempt involves — and possibly requires — creative expression.
I’m an artist, not an investigative journalist. And I approach my journey in this way. My hope is that my journey is useful to others grappling with the aftermath of violence in their own lives.
Other notable features
Casondra Foster
A licensed counselor.
Don Carter
A former police officer, and a mentor of Jay’s.
Key creatives
Cody Boston
Producer & Director of Photography
Cody’s an award-winning documentary filmmaker based in Kansas City, MO.
Mark Serrano
Asst. Photographer & Data Manager
Mark is a photographer and technologist based in Boston, MA.
Jay W. Austin
Director & Writer
I’m a documentarian currently creating out of Atlanta, Georgia.
A note from Jay
This is not only a film about the possibility of restoration — it is an honest attempt at it.
After I filmed the concept trailer, I understood how important it would be that every person involved with the creation of this film to have had experience with gun violence. That required some adjustments, but it is proving to be the best decision. Everyone working on this project has been invited to this exploration of restoration, and they’ve accepted.
This is the most difficult project I’ve ever taken on.
Emotionally, spiritually, creatively, thematically, and logistically, it’s just complicated. Sometimes it does not feel worth the toll, but we feel a deeply compelling sense of responsibility to finish this thing.
We must continue. I know that one day we will feel fulfilled that we dealt with our fear, doubt, and the hurt of healing as this turns into an invitation to others to continue through whatever aftermath they are wading through.
Thanks to all the people who have supported this project already. If you would like to know how you can contribute to the project, please contact me here.
Why We Fight
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A mini-doc positioning Farm Action against large lobbies that want to control what farmers grow, say, do, and sell to. But they ain’t scared.
Made in collaboration with Nathan.works.
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