Chelsea Odufu, a first-generation Nigerian and Guyanese American filmmaker, has joined the directorial roster of Chromista, marking her first career signing with a production company for U.S. representation spanning commercials and branded content.
Odufu is a multi-disciplinary artist working across narrative, experimental film, video art, installation, and photography. Traveling the globe and directing since the age of 14, Odufu uses her worldly perspective to push back against antiquated perceptions of underrepresented communities. Odufu has worked for Spike Lee on several projects, including Chi-Raq and the Netflix series She’s Gotta Have It, based on Lee’s hit film from 1986. Her award-winning short films Ori Inu In Search of Self and Black Lady Goddess were screened at over 20 film festivals worldwide, including the British Film Institute.
Odufu loves to explore ways to incorporate genre-bending and fashion-forward aesthetics to push her creativity further. She has directed content for brands including Chanel, Cadillac, Target, Dr. Martens, Hologic, Gillette Venus, and Fiverr, where she was chosen as the online marketplace’s chief digital nomad. Her work has been extensively featured on platforms, including Forbes, The New York Times, Huffington Post, Afro-Punk, Okay Africa, Saint Heron, The Build Series, and NBC News.
Odufu said, “I’m excited to be on Chromista’s roster. There was an immediate personal rapport, familiarity with my work, and mutual enthusiasm to start working together. As a commercial director, I’m looking to put content out there that expands the perspective of what it means to be a person of color and what it means to live in any type of binary that is placed onto people. I want to speak to these different communities and audiences within commercials by breaking those stereotypes and speaking to their experiences authentically.”
Adina Birnbaum, partner and executive producer of Chromista, said, “Chelsea is an extraordinary talent. Her narrative films, portraits, and installations are uniquely Chelsea–striking, complex, and unforgettable. She brings an exciting level of artistry and unwavering passion to commercial filmmaking that is both inspiring and contagious–it is impossible not to smile when working with her. We can’t wait to see how her story continues!
Odufu was one of 12 artists selected in 2021 for Kehinde Wiley’s Black Rock Senegal Residency in Dakar, where she created a multi-channel video and sound installation that was exhibited at the Dakar Biennale. Odufu has also exhibited her work at the Alabama Contemporary Art Center, Museum of Contemporary African Diasporic Art, Seattle Arts Museum, and the I A&A Hillyer Gallery. She has created public art, including a video installation for the U.S. Embassy in Senegal. Some of her artwork recently got acquired by JP Morgan. She is also the co-founder of Tech Afrique, an immersive audio-visual healing platform for BIPOC communities.
