Lead actress, Kyrie McAlpin, poses on set.
WHEN CAN WE SEE IT?
Once we’re done with Post-Production, we are submitting to select film festivals across the USA. You’ll be able to catch us at any selected festivals prior to our eventual release online. The soonest possible screening would be in August 2024!
KIRBY’S INSPIRATION
On the surface, Ways to Fly is an adorable mother-daughter story with flower barrettes and a stubborn perseverance that doesn't quite pay off. Below that, this is my love letter to my younger self — the former “pleasure to have in class,” motor-mouth student who used to beat herself up for processing the world differently than most of the people around her.
“Out of sight, out of mind” was more threat than catchy phrase for me. But because most people see an uninterested Black girl and read that as disrespect, or a statistical failure waiting to happen, no one thought to check if something was actually happening inside of me.
Now, at twenty-nine, I know I have ADHD, and I wrote this short for all the Black girls and kids who get punished and shamed rather than diagnosed as neurodivergent. I wrote it for the dancers, artists, and dreamers who had to let go because they couldn't figure out their ways on their own. I wrote it for the families who want to communicate and support each other better but don't know how.
Ways to Fly is here to remind us that there are so many ways to get what we want, and if we can come to understand each other and ourselves, then anything is possible.
You can hear me talk about it more in the video below!
Accolades and Placements
Kirby won an Emerging Artist Grant from the Los Angeles Performance Practice x California Arts Council, with “Ways to Fly” as her key submission. This comes with $5,000 to bring us closer to our goal!
ScreenCraft Film Fund — Semifinalist (Fall 2023)
“Ways to Fly” is on The Red List! CoverFly’s Red List displays the top 20 highest-scoring scripts in each genre. See above for current rankings and percentages.
About Ways to Fly
Ways to Fly is an endearing short film that follows Nia, an excitable, hyper-focused Black girl, who wants to fly like a ballerina and needs a bit of help to get there. When her barrettes mess up her pirouettes, Nia seeks a new way to power through the distractions — and her mother’s expectations — to achieve her dream.
We are currently in Post-Production!
Can you spot the director? Writer-Director, Kirby Marshall-Collins (right, in oversized hoodie-blanket), directs the cast during one of the ballet scenes.
Nothing moves without the crew — and nothing makes it on camera without our camera team!
Pictured (L to R): Chris Gentry, Keitu Mokhonwana, Briana Monet, and Mike Radeff
Still from Ways to Fly (color grading still in progress)
Cast and Crew of Ways to Fly after we wrapped principal photography! We’re missing some of our actors who wrapped the day before, but you’ll see them soon enough on screen!
Our Team
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Kirby Marshall-Collins
WRITER + DIRECTOR
WEBSITEKirby Marshall-Collins is a Black TV writer and director who amplifies the voices of Black and queer people through fun and fantastical coming-of-age stories. Originally from Chicago, Kirby spent her teen years pursuing theater in Pleasanton, California before focusing on film and TV. Her stage directing credits include the Playworks Festival, both short-form and long-form improv, and youth theater workshops.
On the writing side, Kirby is a Disney Entertainment TV Writing Fellow — chosen from thousands for the highly competitive TV staffing program. In 2022, Kirby excelled as Writers’ Assistant on “Nancy Drew” (The CW). Her grounded yet high-concept soulmate pilot, “The Un-Loveables,” earned her space in two fellowships — the Disruptors Fellowship and Black Boy Writes & Black Girl Writes. Through her previous non-profit work, Kirby collaborated with Made in Her Image to empower and educate girls and non-binary filmmakers of color. Her greatest accomplishment is the fact that she helped her nephew make Christmas stockings and that she wrote, directed, executive produced, and funded her short film debt, “Ways to Fly.”
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Briana Monet
DIRECTOR OF PHOTOGRAPHY
WEBSITEBriana Monet is a talented filmmaker celebrated for her distinctive style, characterized by vibrant colors and evocative narratives. She honed her skills and developed her aesthetic sensibilities while earning her BFA in Filmmaking from the Art Institute of Miami International University, where she explored various forms of visual expression, from experimental films to music videos, digital content, and documentary filmmaking.
