I’m like, ‘This black woman thinks I’m funny.’
Aniobi would take that adage particularly to heart in her next endeavors.
But before all that, the pandemic hit.
“We make work,“says Amy Aniobi of TRIBE. “We make projects that make people of color feel good. That’s what we’re interested in.” .Joshua Kissi
Writers' rooms turned to Zoom rooms and suddenly everyone was sheltering in place.
I don’t know how to find people.
I don’t know how to build community through Zoom.”
The season 5 premiere of ‘Insecure,’ written by Amy Aniobi.Glen Wilson/HBO
And that’s how TRIBE came about.
I feel like my legacy in this industry is to build bridges to future storytellers.
So that’s what I decided to do in that moment.
Natasha Rothwell, Yvonne Orji, Issa Rae, Amanda Seales, and Wade Allain-Marcus on ‘Insecure’.Raymond Liu/HBO
Hard skills: How do you write an outline?
Soft skills: How do you survive narcissists?
So we toggle between these two things by having panels, different writers.”
Season 1, episode 6 of ‘Rap Sh!t,’ ‘Something for the Gram,’ directed by Amy Aniobi.Alicia Vera/HBO Max
And by independently, I mean me.
I’m funding them.
It’s the same thing.
It’s just led by someone who’s key influential parameters are people of color."
“We make work,” Aniobi adds.
“We make projects that make people of color feel good.
That’s what we’re interested in.”
TRIBE is currently in the process of selecting its second year applicants.
Clearly there’s a need for TRIBE and the work it’s churning out.
With an incredible amount of kindness.
Everything that Amy does comes from a place of kindness and empathy.
It’s been an incredible journey and an incredible networking experience."
Matam’s film is in post-production, and Aniobi is keeping busy with her myriad other projects.
Because I love two versions for these rap queens: What are they in failure?
And what are they in success?
I’m like, either way, satisfying story."
And in the end, that’s what Aniobi craves: a satisfying story.
