Meet E. Buckles: The New Orleans Film Director Telling the City’s Stories Through His Lens

#NOLAZINE - New Orleans has always been a city filled with storytellers. From music and food to photography and film, generations of creatives have found ways to document the culture and make sure the world understands what makes the city special. One filmmaker helping carry that tradition forward is Edward Buckles Jr., better known as E. Buckles.

A New Orleans native, Buckles has developed a reputation as a filmmaker, director and visual storyteller whose work puts the people and culture of his hometown at the center.

For Buckles, filmmaking is about much more than creating beautiful images. His camera has become a tool for preserving history, documenting real experiences and giving New Orleanians an opportunity to tell their own stories.

Years before receiving national recognition, Buckles was already directing visuals and collaborating with artists in New Orleans. In a 2017 interview surrounding his work, Buckles described his role in the city as being its "eyes," using his camera to capture the beauty and reality of the people who truly make New Orleans what it is.

"Katrina Babies" Introduced E. Buckles to a Bigger Audience

One of the most important projects of Buckles' career became the documentary "Katrina Babies."

Buckles was only 13 years old when Hurricane Katrina devastated New Orleans in 2005. Instead of simply examining the storm from a historical perspective, he turned his attention toward something that was often overlooked: the children who survived it.

"Katrina Babies" explores what happened to young New Orleanians who were forced to experience displacement, destruction and trauma during their formative years—and how those experiences continued affecting them as they became adults.

Buckles spent years documenting members of his generation and allowing them to speak openly about what surviving Katrina meant to them. The project ultimately became a deeply personal portrait of New Orleans, childhood, trauma, resilience and healing. The film went on to become a Tribeca Festival award winner and was released through HBO.

What makes the documentary especially meaningful is that Buckles isn't telling the story as an outsider looking into New Orleans. He lived it.

He was part of the same generation he was documenting.

That perspective allowed "Katrina Babies" to become more than another Hurricane Katrina documentary. It gave young survivors an opportunity to explain what happened in their own words.

Representing New Orleans on a National Level

Buckles' work has continued reaching audiences beyond Louisiana while keeping New Orleans at its center.

In 2024, ESSENCE featured his photography and directing work in its "A Love Letter To New Orleans" project. The feature showcased numerous people who represent different parts of the city's Black culture, with Buckles credited for photography and directing.

That type of work represents what has made E. Buckles' journey important.

He isn't simply trying to become a successful filmmaker who happens to come from New Orleans. His work repeatedly brings New Orleans with him.

The neighborhoods, people, music, history, struggles and beauty of the city remain part of his creative identity.

Buckles has also worked within the city's music scene. Earlier in his career, he directed music visuals, including work connected to artist Ciel Rouge. Artists who collaborated with him praised his ability to understand their vision while bringing a strong technical perspective to the production.

More Than a Film Director

Calling E. Buckles simply a film director doesn't completely describe what he represents.

He is part of a generation of New Orleans creatives determined to document their city from their own perspective.

For decades, outsiders have traveled to New Orleans to tell stories about Hurricane Katrina, Bourbon Street, crime, music and the city's culture. Buckles represents something different: a New Orleanian telling New Orleans stories.

That distinction matters.

When people who actually understand a community are behind the camera, audiences can see things that might otherwise be overlooked—the humor, family relationships, neighborhood traditions, pain, resilience and everyday personalities that make the city what it is.

Through projects such as "Katrina Babies" and his continued photography and directing work, E. Buckles has shown how powerful a camera can become when it is placed in the hands of someone who understands the people standing in front of it.

Here at Nolazine, we want to give E. Buckles his flowers for continuing to represent New Orleans through film and visual storytelling.

His journey is another example of the creative talent that continues to come out of the city. More importantly, his work helps ensure that New Orleans stories aren't just remembered—they're documented by the people who actually lived them.

Meet E. Buckles: a New Orleans filmmaker using his lens to preserve the culture, tell the truth and make sure his city's stories reach the world.