Meet MeMe Kelly of Sherman Oaks

Today we’d like to introduce you to MeMe Kelly.

MeMe, we appreciate you taking the time to share your story with us today. Where does your story begin?
My journey as a writer began during one of life’s most challenging seasons. In the early 1990s, while navigating my oldest son’s autism diagnosis amid the turmoil of the Rodney King riots and the unrest that followed in Los Angeles, I found myself in a period of deep depression. It was during this darkest moment that God spoke to me, revealing that the key to peace was turning away from myself and serving the least among us in Los Angeles.
This divine direction led me to develop SHOUT—Shine, Hope, Overcome, Use Your Power, and Take Charge—a message I began sharing with women at shelters throughout Los Angeles, including at the LA Mission and The New Way of Life Transitional Non-Profit. I also brought SHOUT to LA County Juvenile Centers, private events for women, and LAUSD classrooms. During one talk at The New Way of Life, attendees told me that SHOUT should be a play—and that conversation launched my theatrical journey.
While raising three sons—with my oldest son’s autism always at the center of my focus—I continued pouring my heart onto the page. I wrote novels, then spiritual eBooks, and eventually brought my stories to life on stage with my plays SHOUT, Our Voices, and Believe, which played to packed theaters here in Los Angeles.
This creative momentum led me back to the University of California, where I earned my MFA in Creative Writing and Creative Writing for the Performing Arts as a Distinguished Dean’s Fellow. My undergraduate degree is from UCLA. You can read more about how I started and fell in love with the written word at www.elevatedstories.me/about.
Through every season—the difficult and the triumphant—being a mother to my three sons has remained my North Star, and that love continues to fuel everything I create.

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Award-Winning Filmmaker Launches Georgia Mae Project: Films + Real Jobs for Young Adults on Autism Spectrum, and Georgia Mae Writers, a Collective Championing Writers with Essential Stories!
Los Angeles filmmaker MeMe Kelly combines authentic storytelling with groundbreaking employment program, creating 5 Production Assistant positions while honoring pioneering mother’s legacy
LOS ANGELES, CA — Award-winning filmmaker MeMe Kelly (Nicholl Fellowship semi-finalist, Samuel Goldwyn Writing Awards Top 10) announces the Georgia Mae Project: two films paired with an innovative employment initiative creating real Production Assistant jobs for young adults on the autism spectrum in the entertainment industry and a Writers’ Collective.
The project honors Kelly’s late mother, Dr. Georgia Mae, the first Black, youngest, and first woman superintendent of Compton Unified School District, who broke barriers across three decades while thriving with breast cancer for 32 years, who then went on to appointed as the , the first Black, youngest, and first woman Director of Military Schools, Department of Defense, Germany and Atlantic Regions. MeMe started writing in her Mom’s house in England, a replica of Shakespeare’s child-hood home
Three Films, One Mission:
Every Night in LA (feature film): A former basketball star must learn to see his autistic son’s extraordinary musical gift instead of forcing him to replicate an athletic legacy he never wanted. The Nicholl Fellowship semi-finalist script explores parental blindness, acceptance, and the cost of predetermined dreams.
Don’t Quit: To Thine Own Self Be True (short film): Chronicles Dr. Georgia Mae’s remarkable journey from surviving tuberculosis as a teenager in 1950s Georgia to becoming the first African American woman Director of DoD Military Schools, while battling cancer across three continents and never once quitting on herself.
Georgia Mae Project Documentary, stories about the journeys of women of color as they face-down, overcome, survive, and thrive with breast cancer.
The Georgia Mae Production Assistant Interns Program:
Partnering with Pathpoint (one of Southern California’s largest disability services nonprofits), the program creates 5 paid Production Assistant positions across both film productions. Participants receive industry training, on-set experience, and pathways to permanent careers in entertainment.
“Adults on the autism spectrum face an 85% unemployment rate, yet they excel at exactly what production needs—attention to detail, dedication to routine, reliability,” says Kelly, whose oldest son is on the spectrum. “We’re not just training. We’re hiring. These are real jobs on real film sets.”
The program launched with a Disney studio visit on November 11, 2025, with production scheduled for early 2026 and followed up with a fast track film and tv production workshop on November 18th.
For years, Meme curated the Exceptional Young Adults Annual Celebration and a Job Fair at the Help Group.
About MeMe Kelly:
MeMe Kelly is a Los Angeles-based writer, director, and producer with exceptional credentials and lived experience in authentic storytelling about neurodivergence and medical advocacy. Her work includes:
• Nicholl Fellowship Advanced (feature script, top 20% of 7,500 submissions)
• Samuel Goldwyn Writing Awards Top 10 Script (UCLA Film School)
• Humanitas Prize Recommended
• Lena Waithe/Macro Lab Finalist
• UC Distinguished Dean’s Playwriting Fellow (MFA)
• Published: Los Angeles Times, Christian Science Monitor, HuffPost
• Producer: One Night in LA (streaming on Tubi)
Kelly raised three sons—two who attended Harvard-Westlake and University of Michigan, and one who attended The Help Group. She has hosted annual celebrations and job fairs for exceptional young adults on the autism spectrum.
Production Timeline:
• November 2025: Intern training and industry partnerships
• January 2026: Every Night in LA production begins
• February-March 2026: Don’t Quit production
• June 2026: Festival premieres
Sponsorship & Partnership Opportunities Available
The Georgia Mae Project seeks corporate sponsors and philanthropic partners. Contact: [email protected] (preferred) or [email protected]

Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
A smooth road? Not even close. But every challenge has shaped who I am and the work I do today.
Raising three sons in Los Angeles while my oldest navigated autism came with daily complexities that most people couldn’t imagine. There were therapies, IEPs, sleepless nights, and the constant advocacy required to ensure he received what he needed. Add to that the pressure of pursuing creative dreams while being fully present as a mother—it often felt like I was being pulled in a thousand directions at once.
The early 1990s brought the Rodney King riots and civil unrest to our city, compounding an already difficult season with my son’s diagnosis. I fell into deep depression, questioning everything. But it was in that darkness that God redirected my path, showing me that peace comes through service to others, not self-focus.
Breaking into the entertainment industry as a Black woman filmmaker and playwright presented its own set of obstacles—closed doors, limited access, and the challenge of being taken seriously in spaces where I wasn’t always welcomed. Funding productions, finding theaters, and building audiences required relentless persistence and faith.
Then there’s the grief of losing my mother, Dr. Georgia Mae, a trailblazing educator whose legacy I now carry forward through The Georgia Mae Project. Her loss deepened my resolve but also reminded me how fragile and precious our time is.
The struggles haven’t stopped—they’ve just evolved. But each one has taught me resilience, deepened my faith, and sharpened my purpose. The road hasn’t been smooth, but it’s been mine, and I wouldn’t trade it for anything.

Appreciate you sharing that. What else should we know about what you do?
I’m a filmmaker, writer, and entrepreneur who specializes in barrier-breaking storytelling that creates real-world impact. I founded The Shout Method production company and run multiple interconnected creative ventures, all rooted in faith, family legacy, and opening doors for underrepresented communities.

As a filmmaker, I’m known for my feature film *One Night in LA*, which screened at the Essence and Pan African Film Festivals before streaming on Tubi, and my short films *Out of Bounds* and *The Thorns Out of Bounds*, both official selections for Sisters Doing It For Themselves, curated by the Black Hollywood Educational Center and funded by the University of California. I’m currently in production on two films set for November filming: *Every Night in LA*, the sequel to my first feature, and *Don’t Quit*, which tells my mother’s extraordinary story. My screenwriting has earned recognition as a Nicholl Fellowship semi-finalist and Samuel Goldwyn Top 10 honoree.

