Kira Powell is an award-winning writer-director and SAG-AFTRA actor of African American and Ecuadorian descent, originally from Boston, MA. She holds an MFA in Directing from the American Film Institute Conservatory. Her work lives at the intersection of identity, family, and the often invisible labor women shoulder to hold their worlds together, centering Black, Latinx and immigrant families in intimate, character-driven narratives.

Her AFI thesis short BEST EYES premiered at the Academy Award®–qualifying Los Angeles Latino International Film Festival (LALIFF), won a 2024 DGA Student Jury Award, received Best Student Short at the Georgia Latino International Film Festival, and continues its festival run at additional Academy Award®–qualifying festivals. 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 is developing BEST EYES as her debut feature. The screenplay has advanced to the second round of the Sundance Development Track, was a finalist for the Sundance Cultural Impact Residency, and a semi-finalist for the Athena Writers Lab. Her artistic development has also been supported by The Gotham.

Beyond BEST EYES, Kira’s shorts have screened at festivals such as Screamfest, Tallgrass, Black Harvest Film Festival, and Awareness 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, with the BEST EYES feature positioned as her directorial debut and the psychological horror feature THE SECOND CHILD, adapted from THE GOOD MOTHER, in development.

GRANTS & ACCOLADES

• 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 Patterson Scholarship – AFI Conservatory (honors talent and creative vision)

• 2022 SAG Foundation Dales Scholarship — awarded to long-standing SAG members to support continued studies and career transition.

• 2021 Hollywood Fringe Festival — Soaring Solo Social Impact Award, Best of Broadwater, and Diversity Scholarship for Caught in the Mix (award-winning solo show written, directed, and performed by Kira Powell)

LABS, FELLOWSHIPS & PROGRAMS

• The Gotham Film & Media Institute – Accountability Sprint: Artist Statements. Selected Participant (development program with mentors from Tribeca and Film Independent), 2025.

• Sundance Institute – Feature Film Program (Development Track) – Second-Round Contender, Best Eyes (feature screenplay), 2025.

• Sundance Institute – Cultural Impact Residency – Finalist, Best Eyes (feature screenplay), 2025.

• Athena Film Festival Writers Lab – Shortlisted, Best Eyes (feature screenplay), 2025.

• Walmart x mítu Filmmaker Program – Shortlisted, Hi Mija (short screenplay), 2025.

• Cherokee Film & Amazon MGM Studios Directors Elevation Program- shortlisted. (inaugural directing apprenticeship), 2025.