BoxFest Detroit Announces Kennikki Jones-Jones

BoxFest Detroit, an annual theatre festival that showcases and creates opportunities for women directors, is announcing that their production team has grown to include festival alumna Kennikki Jones-Jones.

The producers of BoxFest Detroit are thrilled to welcome Kennikki Jones-Jones to the production team. Kennikki Jones-Jones is a multi-award winning theatre and film director. Born and raised in Detroit, she obtained her BFA in Acting from Wayne State University and her MFA in Film from Florida State University. In 2014, she co-founded Dramatically Richer Productions, with whom she produced children's theatre, an off-Broadway play, and published a book. Inspired by the many obstacles she has overcome as a teen mother, her experience and perseverance informs her art. Her recent short horror film, "Knock Knock" has been accepted into twenty film festivals and garnered eight awards. She uses urban horror as a means to examine psychic energy and generational curses that plague many inner city communities. Currently, she works many jobs, does many things, but as a Boxfest Alum she is super stoked to be a part of the BoxFest team.

"In looking towards our future, and how we want to continue growing and supporting women directors, we are so excited to bring Kennikki - a filmmaker and theatre maker - into our team," said Amanda Grace Ewing, BoxFest Detroit Artistic Director. "We know that Kennikki's multidisciplinary mind will grow our community and deepen the work of BoxFest Detroit."

The BoxFest Detroit 2020 festival announcement is upcoming. "We are very excited to share some new ideas and new ways to connect with the festival this year. If you want to be the first to know, join us for a fundraiser to celebrate our growing team on June 18th," Ewing shares. On Thursday June 18th, Virtual Trivia for Detroit Arts will be supporting BoxFest Detroit. More information can be found through this Facebook event. "We're thinking of it as a party for Kennikki! Kennikki Jones-Jones has been a part of the BoxFest Detroit team, helping to plan and strategize, since our planning season started in November, but this event is a way to officially, and publicly celebrate her joining our team. It's also a great way to hear about our upcoming festival plans!"

BoxFest Detroit produces festivals that grant women directors the opportunities to direct original shows of their choice and win awards to help further their careers in directing. The winning director of the festival-long audience vote competition is given the opportunity to direct a show with Planet Ant Theatre's One Act Series. BoxFest Detroit also has a Mentorship Program which grants at least two festival directors the opportunity to shadow, learn, and collaborate with established, experienced, women-identifying directors. The program also gives emerging directors exposure to networking opportunities in the Metro-Detroit theatrical community.

For 18 years and counting, BoxFest Detroit has produced annual summer theater festivals, which create the space and support for women directors of all experience levels to share their work with audiences. Learn more about BoxFest Detroit and its programs at www.boxfestdetroit.com.