Jada Buford got a lot of screen time in America to Me, the multipart documentary made by local filmmaker Steve James about Oak Park and River Forest High School that aired on Starz in 2018. 

But even then, Buford preferred being behind the camera to be on-screen. Now 25, Buford is finishing up a master of fine arts degree in film at Columbia University in New York City. She is working on her thesis film, titled Sing a Black Girl Song. The film is the last requirement she must fulfill to receive her degree in May.

Buford’s mother, Telisa Felder, now lives in Forest Park.

Sing a Black Girl Song will be a short film, about 10 minutes long, is about three preteen Black girls who have a sleepover.

“It’s a story that was inspired by my girlhood,” Buford told the Wednesday Journal in a telephone interview.

Buford, who grew up in Galewood neighborhood and River Forest, said that sleepovers are important events for preteen girls.

“For most preteen girls, sleepovers represent a significant aspect of growing up,” Buford said, adding that sleepovers can be a safe haven for girls where they can laugh, cry, sing and dance. “Sleepovers for me, I felt like, were pivotal safe havens for girlhood,” Buford said.

The movie, which will be filmed in Harlem, will feature three girls, ages 11 and 12. Buford said that the film will focus on the sometimes-awkward transition from young girl to young woman.

Buford is the writer and the producer of the film that will feature both documentary and narrative elements. The film will be directed by Danielle Therese Dougé, a 2022 graduate of the Columbia film school, who also grew up in Galewood and met Buford at Columbia.

Buford plans to shoot the film in February and expects to complete the movie in time to graduate in May. But producing a movie, even a short one, is not cheap. She needs money to pay her director, film crew and other production and post-production costs. She is trying to raise $12,000 toward the estimated $15,000 cost of making the film. 

To raise funds, Buford has turned to Seeds&Spark, a crowd funding platform that focuses on film and storytelling. Those interested in making a donation to support the making of Sing a Black Girl Song can donate at https://seedandspark.com/fund/sing-a-black-girls-song#story. You can follow the progress of the film on Instagram at @singablackgirlsong.

After the film is completed, Buford plans to show the film in Oak Park or River Forest, perhaps this summer.

Buford was a senior at OPRF during the 2015-16 school year and was one of the students that the filmmakers followed and chronicled. She made her first film as a senior at OPRF and has made four other short films, including one about hair. 

After graduating from OPRF in 2016, Buford attended Columbia College in Chicago for one year before transferring to Howard University. At Howard, she majored in media, journalism and film communication and received her bachelor of arts degree in 2020.