Writer/Director & Actor

Kira Powell is a writer-director and actor of African American and Ecuadorian descent. She earned her MFA in Directing from the American Film Institute, where she was awarded the Gary Winick, Scott Patterson, and the Perenchio Family Endowed Scholarships in recognition of her directing talent and creative excellence. Her work explores identity, belonging, and the immigrant experience through grounded, character-driven storytelling rooted in emotional truth and cultural specificity — a perspective shaped by her own experience growing up between cultures.

Her AFI thesis film Best Eyes premiered at the Academy Award®–qualifying 2025 Los Angeles Latino International Film Festival (LALIFF) and received a DGA Student Jury Award for Outstanding Directing, a national honor recognizing top emerging filmmakers. The film stars Jackie Cruz (Orange Is The New Black) and follows a biracial girl navigating self image and identity. The feature version was a second-round contender for the Sundance Institute’s Development Track and a finalist for the Sundance Cultural Impact Residency.

In addition to Best Eyes, Kira wrote and directed The Good Mother, a psychological horror short that explores motherhood, mental health, and cultural isolation, which premiered at Screamfest Horror Film Festival.

She also wrote, directed, and performed Caught in the Mix, an award-winning solo show exploring Black-Latinx identity, staged at multiple venues across Los Angeles and recognized for its social impact.

As a SAG-AFTRA performer, Kira has appeared in film, television, and national commercials, including the indie cult hit The Endless, directed by Justin Benson and Aaron Moorhead (Moon Knight, Loki), which premiered at the Tribeca Film Festival. Her commercial work includes a spot from Jif’s nationally recognized That Jif’ing Good campaign, directed by Wayne McClammy — named one of Adweek’s Top Commercials of the Year — as well as collaborations with directors Larry Charles (Seinfeld, Curb Your Enthusiasm) and John Hillcoat (The Road).

She is currently developing the feature adaptation of her award-winning short Best Eyes as her debut film, alongside other projects for film and television.

GRANTS & ACCOLADES

• 2024 DGA Student Film Award – Jury Award, Best Eyes (National honor from the Directors Guild of America for outstanding directing)

• 2024 Perenchio Family Endowed Scholarship – AFI Conservatory (Awarded for artistic excellence)

• 2023 Gary Winick Scholarship – AFI Conservatory (Awarded in recognition of directing talent and creative promise.)

• 2023 Scott Patterson Scholarship – AFI Conservatory (Honors talent and creative vision)