Jomo Fray

Cinematographer Jomo Fray was born on September 18, 1988 in Worcester, Massachusetts to Jean King and John Fray. Fray received his B.A. degree in political theory and Africana studies from Brown University in Providence, Rhode Island in 2010 and his M.F.A. degree in cinematography from the New York University Tisch School of the Arts in 2016.

Fray first worked on a feature-length film as director of photography for Amazon’s Selah and the Spades, directed by Tayarisha Poe, in 2019. Fray worked as director of photography for Arp Sélection’s film Port Authority, directed by Danielle Lessovitz, which was released in 2019. The film was also an official selection at the Cannes Film Festival. Fray joined Ten Acre Films as director of photography for the film No Future, released in 2021, which was directed by Mark Smooth and Andy Irvine. Fray then collaborated with director Marian Mathias on Easy Rider Films’ 2022 production of Runner, which was an official selection for the Toronto Film Festival. In 2023, Fray served as director of photography for A24’s 2023 film, All Dirt Roads Taste of Salt, which was directed by Raven Jackson. Fray went on to collaborate with Tayarisha Poe again on Archer Gray Production’s The Young Wife, which was released in 2023. Fray then collaborated with director RaMell Ross to create The Nickel Boys, a film adaptation of Coleson Whitehead’s 2019 novel of the same name, which was released by MGM in 2024.

During his career, Fray served as director of photography for two television series: A24 and HBO’s Random Acts of Flyness, directed by Terrance Nance in 2018, and Amazon and Plan B Entertainment’s The Underground Railroad, directed by Barry Jenkins in 2021. Fray also worked as director of photography for numerous short films including Lilian Mehrel’s Haunt in 2016, Marian Mathias’s Give Up the Ghost in 2017, Haley Anderson’s Get Out Fast in 2018, Carey Williams’s Emergency in 2018, Raven Jackson’s Nettles in 2018, and Portia A. Buckley’s Clodagh in 2024.

In terms of professional organizations, Fray has served on the International Cinematographers Guild (Local 600) since 2020 and the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences since 2023. Fray also worked as a fellow for Film Independent in 2017 and for the Sundance Film Festival in 2019.

Throughout his career, Fray received numerous awards and honors including the Kodak Vision Award in 2016, the Volker Bahnemann Award in Outstanding Cinematography from the ARRI Group in 2017, American Cinematography magazine’s Rising Star of Cinematography Award in 2022, and an Independent Spirit Award Nomination for Best Cinematography for All Dirt Roads Taste of Salt in 2023. Fray was included on the “25 New Faces of Independent Film” list in Filmmaker magazine in 2018.

Fray and his wife, Rosa Gilmore, reside in Brooklyn, New York.

Jomo Fray was interviewed by The HistoryMakers on July 19, 2024.