Nneka Onuorah facts for kids

Nneka Onuorah, born in 1988, is an American director and producer. She is famous for her first film, The Same Difference (2015). This movie explored how people act in Black lesbian communities. In 2022, she won a Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Directing for a Reality Program. This award was for her work on Lizzo's Watch Out for the Big Grrrls.

Early Life and Education

Nneka Onuorah was born in Queens, New York. She grew up in the LeFrak City area. Her father is from Nigeria, and her mother is African-American. When she was in fifth grade, she moved to Atlanta to live with her grandmother. Later, she returned to Queens for high school. She studied dance at Broadway Dance Center. After that, she earned a degree in psychology from LaGuardia Community College.

How Nneka Onuorah Started Her Career

In 2009, Nneka Onuorah began an internship at BET. She was later hired as a producer there. She worked on shows like Black Girls Rock! and many music documentaries. After six years, Onuorah left BET. She wanted to make her first film, The Same Difference.

Making The Same Difference

Onuorah started a Kickstarter campaign to raise money for her film. The Same Difference is a documentary about roles in Black lesbian communities. She wanted to show more Black LGBTQIA people in movies. She felt there were not enough stories about them. Onuorah did not reach her fundraising goal. So, she paid for the film herself. The Same Difference was first shown in June 2015.

Other TV Shows and Documentaries

Onuorah directed the Netflix series First and Last. She also produced My House for Viceland. This series was about the Black and Latinx ballroom community in New York. Onuorah had attended balls when she was younger.

In 2019, Onuorah and Giselle Bailey released a documentary. It was called Burn Down the House. This film was about a dancer from Paris named Kiddy Smile. It was shown at the NewFest LGBTQ Film Festival.

Directing The Legend of the Underground

In 2021, Onuorah and Bailey directed another documentary. It was called The Legend of the Underground. This film was about the Nigerian LGBTQ community. It showed members who left Nigeria to find safety. They sought asylum because of anti-LGBTQ laws in their country.

Winning an Emmy for Lizzo's Watch Out for the Big Grrrls

In 2022, Onuorah directed a reality show for Amazon Prime Video. It was called Lizzo's Watch Out for the Big Grrrls. The show had eight episodes. Singer-songwriter Lizzo hosted and created the show. Plus-size dancers competed to join Lizzo's dance group, the Big Grrrls. The show focused on helping dancers grow and feel positive. It also showed them learning new dance moves quickly. Onuorah won a Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Directing for a Reality Program for her work on this series.

Recent Work

She directed and produced a documentary about Megan Thee Stallion. This film, Megan Thee Stallion: In Her Words, came out in 2024.

See also

In Spanish: Nneka Onuorah para niños