JO BARKER

Jo Barker is a director, self shooting PD and editor of short documentary films. As an editor, she has worked for over 10 years within the Bristol TV industry on productions for the BBC Natural History Unit, CH4 and online streaming platform Waterbear Network.

Jo co-runs Black Bark Films, a female led film production company based in Bristol, that works collaboratively with clients to produce socially conscious films. Black Bark Films also create and facilitate workshops on filmmaking and imposter syndrome, including for the CineSisters Film Festival based in Cornwall. Through Black Bark Films acting as Lead Mentor, Jo also devises and teaches a documentary filmmaking course to young people, in association with the BFI. Having recently lived in the Republic of Ireland, she co-created the short film festival “A Pot of FIlms”, which supported local filmmakers to showcase their work and also premiered Jo’s first selfmade experimental doc on the Sheela-na-gigs of Ireland. 

Jo believes documentary films can be tools for compassion, opening doors to worlds that people may otherwise, have never received the chance to step into. The responsibility of the filmmaker to tell anothers story in the most honest and sensitive way is a precious and sometimes heavy responsibility, something that should never be taken for granted.

Jo’s work with Black Bark Films has been screened at the Cube Microplex, the Arnolfini, the M Shed, Exeter Phoenix, Two Short Nights, Circus International Film Festival, Commoning Thread, Stroud Film Festival, Women’s International Film Festival Nigeria, Cornwall Film Festival, The Palace Film Festival, Festival de films Alimenterre, Agrofilm, British Documentary Film Festival, New Earth International Film Festival, Courage Film Festival, Greenmotions Film festival, Annual Copenhagen Film Festival, Hebrides International Film Festival. The feature length documentary In Our Hands can be seen on Waterbear.com.

 Jo studied Media Practice (BA Hons) at The University of the West of England.