Award-winning film professor inspires UDC students to tell their own unique stories

Assistant Professor of Digital Media Zoë Davidson

UDC Assistant Professor Zoë Davidson is an award-winning cinematographer and director with works featured in more than a dozen film festivals. Raised in Canada with Jamaican heritage, Davidson provides UDC film students with a global perspective on storytelling. Davidson’s students also benefit from her personal life experiences, especially creating opportunities and seizing the moment. One of them is Gregorio Veluz.

Davidson teaches field production, scriptwriting, upper-level technique, and portfolio-based courses in the College of Arts and Sciences’ Digital Media department. Her passion for teaching students is as strong as producing film art projects.

Davidson’s documentaries and short films offer an international view as a first-generation Black Canadian using the diaspora as a backdrop for her storytelling. Her Jamaican-born parents left the island in the 1970s during civil unrest and settled in Toronto, Canada. Davidson attended Oberlin College in Ohio with a double major in Africana Studies and Theater. She attended Howard University for graduate school, earning a Master of Fine Arts degree in film.

Though she initially imagined herself on the big screen, Davidson found her passion behind the camera with occasional appearances in her work. She was accepted into the Gold program with the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS), where she served on panels, participated in events and studio tours and was assigned an industry mentor. The Gold program is a global talent development and inclusion initiative that offers creative students of diverse backgrounds access and resources to achieve their career goals in filmmaking. Her work with AMPAS opened up numerous professional opportunities in the U.S. She has worked with Lionsgate, Terence Nance, and the HuffPost.

One of her big breaks came when she attended the Sundance Film Festival, the largest independent film festival in the U.S. held annually. She received a tip that someone was looking for a cinematographer to film an interview for a documentary with award-winning filmmaker Ava DuVernay. Davidson had her equipment and took advantage of the opportunity. She was selected to work on the project, and the documentary went on to premiere at Sundance.

Davidson further established her footprint when her documentary, “Canada’s Unchecked Racism,” won the best short documentary at the Montreal Black Film Festival. The film was based on Davidson and her younger brother’s experience growing up in Canada. Winning this award led to an invitation to join the Academy of Canadian Cinema and Television. “My goal is to continue working on projects that allow marginalized stories to be brought to the forefront.”

Davidson shares her technical skills, life experiences and love for cinematography in her classes, teaching UDC students to tell their own unique stories. “I have always had a passion for teaching,” Davidson said. “My goal is for each of my students to develop a solid piece of work and gain a strong technical and practical understanding, whether they freelance or work in the industry. I want them to have all of the tools needed for their success.”

UDC graduate Gregorio Veluz

Gregorio Veluz, originally from the Philippines, graduated from UDC in 2021 with a Bachelor of Arts in Digital Media and a concentration in digital video production and documentary and film production. He decided to attend UDC because he was drawn to the digital media program.

“The relaxed environment in which we can apply our video and film techniques for our creative outputs and goals was fantastic,” said Veluz. “Outside of the basic and advanced techniques in filmmaking, producing and editing, I found that the most important thing I learned was how to be resourceful in the industry, from using stock footage to your advantages and understanding the ins and outs of independent filmmaking.”

During the program, Veluz worked on several UDC media projects. One of his favorites is entitled “Discreet,” which Professor Davidson supported.

“I greatly appreciated her encouragement and availability whenever I had questions on certain projects that I wanted to pursue,” he said. “Thanks to her, I’ve also gained a deeper appreciation for documentaries.”

Veluz is a freelance videographer, photographer, and editor pursuing an industry-based career. “The principles taught by Professor Davidson will remain my foundation in any industry job I obtain,” he said.