Inspiring Conversations with Jalyn Baity of Baity Films

Today we’d like to introduce you to Jalyn Baity.

Hi Jalyn, it’s an honor to have you on the platform. Thanks for taking the time to share your story with us – to start maybe you can share some of your backstories with our readers?
My name is Jalyn Robert-Alexander Baity. I carry my mother’s, father’s, and maternal grandfather’s names. And I feel I also carry their dreams, hopes, and aspirations, as well as, their grievances and pains acquired in the pursuit of what little life seemingly had to offer them.

I was raised primarily on the eastside of Detroit, but much of my childhood was spent splitting time between Detroit and Chicago. In either world, I was raised to always be or appear tough and taught not to cry or complain. I was taught to emotionally suppress, encouraged not to make scenes, not to draw attention, not to cause trouble, and subsequently, never to let my guard down.

But, early on, I was also introduced to a form of expression, in visual arts, that unbeknownst to me, would require few words in order to be or feel heard. I remember desperately wanting to be understood and to understand myself, who I was as opposed to who I was “supposed” to be, and who I could be as opposed to what my familial and environmental bounds represented.

It was nearly in a spirit of rebellion that I decided to pursue a creative career, an attempt at shaking off prior notions that my value could only be found in the approval of certain closed-minded individuals with dispositions bred out of dream deferral and fatigue from holding together broken homes.

But, I figured that if foolishness is repeating the same action and expecting a different result then playing life safe might produce the same results for me that I’d watched numerous people have to regretfully accept. And I’d rather learn vicariously, take the gamble and do what I believed would bring me the most joy and fulfillment.

There’s a lot that happened in between me taking an interest in art as early as 4 years old, drawing scenes from memory on the floor of my granny’s home, and me deciding to pursue a degree in film years later, like the love and support of my fifth-grade teacher, Mrs. Williams, who was extremely convinced that I would become a famous author and/or illustrator or my mother deciding to enroll me in a newly opened art and design middle school in Detroit.

But, do know that, there’ll be no shortage of me sharing more of my story in the future because telling stories is exactly what I plan to continue doing.

Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall, and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
I think that finding one’s voice in all the noise as an artist or storyteller is always a challenge.

Attending a PWI was probably one of the biggest hurdles after deciding to pursue art over-engineering, as it relates to deciding who I wanted to be, as an individual and deciding what I wanted to say, as a filmmaker.

I struggled to make art that was true to my lived experience without feeling like I’d be singled out just based on the inherent cultural differences that existed between me and my peers. And everything that I wanted to say came with a certain emotional weight that I couldn’t always see the value in sharing publicly, despite having a desire to share.

There was a time when telling the stories that I wanted to tell felt like the prospect of live-streaming a session with my therapist, like the nakedness of bearing my soul would leave me feeling alone and afraid but it hasn’t. And ultimately, I fell in love with the power that we all have to control our narratives, to decide where our story ends and begins and how our stories are told and remembered.

I always had my voice, but I was afraid to use it and that’s a hurdle I was happy to overcome.

Appreciate you sharing that. What should we know about Baity Films, LLC?
My brand is one of one.

To get to the place where I am now, running a business, pursuing a creative career, and thriving in an industry where anything but the best can sometimes fall through the cracks, I had to take a relatively unconventional route. There was no roadmap for me to get here and everyone who helped me along the way participated in a small miracle.

There is no other Jalyn Baity in the world, and I carry my name with pride and I handle my business with pride and thus, Baity Films, LLC was born.

My media production company specializes in the creation of docu-style, branded content, and narrative storytelling (i.e. promotional and brand advertisements, testimonials, narrative films, live events, etc.), and I’ve been most proud of the growth I’ve seen and the rapport I’ve built locally in the time I’ve been in business.

For me, quality comes before anything else and I take that very seriously because the work I do is representing me, and specifically my name and reputation.

What makes you happy?
What makes me happy is the constant pursuit of growth. I’m not trying to get to a particular destination in a set timeframe because I tend to exceed my expectations every day just by enjoying the process.

It can genuinely feel like I am living a dream because I stopped allowing my worries and fears and uncertainties to dictate what I do with my “one” life, and started chasing what I want out of it.

Contact Info:

• Email: [email protected]
• Website: www.baityfilms.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jalynbaity/?hl=en
• Facebook: https://www.instagram.com/baityfilms/?hl=en
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCDolc3o-2Fz7jCOrPeE6D9w
• Other: https://www.indiegogo.com/projects/love-an-autobiographical-drama/x/22982339

Image Credits
Khary Mason, Quiana Brundidge, and Jalyn Baity