Courtney is a Black poet, producer, editor, and impact producer, from Greenville, NC, dedicated to facilitating change through the sharing of stories.
About
Courtney Symone Staton is a Black Southern poet, producer, editor, and impact producer dedicated to facilitating change through the sharing of stories. As lead producer, her debut documentary, Silence Sam, a participatory hybrid made in collaboration with over thirty students and organizers, follows the student-led movement to remove a Confederate monument from UNC-Chapel Hills campus and the systemic silencing of student activism that followed. Since its premiere at BlackStar Film Festival, the film has had impact-driven screenings across the country. As an educator and leaning on her experience in making Silence Sam, Courtney co-created and currently leads the History Reclamation Project at Youth FX, an after-school program connecting high school students to the legacy of anti-racist activism in Albany, New York through participatory filmmaking. As an impact producer, she led the national impact campaign for the Emmy-nominated feature, The Neutral Ground, unpacking monuments, myth, and how to break up with the Confederacy, directed by CJ Hunt and produced by Darcy McKinnon. Courtney is a 2018 NeXt Doc Fellow and one of Ms. Magazines 25 under 25 to watch. She works to drive viewers past the point of empathy to the point of healing and action. She is currently an apprentice with Storyline and is based in New York City.
