Dr Orson Nava BA, PGDip, PGCert, MA, PhD

Biography

Dr Orson Nava has a background as a freelance director making dramas and documentaries for the BBC, C4 and ITV and music videos for record labels including Polydor, EMI, and Island Records.

His fully funded PhD research at the University of East London focused on Race, Innovation and the Creative Industries lead regeneration of East London.

Orson has lectured in film production at MA and Undergraduate level at Sheffield Hallam University, Middlesex University, Central Film School, London Film school, Ravensbourne University, and the University of East London and is a graduate of the Northern Media School and The National Film and Television School. 

Recent relevant filmmaking credits as writer/director.

  • The Building (2023, twenty minute drama currently in post-production) The film explores the ethical and personal issues raised by our increased dependence on technology. At the centre is Caleb, a company CEO who comes to rely on the office manager AI which runs his building for personal and work advice. The short was funded through Ravensbourne University as a Knowledge Exchange project, and deals with questions around ethics, artificial intelligence and the exercise of power. Find out more.
  • Decolonialising the Curatorial Process (2020) is a forty-minute documentary exploring strategies for interrogating Eurocentric structures of knowledge in a Museum context. The film combines interviews with curators, academics, and activist and features case studies of Museums which are engaged with critical, self-reflective forms of curatorial practice. The film was published in the peer reviewed online film practice journal ‘Screenworks’ (available here)
  • The Drive (short drama 2019.) This 10 minute political thriller is the 2nd episode of the 'A Viable Candidate' drama series. Starring and written by Steve Toussaint and produced by Stella Nwimo the series maps the emergence of a radical black political leader in the UK and the response of the intelligence agencies. We are currently developing the short into a six-part series for BBC 1.
  • Multicology? (2019) is a one-hour documentary featuring interviews with academics, politicians and creative practitioners working in East London. It was produced in response to industry reports that showed a fall in rates of racial diversity across the creative industries and explores the role BAME creative producers play in an urban regeneration process increasingly structured around ‘creativity’. The film forms part of a fully funded doctoral research project at the University of East London and is intended as a focus for panel discussions and public engagements around the development of racially inclusive regeneration strategies. Watch here.
  • A Viable Candidate (2016, 20 minutes). A short political thriller starring Steve Toussaint, Bob Gwylim, Sara Carver and Cornell John. The film was the winner of best short European drama at the 2021 International Black and Diversity Film Festival in Canada and is currently in development as a six-part series with BB1. Watch the trailer
  • Everyday Borders (2016). Funded by the European Union this fifty-minute documentary was produced in collaboration with The Centre for Research on Migration, Refugees and Belonging (based at the University of East London). It examines the way members of civil society are increasingly obliged to act as border-guards in the communities where they live and work. Employers, landlords, health workers, local government officials and educators are now legally compelled to check the immigration status of people with whom they come in contact. Using interviews with academics and activists who have been tracking these developments the film explores what the 'hostile environment’ really means for the UK’s migrant population. Watch here.
  • The ICR Road Movie (as co-director, co-camera, editor 2015) is an hour-long documentary exploring creative collaborations between the UK and France and their impact on the regional regeneration process. The film was funded by the European Union and produced through The University of the Creative Arts. Watch here.
  • This montage of factual films (2014) includes excerpts from some of the thirty factual films he produced for the Rix Research and Media https://rixresearchandmedia.org who are based at the University of East London. The research centre promotes the uses of new technologies for people with learning disability. The films were funded by a range of clients including local government and the NHS. Watch here.

Recent academic publication:

Personal website

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Senior Lecturer
Digital Film Production