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Posted On: June 9th 2026, 01:27 pm
“Kira Cummings: Against the Grain” is a short film by Amanzi Arnett Dowdy. This documentary spotlights the Jackson, Mississippi-based artist Kira Cummings. The film explores the idea that powerful art emerges through vulnerability. Beneath a performance of what is palatable, profitable, and most acceptable, deeper expressions persist, breaking through even the most opaque facades.
To watch the film, follow the link in our bio or visit https://southdocs.org/mississippi-creates-visual-art/.
Amanzi Arnett Dowdy is a multidisciplinary artist based in Memphis, TN. Their work focuses on place-based Black cultural memory and the preservation of Black and queer community spaces in the South. Amanzi was awarded the Indie Memphis Screenwriting Fellowship, during which they completed a feature-length film screenplay "I’ll Fly Away."
A trained composer, they presented Songs of Cabin and Field, a concert of their compositions at the historic LeMoyne-Owen College featuring the Memphis area PRIZM Ensemble. Amanzi also wrote and scored their first short film "Shine On: The Story of Tom Lee," which premiered on PBS in May 2025. Amanzi is currently a first-year MA student at the University of Mississippi’s Center for the Study of Southern Culture.
Mississippi Creates: Visual Art is a collaborative project between the Southern Documentary Project, Center for the Study of Southern Culture, Department of Theatre and Film at the University of Mississippi, and Yoknapatawpha Arts Council.
#Documentary #MSCreates #JacksonMS #Mississippi #Artist
To watch the film, follow the link in our bio or visit https://southdocs.org/mississippi-creates-visual-art/.
Amanzi Arnett Dowdy is a multidisciplinary artist based in Memphis, TN. Their work focuses on place-based Black cultural memory and the preservation of Black and queer community spaces in the South. Amanzi was awarded the Indie Memphis Screenwriting Fellowship, during which they completed a feature-length film screenplay "I’ll Fly Away."
A trained composer, they presented Songs of Cabin and Field, a concert of their compositions at the historic LeMoyne-Owen College featuring the Memphis area PRIZM Ensemble. Amanzi also wrote and scored their first short film "Shine On: The Story of Tom Lee," which premiered on PBS in May 2025. Amanzi is currently a first-year MA student at the University of Mississippi’s Center for the Study of Southern Culture.
Mississippi Creates: Visual Art is a collaborative project between the Southern Documentary Project, Center for the Study of Southern Culture, Department of Theatre and Film at the University of Mississippi, and Yoknapatawpha Arts Council.
#Documentary #MSCreates #JacksonMS #Mississippi #Artist
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