Mission
Loudspeaker Films is an independent film production company founded in 2010 to amplify diverse voices and share stories that educate, enlighten, and motivate viewers on issues of race equality and social justice.
Kelly Amis, Founder
After graduating from Georgetown University, Kelly taught in South Central, Los Angeles as a Charter Corps member of Teach for America. She went on to earn a Master's degree in Education Policy from Stanford University and research the Australian education system as a Fulbright Scholar.
Kelly served as a Legislative Aide to U.S. Senator Dianne Feinstein for education and foreign policy; became the first Director of Education for Fight for Children, where she devised the "three-sector strategy" that resulted in new federal funding for Washington, DC students; and helped design and launch Building Hope, an innovative public school facilities fund.
In 2010, Kelly founded Loudspeaker Films to combine her passion for race equality with her creative ability and strong belief in the power of film. Loudspeaker's first project, TEACHED, has won numerous awards including the Teach for America Social Innovation Award. Kelly also produces the On the Loudspeaker interview series as well as videos on contract for select organizations. To learn more about Kelly, go to www.kellyamis.com.
Shaka Jamal Redmond
OLU8 founder Shaka Jamal is a culturally innovative artist and talented filmmaker from Oakland, California. His many experiences as film producer, director, cinematographer, editor, writer, performing artist and music producer bring an invaluable perspective to any venture.
Shaka is a graduate of Tuskegee University where he earned a BA in History. He then went on to earn a Master’s of Fine Arts in Cinema from San Francisco State University. Shaka is the first filmmaker from Oakland, CA to receive the Game Changers Fellowship which led him to premiere a series of micro-documentaries in New York at Harlem’s Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture.
For Loudspeaker Films, Shaka has served as cinematographer and editor on projects including Think of Calvin, On the Loudspeaker, videos produced for the Emerson Collective and our feature film in production, The Oakland Promise.
Sergei Krasikov
Sergei Krasikov is a New York-based producer and cinematographer who specializes in challenging documentaries, narrative, independent and art films, as well as creative corporate media solutions. With over fifteen years in the U.S. film industry, Sergei, who is a native of and former political journalist in Belarus, has accumulated a unique combination of experience that spans every aspect of film/media production.
Sergei brings expertise and in-depth understanding to each project, with attention to detail, creativity and an ability to communicate on camera what needs to be shared with the wider world. He has served as a cinematographer and editor on Loudspeaker Films' projects including The Blame Game, Unchartered Territory, Stem from Dance, On the Loudspeaker, Think of Calvin and Waiting Patient. To learn more about Sergei's wide range of work, go here.
Vincent Cortez
Vincent Cortez is a Latino storyteller, artist and craftsman. Born, raised and still creating art in the diverse Fruitvale community of Oakland CA, Vincent developed a passion for filmmaking at an early age. Since graduating from San Francisco State University’s Cinema Production program, and launching his own production company Mitchell Street Pictures along with his wife Sofia, Vincent's films have garnered awards at both international and domestic film festivals in both short and feature-length categories.
Vincent's work encompasses many roles, including writer, director, producer, cinematographer, editor and composer, and has been distributed internationally in theaters and on national television. Vincent has served as cinematographer, editor and animated graphics designer for Loudspeaker Films on all of our Oakland-based projects, including our first feature-length film now in production, as well as our On the Loudspeaker interview series.