Few artists work as hard as Meosha Bean. Since she was seven, Bean dreamed of making movies, and she didn’t wait to start! Through her production company M.V.B Films, which she started at 13 years old, Bean’s creative well overflows to an incredible degree: She has dozens of director credits to her name and has worked on everything from short films, music videos, and anthologies to full-length features, books, podcasts, and television series.
From writing, directing, and producing to acting, cinematography, and editing, Meosha Bean has spent the last two decades honing her craft and refining her voice to become one of the most dynamic and versatile artists working in independent horror and other genres.
She’s even worked with and appeared alongside some of the biggest names in the industry, including Jordan Peele, Tony Todd, Keyshia Cole, Billy Idol, Eric Roberts, and more. Meosha Bean’s movies have been shown at the Los Angeles Film Festival, New York Film Festival, and TIFF. And in 2012, she was voted Best Upcoming Director at the New Jersey Film Festival.
A Plethora of Horror Shorts
When I find myself lacking the attention span to focus on an entire movie, I find myself seeking out original shorts, and Meosha Bean doesn’t disappoint in this arena. Combing through the M.V.B YouTube channel, you’ll discover a treasure trove of short horror films like Elf (2011), Me Myself & I (2016), I See You (2017), 6th Floor (2017), Animus (2017), Night at the Cinema (2019), Crazed (2019), I Want Mommy (2019) and so many more! Her stories are character-driven, diving into the psychological aspects of horror and exploring the darkest parts of ourselves.
These themes especially come through in Miss Pepper (2016), Meosha Bean’s breakthrough short, a drama that dives into the mind of a writer as she creates her final piece. The movie shows off Bean’s keen eye for cinematography and simple, but impactful storytelling; and her strong performance as the titular character demonstrates her ability to communicate feelings of great pain and reflection through her expressions alone.
Watching Meosha Bean’s shorts back-to-back highlights her range and her interest in telling all kinds of stories through many different sub-genres, and it’s delightful to track her progress from the early days of Elf to where she is now!
A Voice for the Black Experience
Meosha Bean’s dedication to challenging the status quo through storytelling sets her apart in a genre that has historically been dominated by white, male voices. Her work centers Black characters, and her professional collaborations bring together diverse perspectives.
In 2019, Meosha Bean appeared in Shudder’s documentary film Horror Noire: A History of Black Horror with icons of the horror genre like Ernest Dickerson, Rusty Cundieff, Keith David, Rachel True, and Ken Foree. This groundbreaking documentary tracks the development of Black horror through the years, emphasizing the contributions of Black artists on screen and behind the scenes. Her involvement in this project highlights her strides in making the horror community a more inclusive space, particularly for Black women.
In addition to shorts and full-length narrative films, Meosha Bean has contributed her voice to horror anthologies. In three volumes of Halloween Shorts, Bean weaves together twisted tales spanning sub-genres of horror to burrow deep into the human (and non-human) psyche. You can watch these here!
Meosha Bean: Podcasts and More
For the last five years, Meosha Bean has welcomed fellow artists to her podcast Creators to Creators, where she engages artists of all kinds: Filmmakers, comedians, actors, editors, composers, musicians, producers, writers — you name it, she’s interviewed them! Over the course of 350+ episodes, Bean discusses the artistic process and trending topics with her guests through thought-provoking and insightful conversations that entertain and delight.
On top of that, she’s just developed a new podcast called Church Hurt and has an upcoming cat-and-mouse thriller called Meosha in partnership with Gore Culture.
Meosha Bean’s tireless creativity has made her a force to be reckoned with in the world of independent horror cinema, and I’m hoping more and more people will discover her work. More than ever, we need to support independent artists, and we especially need to listen to Black women in our community who are making things nobody else can.
Learn more about Meosha Bean on her website!
Horror Noire poster was purchased from CineMaterial. All other images came from IMDb with the exception of the background of the featured image which is a stock photo from Pixabay.
