Filmmaker Yoruba Richen has joined Schofield’s Flowers–a creative production outfit known for immersive visual and experiential branded experiences–for exclusive spot representation in the U.S. Based in New York, Richen is a trailblazing documentarian who has been spotlighted by outlets such as PBS, The New York Times, and The Atlantic. Her film, The Green Book: Guide to Freedom, broke records when it was broadcast on the Smithsonian Channel, and earned the Henry Hampton Award for Excellence in Documentary Filmmaking while also garnering a News and Documentary Emmy nomination in 2020.
Richen’s most recent film, The Rebellious Life of Mrs Rosa Parks, premiered at the Tribeca Film Festival and was nominated for a Critic’s Choice Award. It is currently streaming on Peacock.
Richen, whose work can be seen across Netflix, MSNBC, FX/Hulu, HBO and more, also collaborated with Coca-Cola, McDonald’s and Warner Music on I Rise, featuring Andra Day.
“There is an urgency to Yoruba’s filmmaking that draws you right in,” said Steve “Scof” Schofield, founder/chief content officer of Schofield’s Flowers. “Whether it’s Rosa Parks, Harry Belafonte, Breonna Taylor, or the BIPOC LGBTQ+ community, she wields the weight of her subjects and gives them the room they need to breathe.” Schofield added that Richen is the perfect director for this moment in the branded space. “Brands go deep today, they want to make a genuine connection with the audience,” he observed. “Yoruba synchronizes with her subjects, serving them in their storytelling, and bringing exactly the right emphasis to the proceedings, at exactly the right moment.”
Richen is the mastermind behind the critically acclaimed film The New Black, which won numerous awards including the Audience Award at AFI Docs, Frameline Film Festival, and Philly Q Fest. This film was also nominated for an NAACP Image Award and a GLAAD Media Award for Outstanding Documentary. Other recent films include: The Sit In: Harry Belafonte Hosts the Tonight Show (Peacock); and How It Feels to Be Free, an installment of American Masters (which garnered a 2021 primetime Emmy nomination in the Outstanding Documentary or Nonfiction Series category). She directed an episode of the award-winning series Black and Missing for HBO, and High on the Hog for Netflix. Richen is the co-director of American Reckoning which aired on PBS’ FRONTLINE, and The Killing of Breonna Taylor which won an NAACP Image Award and is streaming on Hulu.
Richen is enthused over joining Schofield’s Flowers, drawn to the opportunity to “expand deeper into the branded space with such a creative and supportive company. As a storyteller, I’m excited to see where this journey will take me.”
Richen noted that her successful brand collaboration on I Rise was “one of my most visible and heavily promoted projects.” The film featured Day and used her standard-bearing “Rise Up” in three short videos and one longer piece, showcasing pioneering women and sharing Day’s story. The campaign allowed consumers to collect cups with QR codes linking to the stories, and was complemented by a cover story in Essence Magazine.
“Branded is another way to exercise my artistic muscles, and take on creative challenges,” Richen noted. “I have a theater background, so fiction and scripted are on my radar as well. Wherever my creative storytelling interests meet the opening of minds to impact people, that’s the sweet spot.”
Richen is a past Guggenheim and Fulbright fellow and she won the Creative Promise Award at Tribeca All Access. She was a Sundance Producers Fellow and Women’s fellow and is a recipient of the Chicken & Egg Breakthrough Filmmaker’s Award. She is a featured TED speaker and was named to the Root 100s list of African Americans 45 years and younger responsible for the year’s most significant moments and themes. Additionally, she is the founding director of the Documentary Program at the Craig Newmark Graduate School of Journalism at CUNY, shaping the next generation of filmmakers.
