Katiana Weems-Ado

Katiana is an American cinematographer, director, and writer based in London. Her films are often rooted in temporal explorations of grief and mourning—its stickiness and porosity.

She received her MFA from The Royal College of Arts in 2024 and her BFA from Syracuse University, where she graduated as a Visual and Performing Arts Scholar. Additionally, she holds an AA in Film Studies and studied 35mm film production at FAMU International in Prague.

In her educational career, Katiana has served as a professor at Towson University, teaching Lighting for Film & Television. She also worked at various institutions including Johns Hopkins University, Syracuse University and the Baltimore School of the Arts.

She began her filmmaking career as an image researcher at Somesuch and as an editor. She works primarily as a cinematographer and director on short and long-form narratives and documentaries, but in the past has worked on music videos and corporate & commercial work.

Katiana’s innovative approach to filmmaking has earned her recognition from countless award shows such as her nomination for the New Blood Emerging Artist Award. She is also the creator of Axiom24, a Kino futurist manifesto that seeks to formalize her ways of working in pursuit of collaborative and supportive practices in the film industry.