A4 Welcomes Grace Blackmar as Inaugural Anjeli Jana Memorial Intern
Asian American Arts Alliance (A4) is thrilled to welcome Grace Blackmar, Anjeli Jana Memorial Intern!
Grace Blackmar is a Chinese American adoptee from Portland, Oregon. She is a current senior in the Ailey/Fordham BFA program where she pursues a major in Dance, and minors in Peace & Justice Studies and American Studies. In addition to dancing professionally, Grace is interested in nonprofit social justice work, particularly through the lens of race, gender, class, and culture. Read her full bio on our website.
About the Anjeli Jana Memorial Internship
Anjeli Jana, the daughter of two immigrant physicians from India and the Philippines, lived the dream of many AAPI artists within the A4 community: pursuing the arts full time. She did so in a variety of fields: acting, music, and documentary film. A graduate of San Francisco State University and the American Conservatory Theater, Anjeli was the lead of an all-girl band that played numerous venues in the Bay Area.
After relocating to Los Angeles she wrote about culture for LA Splash magazine, and entered in and won numerous beauty pageants. While living in LA, Anjeli was accepted to Santa Monica College, from which she graduated with honors with an Associate’s Degree in Computer Business Applications.
She wrote, produced, directed, scored, and starred in a short film, “My Marina,” about her neighborhood, Marina del Rey. The film won numerous international awards not only for the writing, but also for the original song, “Stranger Star.”
This internship is funded by the Jana-MacAdam family to honor Anjeli’s life. It provides a university student of Asian American descent to work with A4 for an entire school year, so that the student may help support, and learn from, AAPI artists like Anjeli who courageously pursue their creative passion and build a life devoted to the arts.
