On Friday, March 19, Emmy nominee and award-winning filmmaker Kiyoka “Kex” Rhodes spoke to students of Morgan State’s School of Global Journalism and Communications. Rhodes shared her journey within the journalism and communications field and how others can do it too.
Since middle school, Rhodes has had a passion for filmmaking. She explained how she experienced numerous jobs that she didn’t believe she would have had an interest in, but they all taught her new skills and advanced her career. You must see every job opportunity as a way to help your career down the road.
“Sometimes, things won’t go as you planned. Don’t worry. It’ll make sense later,” Rhodes said.
Rhodes studied at American University’s School of Communication in Washington, D.C., earning a Bachelor’s Degree in Film & Media Arts with a minor in Graphic Design. After graduating, she began working at NBC 4 Washington as a personal assistant on the feature film set. During that time, she became familiar with writing short pieces for 30-second to 1-minute videos.
Once her time there was over, Rhodes moved onto the American Bar Association where she worked in public relations. Next, she began working at the CW Network. There, she connected with numerous people in the television industry and worked more on her editing, filming and producing.
Following the CW Network, Rhodes began working at Comcast where she was able to focus more on directing and producing. She left Comcast with an Emmy nomination.
As she progressed through her career, Rhodes was able to spend more time to “make time for her passion,” as she explained. She is a graphic designer for the government’s postal services in the cyber security department and the head of her own production company, Kex Studios.
Since the job is so flexible, she is able to dedicate a good chunk of time to her passion projects, such as her numerous films and working on Kex Studios.
Kiyoka “Kex” Rhodes has experienced a fair share of challenges throughout her journey, but she wants it to be clear that you can overcome anything.
“You’ll face challenges and difficult personalities,” Rhodes said. “Keep pushing through. You’ll come out of it stronger than ever.”