About the Project
Project: Coach Emily (working title)
Emily Taylor, an Oakland-based queer Black rock climbing coach, fearlessly trains a diverse group of BIPOC girls and non-binary kids, to conquer the pervasive discrimination they face in the great outdoors. As they claim their place in nature, Emily embarks on a profound journey of self-care, while working to dismantle an industry rife with institutionalized discriminatory practices.
Pallavi Somusetty Bio
Pallavi Somusetty is an Oakland-based filmmaker who creates documentary portraits centering BIPOC voices in the hope that we feel fully seen in the complexities of our identities and journeys. She’s a series producer for A-Doc, and her feature debut in progress, Coach Emily (working title), is a 2023 DocLands DocPitch Industry Award Winner. Pallavi’s short doc, Escaping Agra, about a young transgender Indian teen’s escape from family, has screened in festivals across the world, and her award-winning cinematography has appeared on Nat Geo, PBS, and other media outlets. Her work has been supported by Center for Asian American Media, California Film Institute, IDA, The Puffin Foundation, Eddie Bauer, Studio IX Project, Center for Cultural Innovation, and more. Pallavi holds a documentary-focused Master in Journalism from UC Berkeley and a BA in Creative Writing from UC Santa Cruz. In her spare time, she climbs rocks with her kids and supports incarcerated pregnant people as a doula.