Ya'Ke made his first film at the age of 15, while a student at Sam Houston High School in his native San Antonio, Texas and has yet to look back. His films have received world-wide acclaim, screening at The Cannes International Film Festival, The Pan African Film and Arts festival, The Sedicorto International Film Festival Forli and The Los Angeles Shorts Film Festival, to name a few. Ya'Ke has made a name for himself as a filmmaker with a veracious style of storytelling that takes an unflinching look at issues facing today's society. I had the opportunity to work with him a few years ago in his featured film "Wolf", a small but significant role.
San Antonio named Carmen Tafolla its inaugural poet laureate. To celebrate her original works, the Department for Culture and Creative Development (DCCD) with Three Chord Media has produced a series of seven short films based on Tafolla’s poems. Exodus Films with director Ya'ke Smith and producer Ralph Lopez were selected to produce one of the poems, and I was chosen to narrate it. Such an honor to give voice to such wonderful words.