Let's Talk Hair TV Show
Television talk and lifestyle show devoted to the African-American hair journey, featuring latest hair-related discussions, styling techniques, products and news.
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Runtime:34 minutes 5 seconds
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Film Color:Color
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First-time Filmmaker:No
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Student Project:No
Olu Gittens
Olufunmilayo Gittens is a media professional in film and television, who graduated from Brown University and earned her MFA in Film Production from Boston University’s College of Communication.
Olu has worked on the production teams of the nationally syndicated lifestyle talk show The Better Show (Meredith) and for the animated PBS series Cyberchase (Thirteen/ Nelvana), and Los Angeles television station LA18/KSCI, a leader in multicultural TV programming, where she was Senior Technical Director. Her daily workflow at LA18 was intensive, shooting 4 to 5 shows a day, live and live-to-tape, hard news and talk shows, broadcast in various languages.
Olu directed and technical-directed television shows with multiple guests, interviews, live music, and studio audiences at Manhattan Neighborhood Network (MNN-TV), the country's largest public access station. At MNN, Olu produced non-fiction field packages and her award-winning TV and web series Choices featuring the work of 17 actors.
Olu wrote, directed and produced Lucky, a dramatic 27-minute film she directed with professional actors. Olu’s work on Lucky stood out for its sophisticated style and heartwarming touch, and garnered her awards in numerous film festivals across the country, including the New England Film and Video and the National Black Programming Consortium film festivals. It was showcased at the Brooklyn Museum, the Smithsonian Institute, and the Directors Guild of America, and was selected to appear in the Global Cinema TV film series hosted by Ernie Hudson (Ghostbusters) for cable’s Black Family Channel.
Olu has also worked in digital media, producing branded content videos for Ruth’s Beauty, an e-commerce company specializing in lace wigs, with $1M in sales annually, and as a Freelance Writer for online publications including NBC’s TheGrio.com, MadameNoire and Clutch Magazine.
A native New Yorker, Olu has received citations from the Brooklyn Borough President’s Office and the City Council of New York for her contribution to the arts through film. She currently resides in Los Angeles, California.
"I wanted black women like myself to have a space where we could share our stories and also really talk about products and tips for caring for our hair. I realized that the kind of show I was looking for didn't exist yet. And so I created it. I explore the macro level trends at the personal level. And as much as the show is about hair, it’s not only about hair. Hair is the beautiful thread that runs though all these other really interesting things."