Anya Adams is a two-time NAACP Award winning director whose work can be seen on shows like Yellowjackets, Ginny and Georgia and A League of Their Own. Sista Brunch’s own Anya Adams returns to the podcast to talk about her incredible path to becoming an award-winning television director and update us on what she’s been up to since she was last behind the microphone (hint: it includes a new feature film).

Marissa Nance is an advertising veteran with more than 30 years of experience developing marketing campaigns for clients like Amazon, Pine-sol and Nike. She has made it her mission to create pathways for BIPOC communities to be heard and have a seat at the table. In 2019, she left Omnicom to launch the first and only minority and female certified media agency, Native Tongue Communications. In this episode, Fanshen and Marissa talk why Marissa decided to branch out on her own and form her own agency and her experience as a Black women in advertising.

Maegan Philmore is a director, producer and activist. Her production company, Hudson Philmore specializes in womanist, queer, BIPOC, all abilities & sizes, unscripted and scripted content. Hudson Philmore aims to make stories that challenge the exclusion in Hollywood. When she’s not directing or producing, she’s at her day job at Paramount formally ViacomCBS, where she is director of production overseeing the physical production of movies of the week for Paramount, Comedy Central, VH1, and MTV. On this week’s episode Fanshen and Maegan discuss Maegan’s mission to produce stories that challenge the status quo.

Tracy “Twinkie” Byrd is a highly respected casting director with over 25 years of experience in the TV, film and advertising industry. She’s cast talent in movies like, “The Blind Side”, “Notorious” and “Fruitvale Station.” This week, Fanshen talks to Twinkie about how she got into the casting business, her role in sparking the friendship between Michael B. Jordan and Ryan Coogler and her experience stepping into a new role – producer.

Tamar-kali is a Brooklyn born and bred artist and second-generation musician with roots in the coastal Sea Islands of South Carolina. In 2017 she made her debut as a film composer, scoring Dee Rees Oscar-nominated MUDBOUND which garnered her the World Soundtrack Academy’s Discovery of the Year Award. In this episode, Fanshen talks to Tamar-kali about her musical influences, the challenges of being an independent artist and how she learned to advocate for herself.