Shayla Racquel

Shayla Racquel is an energetic, quintessential creative with a passion for storytelling birthed and honed by her southern roots. She is no stranger to overcoming odds - diagnosed with Sickle Cell Disease at birth and a stroke at the mere age of 12; her battle with this illness brought her closer to the art of storytelling, which unlocked her love for filmmaking. Shayla Racquel's work has been featured in over 40 film festivals and has received over 20 awards to date, including a Student Emmy from the National Academy of Television Arts & Sciences - National Capital Chapter. Her storytelling capabilities have been featured by the Washington Post, VIBE magazine, and a plethora of other notable outlets. Her work is syndicated on networks such as Comcast Xfinity, Magic Johnson's AspireTV, Sean "P. Diddy" Combs's RevoltTV, FOX SOUL, and many others. She's a two-time Seriesfest x Shondaland Women's Directing Program finalist and was the lead director of a premiere show that debuted on Keke Palmer's new network venture, KeyTV. Recently, she was highlighted as one of OkayPlayer's Eight Up-And-Coming Directors That Should Be On Your Radar. As a director, Shayla gravitates towards character-driven and/or genre-bending projects, where she can offer comedic elements to stories with subtle yet significant messaging, real dramatic stakes, and heightened tension. She creates and gravitates toward stories featuring characters with multifarious identities navigating a world where they are forced to choose just one. Shayla Racquel bleeds Orange & Green, holding a Bachelor of Science in Computer Information Systems from the illustrious Florida A&M University. In 2018, she received her Master of Fine Arts in Film & Electronic Media from American University. Her felicific smile and appreciation for life brighten any room – you will always know it's her when she greets you with, “Smiles are Sunshine for the Soul!”