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Milanis Clark

@iammilanis

1.6K

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𝐀𝐜𝐭𝐨𝐫 | 𝐒𝐢𝐧𝐠𝐞𝐫 | 𝐀𝐫𝐭𝐢𝐬𝐭 | 𝐏𝐞𝐫𝐟𝐨𝐫𝐦𝐞𝐫
SAG-AFTRA•AEA
📍LA | NY | ATL
Agency @danielhoffagency
Living my dreams ✨

POSTS STORIES REELS TAGGED

from the archives❤️

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2

BETTA FISH IS HEADING TO AFRICA 🌍

Johannesburg. Cape Town. What a dream!

It took a year and a half to write and three years to go from concept to screen. The story is inspired by true events, which made bringing something so real and personal to the page an especially meaningful challenge.

After her mother’s disappearance, an ambitious recent graduate becomes responsible for her younger sister, learning how grief, love, and survival quietly reshape the life she planned.

BETTA FISH will be screening as part of TENDER RUPTURES, a short film showcase featuring African and African diasporic filmmakers exploring the complexities of relationships, wounds, connection, and unexpected paths toward reconciliation.

🇿🇦 JOHANNESBURG
📍 Artistry Joburg
🗓️ Saturday, October 17
⏰ 3:30 PM – 5:40 PM
🎬 JHB SESSION 4: TENDER RUPTURES

🇿🇦 CAPE TOWN
📍 Homecoming Centre
🗓️ Saturday, October 24
⏰ 1:30 PM – 3:40 PM
🎬 CT SESSION 1: TENDER RUPTURES

BETTA FISH, and I can’t wait for the film to meet audiences on the other side of the world. ❤️

🎟️ Tickets are in the bio.

Johannesburg. Cape Town. Let your dreams take you further than your wildest imagination!

#BettaFishFilm #ReelToRealityFilmFestival #AfricanCinema #BlackFilmmakers #independentfilm

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Summer, thanks again 🏖️🌊🌞👙
#summer2026

Summer of Love 💕 🏝️

Sandprint ✋👙

That’s just the waaaave 🌊🌊🌊

Last days 🍊🐅🍑🧡

Cocotaso 🥊🙈😹

Dance baby 🎶

Downtown Nights 🍸

Love LA 🦋🌴

American Dream Mall 🔴🔵⚪️🟢🟡🟠

Tita and Shawn in #Yonkers 🎧

Shawtay 🍾🏆🥇#sanantonio

Juicing up 💉

Water Babies on the Wonder Wheel 🎡🌊🎢
#coneyisland

Times Squizzy . Pop for the kids! 🗽 #timessquarenyc

90% spent here 🍉🏖️ #brightonbeach

3 floating heads over denim #wesoskinny 💅

BX reunion #5bless 🥃🥳

Russian Breakfast 🦐🍺

DA BAND 🎸🥁🎤🎧

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23

BETTA FISH IN THE BAY!

Oakland, you touched our hearts.

The 24th Oakland International Film Festival gave us such a beautiful experience. A gorgeous theater, beautiful people, an amazing host, family, new friends, and some really thoughtful, in-depth questions from the audience.

One of my favorite parts of this festival was hearing those questions and getting to dive into your stories, your experiences, and your connection to the film. It’s a reminder of why we told this story in the first place.
To connect.
To heal.
To feel a little less alone.

Thank you, Oakland, for welcoming BETTA FISH and sharing this experience with us.

I hope you know that you are strong and beautiful, just like this Betta Fish.
Keep swimming.

#BettaFishFilm #oiff2026 #Filmmakers #IndependentFilm #keepswimming

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🤫 😝 😂 LL77

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5

Are we low key on tour?

ANOTHER FESTIVAL ACCEPTANCE @bridgeportfilmfest

📍 Bridgeport, CT
🗓️ Saturday, September 19
⏰ 3:00 PM
🎟️ Tickets + festival schedule are in the bio.

