“I think we can exist in all spaces,” CEO and founder of Reform Media Group and co-founder of ColorCreative, Deniese Davis, passionately expressed while speaking with EBONY.
Celebrating Black women all month and every month, EBONY couldn’t move forward without honoring a woman who has allowed us to see ourselves reflected in mainstream media. As a producer and creative executive known for breaking barriers across TV and film, Davis’ remarkable vision for what Black creatives can be, do and see has allowed talented acts to become legends.
As a changemaker, Davis isn’t scared of the work, but aims to define it on her own terms. “A changemaker is someone who fights to create something different because they believe it’s what’s right for them, and also for everyone else,” she said.
Nearly 15 years ago, Davis was producing small-budget short films and acting as a production assistant to gain experience in Hollywood. With her attention to detail and determination to distribute authentic stories, she is now credited with delivering cultural timepieces, including the hit HBO dramedy Insecure and the 2025 box-office hit One of Them Days.
“What tends to happen is that when it comes to Black stories, people immediately try to put it into a box and say their niche. And they say they’re niche because in their opinion, it’s a story that cannot travel on a larger scale to a global audience. Or sometimes [we are told]those stories can’t be commercial. However, there is this interesting thing when you look at something like Insecure, where I felt like this show did not just stick to one type of audience. And [it was]a great example of storytelling that can be done to a larger, broader audience.”
As a four-time Emmy-nominated producer, Davis admits to craving a change in the industry. “I think what’s missing in storytelling right now is the lack of creative risk. And it’s not from the storytellers. I think there are a lot of creators who are just biting at the bit to tell very personal, commercial stories. But honestly, the problem to me is this business. When you look at who controls, owns and shifts this business, you realize corporations are making decisions based on stockholders and not based on creatives.”
Just over two years ago, Davis and her Reform Media platform inked a development deal with Tyler Perry Studios to cover TV, unscripted and first-look feature film projects, aiming to bring more diverse storytelling to both television and film. With data showing that only 5% of leaders are women of color and 7% of filmmakers are Black women, Davis’ success is a win for the community she represents and continues to inspire.
In addition to delivering innovative projects, Davis mentions how authenticity has been a driving force in not only choosing creative endeavors but through successfully building impactful connections. “I think connection is so important to me because I have found myself involved with and producing projects that, at the end of the day, are a hundred percent authentic. And when you can be your authentic self, when you can create authentic stories, I think therein lies meaningful connections.”
After years of viewing and being presented with an outsider’s perspective of Blackness, she added, “It’s weird to say, but I think we can all feel when we are watching something that feels inauthentic. And most times it feels like it’s trying to explain to us what Blackness is, or it’s trying to portray something culturally that doesn’t feel accurate.”
Yes, statistics, sales and marketing are all a part of the grandiose machine of commercial storytelling, but intuition is something that the award-winning producer credits to her success. “I have honed my intuition as a storyteller by asking myself all the questions. If I am collaborating with a writer or a filmmaker, [which is]my favorite part of the process, my intuition may tell me, ‘I’m not connecting on it.’ Many notes are usually coming from my intuition. That honestly is just driven out of having done this for a long time where you read a lot of scripts.”
Though retiring is nowhere in sight for Davis, she mentions a new world she hopes to step into. “One story that I am dying to tell — I often say it’s gonna be the thing I tell before my career is over. I have always wanted to create an original musical film and not a film adapted from Broadway. And I don’t think it’ll ever be a remake of an old classic movie. I have been very interested in trying to figure out how you can tell a story right now that is taking the most popular aspects of music from our culture and telling a story around that.”
Knowing that others may be seeking advice on how to find success in the creative space, the successful creative clearly outlines what to avoid: “When you become something you’re not supposed to be, ’cause you’re trying to please everybody else.”
Learn more about what makes Deniese Davis a Changemaker by checking out the video above.
