Candice Vernon’s directing career launched the moment she quit her ad job and bet on herself, resulting in writing, directing, and producing her award-winning short film, Make America Great?, which screened at festivals worldwide and was highlighted by The Hollywood Reporter and Decider.com. This success led Candice to be recognized by The Russo Brothers’ production company where Stevie Wonder hand-picked her to direct The Dream Still Lives, a powerful short docu celebrating Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., featuring icons like The Obamas, Stevie Wonder, Common, Paul McCartney, Bruce Springsteen, and Meryl Streep. The project has amassed over 1 billion impressions, firmly establishing Candice as a distinguished voice in storytelling.

 

Candice previously served as an ad agency Executive Producer and Head of Production, collaborating with high-profile brands and acclaimed directors who encouraged her to go after her dreams. Born in Jamaica and raised between the USA and Germany, her multicultural upbringing deeply influences her storytelling. Drawn to comedy-drama, Candice often emphasizes the importance of finding humor even in life's most challenging moments.

 

Recognized for her genre-blending filmmaking, documentaries, and commercial work, Candice has directed celebrated talents including Academy Award winner Regina King, Neicy Nash, Jenny Slate, and Sterling K. Brown, to name a few. Her directorial portfolio includes projects for major brands such as Warner Media|HBO, Spotify, Hulu, Buzzfeed, NBA2K, Febreze, Cascade, and Vaseline. This extensive body of work ultimately earned Candice her membership in the Directors Guild of America (DGA).

Currently, Candice is actively showcasing two new short films on the festival circuit, 117 Years of Movie Bullsh*t and Cave Canem, which has already garnered two best short horror film awards. She earned her BA in Film & TV from Temple University and now splits her time between Los Angeles and Accra, Ghana, where she is developing an institute dedicated to creative arts and technology, as well her debut feature film to be shot between Washington, DC and various parts of Ghana.

 

Credits:

 

Film/Television

 

• Paramount+ & BET+  | Average Joe | Episodes 5-6 | Television Director Shadow | Director: Marshall Tyler | April  2025 

• She Werks | 117 Years of Movie Bullshit | Short Film | Comedy/Drama/Sci-Fi | February 2025 

• She Werks | Cave Canem | Short Film | Thriller | November 2023 

• A Co-Production of Leadership Center for Attorney General Studies and 5to60 | Two Trials | Feature Documentary | June 2023 

• Somatic TV | LG OLED | Hanging With Kuz starring Kyle Kuzma & Travis “Taco” Bennet | Episodes 1-3 | Web Series | June 2021 

• She Werks | Make America Great? | Short Film | January 2017 

 

 

Featured Commercials & Branded Content

 

• Eleanor | NAACP: Keep Advancing | September  2024 

• Native Content | Niecy Nash x Versalie: Is it _____ or Menopause? | April 2024 

• Eleanor | Febreze Air Mist/ Febreze Fabric Spray/ Febreze Plug | September 2024

• Eleanor | Febreze Dial of Destiny & Febreze Revolving Door | February 2024 

• Southern Sky | Ice-T x Raising Cane’s Summer of One Love | May 2022 

• DPM Projects | Tillamook Jenny Slate, Partnership For Creamier Ice Cream Campaign | March 2022 

• Edison | Veritas Presents w/ Simu Liu | January 2022 

• Chromista | NBA2K| 2K22 Holiday Campaign Carolers, St. Swish, & Hot Mess | October 2021

• Southern Sky | Svedka Vodka | Svedka Goes Campaign| Cowboy & Wedding | September 2021 

• Great Guns | Vaseline | Regina King, Your Skin Is My Story | July 2021 

• Cortez Brothers | Cascade | Do It Every Night 2.0 f/ Sterling K. Brown| Dirty Little Secret & Dirty Little Talk | April 2021 

• BuzzFeed | Facebook Watch x Red Table Talk | Introducing the Estefan's Promo | November 2020 

• Stadium | HBO/Warner Media/Color of Change | 2020 & The Great Disruptors | September 2020 

• WhoSay | Spotify Wrapped w/ Yara Shahidi | November 2019 

• Bullit Entertainment | CAA | The Dream Still Lives PSA | April 2018 

 

Awards

 

• Best Short Horror | Cave Canem | Alpine International Film Festival

• Best Short Thriller | Cave Canem | Cult Movies International Film Festival

• Audience Award Best Short Film | Make America Great? | Zero Film Festival

• Audience Award Best Short Film | Make America Great? | National Black Film Festival

• Audience Award Best Short Film | Make America Great? | Bill Johnson Film Festival

• The Hollywood Reporter feature | ‘Make America Great?’ Short Film Imagines Trump-Era Dystopia

• Decider feature | Afternoon Delight: ‘Make America Great?’ Imagines a Trump-Led Dystopia

• Bronze Telly Award | Bedsider.org, Don't Give Up