#BettaFishFilm #biff2026 #IndependentFilm #filmmaker #FilmFestival

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17

“This is a story for everyone, and from a mental health perspective, even more important.”- @regenious

I wrote BETTA FISH to free myself from a story I often felt I was carrying alone.

I hope that when people walk away from this film, some feel that they can free themselves too. Whatever story they’ve been holding onto. Especially the ones that keep them stuck, hurting, or unhealed.

Maybe sometimes, telling the story is the first step toward letting it go. ❤️

#BettaFishFilm #MentalHealthAwareness #BlackWomenInFilm #IndependentFilm #ShortFilm

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5

NEWARK INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL

Friday evening, New York to Newark. A drive that should’ve taken 45 minutes took us almost 1 hour and 45 minutes because of traffic. But this too is a part of the journey.
So I sat back and thought, wow… what a dream it is to be heading to a theater to watch a film I poured my heart into. Again.

And I got to do this part of the journey with my talented and supportive partner. We made cute videos, talked, laughed, and spent a lot of the drive riding in silence.

When we finally arrived, the excitement and nervousness were vibrating through my body. We got our festival passes, took pictures, talked with friends and family, and then were escorted into this huge, beautiful theater.

This time, I sat between @erincollett, our DP, who was seeing the completed film for the first time, and @lainglaing, whose presence is always comforting.

Then BETTA FISH began.

I kept glancing around the theater, watching reactions, listening to the laughs, feeling the tension in the room. And by the end, I felt connected to everyone through this story.
Afterward, people came up to hug me and tell me what the film meant to them. I really need to start collecting these quotes.

BETTA FISH has freed me in so many ways. It has connected me with people who feel seen by this story and have trusted me with pieces of their own.
And hearing people talk about everything from the cinematography, lighting, sound design, color and set design to the performances makes me especially happy because I know how much every single person poured into this film.

Newark, thank you for creating space for independent filmmakers and giving BETTA FISH another chance to be experienced on the big screen.

Until the next one!

#BettaFishFilm #niff #IndependentFilm #filmmaker #filmfestival

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20

OAKLAND, WE’RE COMING!
BETTA FISH has officially been selected for the 24th Oakland International Film Festival!
📍 Oakland, CA
🗓️ Wednesday, September 16
⏰ 8:00 PM
🎟️ Tickets + festival schedule are in the bio.

Another city, another audience, another chance to share this story.

#BettaFishFilm #OaklandInternationalFilmFestival #IndependentFilm #filmmaker #FilmFestival

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15

“I didn’t want it to end.”

That’s the kind of reaction every filmmaker hopes for.

#BettaFishFilm #IndependentFilm #niff #FilmFestival #shortfilm

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26

NEWARK, WE’RE COMING!

BETTA FISH has officially been accepted into the Newark International Film Festival!
📍 Newark, NJ
🗓️ THIS FRIDAY, September 11
⏰ 5:00 PM

Another city, another audience, another chance to share this story.
Come see what we made!

🎟️ Tickets are in the bio.

#BettaFishFilm #NewarkInternationalFilmFestival #IndependentFilm #BlackFilmmakers #filmfestival

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42

August 30, 2026.

The day BETTA FISH finally met an audience.

Seeing my film on the big screen for the first time as a director was a feeling I’ll never forget. But what made the day even more special was looking out and seeing so many familiar faces.

I’m incredibly grateful to have a community of family and friends who show up for me no matter where in the world they have to travel. They showed up to BronzeLens with so much love and support, and I felt every bit of it. ❤️

And then there were filmmakers I had just met who came out to support BETTA FISH. That meant so much to me. There is something really special about filmmakers showing up for other filmmakers.

Having @lainglaing , @iammilanis , and @d2luis there to experience the screening with me made it even more meaningful. These are people who helped bring this story to life, and getting to share that moment with them was everything.

And that huge applause from the audience… 🥹
I’ll never forget that sound.

My first festival screening. A day I’ll carry with me forever.
We made it to the big screen yall!

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