Cincinnati Filmmaker Biz Young Explores COVID-19 Crisis Through Photojournalism

Cincinnati filmmaker Biz Young uses her lens as a tool to tell the stories that sometimes go unseen or heard, often focusing her craft on social and environmental activism.

And while documentary films are typically her focus, during the COVID-19 pandemic, Young has used this unprecedented time in history to explore photojournalism, using her unique style and vision to show viewers a different side of the coronavirus pandemic.

"For the first half of quarantine, I couldn't bring myself to even pick up my camera. My full-time design job didn't require me to and, with the surrounding global emotional stress, creating felt more heavy than soothing," Young said in a statement.

"But a shift arose when my company (like many others) had to begin mass layoffs. It was the first time since beginning my career that I found myself unemployed, confused, and lost in uncertainty. But I realized I had the drive to explore my neighborhood with a new perspective, and in turn, was able to actualize some of the emotions I was feeling during this time. Although these images are moody and dramatic, it felt cathartic to get them out of my head and into a medium that could do the translating for me. I no longer feel as burdened when I can see it through a lens. "