Desta Tedros Reff is a remarkable writer and director who has written for shows like Sorry for Your Loss, The Last Tycoon, The Purge, and Grand Hotel, and currently serves as an Executive Producer on the popular Amazon television reboot of A League of Their Own. Growing up as a Black, queer woman in the rural Midwest, Desta used writing as a tool to help her process her otherness and her passion for filmmaking revealed itself to her one summer when she found her grandparents’ video camera. Yet, she didn’t consider entertainment a viable career option until after she had graduated from Harvard Law School, turned down a prestigious position in the Harvard Legal Aid Bureau in favor of the Harvard Law School Documentary Studio that she co-founded, and spent several years in the Mississippi Delta working as a social justice advocate. All of this had an important influence on the way that Desta approaches storytelling and her dedication to bringing marginalized perspectives into the mainstream through authentic portrayals of LGBTQ+ and BIPOC characters. In this episode of No Straight Path, Desta shares the human story behind her success as we delve into what it looks like to intentionally follow your joy and purpose and the challenging emotional work that goes into being a minority in the entertainment industry. We also touch on the importance of pausing to take care of yourself, Desta’s advice for choosing a creative path over the one that guarantees your success, and so much more. For an inside look at what it means to forge your own path and find the courage to put a unique piece of yourself out into the world, tune in today!

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Links Mentioned in Today’s Episode:
Desta Tedros Reff
Desta Tedros Reff on Instagram
Desta Tedros Reff on Twitter
Ashley Menzies Babatunde
Ashley Menzies Babatunde on Instagram
Hubspot Podcast Network

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