Lucretia Stinnette

Lucretia “Lu” Stinnette’s work takes a nuanced look at the ways that class, economics and racial identity shape the interior lives of women of color. Born and raised in Chicago, Lu has traveled to over 30 countries and spent 5 years working and studying in Ghana, South Africa and South Korea. She participated in the 2022 class of the AFI Directing Workshop for Women where she wrote and directed REDONDO, a short film set in a Korean-owned beauty supply store, where a misunderstanding between a Black customer and the Korean owner explodes into a confrontation. As a graduate student at UCLA, Lu directed QUYEN, a short about a young Vietnamese woman’s first week with her new Korean husband. QUYEN was awarded the KQED Film School Shorts Best Film Award, screened at international film festivals, and received the Princess Grace Graduate Film Scholarship. Lu went on to direct CURRENCY, a short that tells the story of a teenager in Oakland as she navigates a housing crisis. It explores themes of sex trafficking, gentrification, socio-economic inequality and traps young women face today across the globe. CURRENCY has screened at international film festivals including Urban World Film Festival and most recently at the Pan African Film Festival where it was nominated for the best short film award. Lu received a screenwriting grant from The San Francisco Film Society/Rainin Foundation to develop CURRENCY into a feature. Lu has directed short documentaries for foundations, including will.i.am’s non-profit i.am.angel, and  has been a Guest Speaker at Dartmouth College, Cal Arts and Loyola University New Orleans among other institutions. In addition to directing, she has also produced dozens of music videos for artists like The Black Eyed Peas and Big Sean, and for brands like Amazon, Google, and Infiniti.