Editor's note: This piece was written during the 2023 WGA and SAG-AFTRA strikes. Without the labor of the writers and actors currently on strike, the [series/movie/etc] being covered here wouldn't exist.

Savanah Leaf directed short films and music videos before transitioning to feature films. Earth Mama, the writer-director’s feature debut, sets Leaf apart as a filmmaker to watch. Earth Mama is authentic and emotional, painting a devastating portrait of struggle, single motherhood, and surviving in a system that is built to work against you. The film, inspired by Leaf’s documentary short The Heart Still Hums, is immediately captivating — from the opening scene to the last haunting image. Leaf and star Tia Nomore complement one another, elevating a quiet, thoughtful journey.

Gia (Nomore) is a single mother of two, with a third child on the way. Heavily pregnant, Gia works part-time at a retail photography shop while taking ordered classes in a bid to regain custody of her children, who were taken away and placed in foster care. Gia tries her best to balance all that is going on in her life, her pain and stress bringing a heavy weariness that threatens to overwhelm Gia. She also oscillates between wanting to keep her new baby and giving her up for adoption, with the guidance of her counselor Miss Carmen (Erika Alexander). This strains her relationship with Trina (Doechii), Gia’s closest friend. Still, Gia tries to do what’s best for her and her children in a system that only brings hardship.

Earth Mama’s visuals are crucial to understanding Gia’s journey. Often, Leaf lingers on Gia, her features schooled, her eyes reflecting the internal struggle. A particular scene — in which Gia is having lunch with a potential adoptee family — sees Gia engaged briefly in the conversation, but as soon as her mind begins to wander, her eyes change and the music, softly playing in the background and barely heard, goes silent, while the conversation gets muffled. It’s a gorgeous scene that plays to Leaf’s strengths as a director. When words aren’t enough, the visual elements of the story step in, turning Earth Mama into a striking meditation and exploration of a single mother’s struggles.

The film is tender and empathetic. It’s a hard watch, but it’s what makes Earth Mama so powerful, effusing a strength and tenacity that underscores the vulnerability beneath. Gia maintains a passive face, but it isn’t hard to see the ache that lives beneath the surface, the frustration waiting to break free, the emotion building to a boiling point. To that end, Nomore does a magnificent job in bringing these warring layers and emotions to life. Meanwhile, Leaf’s script and direction is intimate, never veering off course.

The film is so good precisely because it genuinely explores Gia’s life; it doesn’t exploit her pain, but lives in it free of judgment. The very system that causes her distress is an invisible cloak Earth Mama wears, but it’s also more concerned with the effects it has on Gia, and countless other Black women, as it unfolds its very human story. The script is made up of various conversations, many of which Gia has with her community, which is just as much a part of her world as her kids and job.

The cinematography by Jody Lee Lipes enriches the film, offering close-ups of Gia, lingering on her face and her surroundings, inviting us into her world with sensitivity and gentleness. Earth Mama is the kind of film that draws you in and keeps you hooked with its powerful storytelling and the layered intimacy within Nomore’s understated performance.

Earth Mama is now playing in select theaters and will expand to more in the coming weeks. The film is 97 minutes long and is rated R for language, some drug use, nudity and sexual references.