Beyond the screen, I’ve built a substantial platform as a writer with 4,000 Substack subscribers who love my “Porch Dwellers” stories featuring characters Bigmama and Leggy set in Chattanooga. My work has appeared in the Christian Science Monitor, HuffPost, and Los Angeles Times. I’m currently in conversations with publishers about my book *This Land Is Made for You and Me: A Mother’s Voice*—a collection of 28 essays written to my sons over three decades.

What I’m most proud of is The Georgia Mae Project, named for my late mother, Dr. Georgia Mae, who was the first woman superintendent in her LA district and later Director of Military Schools for the Department of Defense. This initiative combines filmmaking with my Perfect Production Assistants program, which creates employment opportunities for young adults on the autism spectrum in entertainment. We’ve already placed participants at Disney Studios and on active productions—turning my personal journey as a mother to a son with autism into pathways for others.

I also run Georgia Mae Writers, a collective that brings together storytellers, and continue to share the SHOUT Method (Shine, Hope, Overcome, Use Your Power, Take Charge) that I’ve been teaching for over 30 years—from women’s shelters and juvenile centers to private events and classrooms across Los Angeles.

What sets me apart is that I don’t just tell stories—I build ecosystems. My work isn’t about me succeeding alone; it’s about creating opportunities, honoring legacy, and proving that faith-driven creativity can transform lives. I’m not asking for help—I’m offering partnership to corporations and organizations who want to invest in barrier-breaking work that makes a measurable difference.

I hold an MFA from the University of California as a Distinguished Dean’s Fellow and my undergraduate degree from UCLA, but my greatest education has come from 40+ years of marriage to my college sweetheart, raising three sons, and becoming grandmother to Georgia and Otis. Every project I touch is infused with that lived experience, that faith, and that fierce commitment to leaving the door open wider than I found it.

What matters most to you?
What matters most to me is legacy—not just leaving one, but honoring the one given to me and ensuring others have the chance to build theirs.
My mother, Dr. Georgia Mae, broke barriers as the first woman superintendent in her LA district and later as Director of Military Schools for the Department of Defense. She showed me that one person’s courage can open doors for generations. When I lost her, I realized my responsibility wasn’t just to grieve—it was to carry forward her commitment to education, opportunity, and breaking down walls that keep people out.
That’s why The Georgia Mae Project exists. It’s why I created Perfect Production Assistants to give young adults on the autism spectrum real opportunities in entertainment. My oldest son’s journey with autism taught me that ability looks different than the world expects, and talent exists everywhere—but access doesn’t. I refuse to accept that.
Faith matters most to me because it saved my life. During my darkest depression, God redirected me from self-focus to service, and that shift changed everything. It’s why I’ve spent over 30 years sharing the SHOUT Method—because I know firsthand that when you’re drowning, sometimes all you need is someone to remind you that you have power, purpose, and a path forward.
Family matters most to me—my husband of 40+ years, my three sons, my grandchildren Georgia and Otis. They are my why. Every story I tell, every door I kick open, every opportunity I create is rooted in the love and lessons learned from being their wife, mother, and grandmother.
Ultimately, what matters most is using my voice, my platform, and my work to ensure that the next generation—especially those who look like me, those who parent children with differences, those who’ve been told they don’t belong—knows that their story matters, their gifts are needed, and the door is open.
Because someone held the door open for me. And I’ll spend the rest of my life making sure it stays that way for others.

Pricing:

• Corporate sponsorship packages for The Georgia Mae Project: Custom partnership tiers available
• Perfect Production Assistants program placements: Contact for program details
• Film partnership opportunities: Investment levels vary by project
• Inspirational digital content available at https://www.shoutmethod.com/shoutkit_buynow.html and shoutmethod.com: Starting at $9.99
• SHOUT Method Masterclasses and coaching: Up to $599

Contact Info:

• Website: shoutmethod.com and onenightinlamovie.com
• Instagram: @shoutmethod and @memekelly_
• Facebook: onenightinlamovie and memekellywrites
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/meme-kelly-852357172
• Youtube: memekellydotcom
• Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/1OSzsfZp1oTeZrWkdoyOTs
• Other: memekelly.substack.com