Briana has demonstrated her versatility and prowess as a filmmaker, working on numerous projects as a producer, director, editor, and cinematographer.
CLIENTS: Spotify, Revolt, Complex, HBO, Viacom, E Network, Happy Lucky, htsl, Netflix, Hartbeat Studios, Toyota, Hoorae, Westbrook, and Essence.
AFFILIATIONS: ARRAY Crew, Black Film Space, the JTC List, Made in Her Image, Pano, Sporas and Growth & Co.
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Efa Akutekha
PRODUCER
WEBSITEEfa Akutekha is an Executive Producer based in Los Angeles who is OBSESSED with telling unique stories. With a distinctive blend of experience in digital content, marketing, and a background in broadcast media, her rapid career success has yet to reach its peak. She has made content for BuzzFeed, Adobe, GoDaddy, The Guardian, Mattel, and a host of other entertainment and media organizations.
As a producer, Efa especially loves to explore narratives through the lens of a creator’s vision; figuring out the best way to deliver it to their audience with an authentic voice. In order to do so, she believes that it’s important to make conscious decisions about who you place both in front of and behind the lens. She takes pride in providing growth opportunities to anyone with a passion for what we do, and approaches every project with the mindset of bettering herself, her community, and everyone around her.
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Musau Onwubiko
PRODUCER
Musau Onwubiko is a Los Angeles based who is passionate about telling stories that explore the Black female experience, uplift the Black community, and highlight cultural nuances. As a first-generation Congolese Nigerian American, she defied her parents’ chosen path by pursuing a degree in Media Studies from the University of Missouri - St. Louis that focused on TV Production and Editing.
In a personal pursuit to hone her skills, Musau applied to and was selected for a competitive 36-Week media training fellowship at Continuity St. Louis. Since moving to Los Angeles in the fall of 2018, she has worked on diverse projects within the entertainment production industry, such as the 2019 BET Awards, “The Masked Singer” (S2), and SYFI Wire’s “Great Debate” (S1). Musau has worked as Producer on “Hard,” “Finding Ja’Mia’s Spirit” (2024), and “Ways to Fly” (2024).
With every project, Musau works towards a prominent career in the entertainment industry. Her goal is to continue advocating for stories that center Black lives through the lenses of redemption and collective healing.
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Logan Johnson
COMPOSER
WEBSITELogan Johnson is a multimedia composer from St. Louis, Missouri. In 2013, Logan attended the "Mecca" of all HBCU's : Howard University. Throughout her time at Howard, she was blessed with numerous opportunities to perform, including the Candlelight Prayer Vigil hosted by the late Marion Barry Jr, sung for Former President Barack Obama, and performed at the 2016/2017 Kennedy Center Honors with the acclaimed Howard Gospel Choir.
Logan has composed music for several short films, including "An Open Door" (Dir. Ray Jones), an official selection for the 2019 International Christian Film and Music Festival, and "Reaching for Sky" (Dir. Hannah Logan) for the 2019 San Diego Film Consortium.
Logan recently received her Masters in Screen Scoring at New York University where she was awarded the prestigious Alan Menken Scholarship. She is a member of the Alliance for Women Film Composers, Composer Diversity Collective, and Grammy U.
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Rachel Frank
ASSISTANT DIRECTOR
WEBSITERachel Frank is a Los Angeles-based first assistant director and producer. Originally from Florida, she moved out to Los Angeles to pursue her dream of working at Warner Brothers Studios as a first AD. She has directed two independent films of her own, one being an award-winning feature-length documentary entitled “Thriver: A Survivor Story” and the other being an experimental short about her own journey with mental health entitled “My Intrusive Thoughts.”
As a First AD, she worked on “Egghead & Twinkie” (2023), which won the Audience Award for Best Narrative Feature Film at the 2023 Florida Film Festival. Outside of film, Rachel spends most of her time in the gym, training for a marathon.