Director Spotlight: Nikiiyah Gest
No film can exist without its director. The visionary behind the camera that helps put it all together. The upcoming documentary Behind the Crown: Miss Ohio USA is no exception. Nikiiyah Gest, born in Dayton, OH and raised in Cleveland, OH hasn’t had the traditional journey to reach this point. Originally Gest attended Ohio University and obtained her degree in Education in 2019. However, after moving across the country to Los Angeles for a role with Sony Pictures Animation, she discovered a new passion. Filmmaking!
Upon her arrival she wasted no time immersing herself in the community. She’s worked major events like the Oscars, spent time in the arts as an intern with the California African American Museum, and she prioritized amplifying diverse voices through her work with AfroAnimation. After she gained multiple film credits, Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse and K-Pop: Demon Hunters most notably, Gest has now been focused on her own projects and visions.
In 2023 she served as the Director, Producer, and Writer for the short film Her. A project that she handled from concept to final cut, and in the process she pulled off a one-day shoot all while working on zero budget. From here she’s only taken her ambition further and that leads us right into her next project.
She is taking her love for Black queens and princesses and translating it back to her roots in Ohio to shed light on the real life queens living in our communities. Behind the Crown: Miss Ohio USA, is going to be hitting your screens in early 2027, but we’ll be regularly updating things here on this Substack and all of our socials so be sure to connect with us to stay in the loop! The best way to make sure you don’t miss out on any new info is to subscribe, so make sure you do that before you go. All of our other socials are below to make it easy to find us! We look forward to connecting with you all throughout this journey, see you soon!
Instagram: @behindthecrowndoc | @nikiiyah
TikTok: @nikki_filmmaker
Website: behindthecrownfilm.com
