Baker Artist Portfolios

Najma Nuriddin is a highly accomplished filmmaker with a wealth of experience and a strong commitment to telling emotionally meaningful stories that connect and question the world around her. Najma has been involved in the film industry for over 12 years, serving as a director, producer, and educator. Her work is known for its focus on socially and culturally relevant narratives that emphasize humanity and history. Najma's extensive travels and experiences in various parts of the world, such as the African continent, Europe, the Caribbean, and Southeast Asia, have contributed to shaping her unique perspective on life and storytelling.

Her films have received recognition and have been screened at prestigious film festivals, including the Blackstar Film Festival, the American Black Film Festival, and the Zanzibar International Film Festival.

Najma is currently in late development on a documentary project, "You're Muslim" (working title), which has received support from the Southern Documentary Fund. This documentary explores the experiences of growing up as Muslim and African American in Bakersfield, California, delving into the reasons behind her parents' embrace of Islam and its impact on her upbringing in a polarizing environment.

In 2016, Najma received recognition for her work by being selected for the Emerging Voices Directors Lab with the New Orleans Film Society. And, in 2020, as a Principal Investigator, she and her team were awarded the Launchpad Grant by The Alliance for a Healthier World at Johns Hopkins University. With this grant, they developed an educational multimedia project addressing period poverty, "Seeing Me,” set between Baltimore, Maryland, and Cape Town, South Africa.

Najma has experience as a Senior Producer for the broadcaster Smithsonian Channel of Paramount Network, working on documentary films and series such as the four-part limited series "One Thousand Years of Slavery" Executive produced by Angela Bassett and Courtney B. Vance's Bassett, where she also was a field director and producer. Along with the documentary "The Color of Care," Executive produced by Oprah Winfrey. Najma also directed and produced several Heritage Month commercial spots featured across MTV Entertainment, celebrating various heritages and cultures.

A graduate of Howard University, Najma holds an M.F.A. degree in film and a B.A. in Speech and Communication from San Francisco State University. In the Fall of 2019, Najma joined Johns Hopkins University and the Maryland Institute College of Arts as a filmmaker in residence and an adjunct instructor, further contributing to the field of film education.

She is an active member of organizations like Brown Girls Doc Mafia and New Day Films, which are essential collectives that support, inspire, and push forward the filmmaking industry to be an equitable and collaborative space.