Bio

Yohana Desta is an Eritrean- and Ethiopian-American writer and director based in New York City. She received her MFA from New York University’s graduate film program in May 2025.

She is also a longtime journalist, working as a staff writer for Vanity Fair from 2016 to 2023. During her tenure at the magazine, she wrote cover stories on Kristen Stewart, Chadwick Boseman and Regina King, among others. In 2024, she returned to write the October cover story on Selena Gomez.

She has also written for outlets like Mashable and Harper’s Bazaar UK. As a seasoned moderator, she has led panels on behalf of A24, Focus Features, BAFTA, the Screen Actors Guild, and more. As a copywriter and marketing freelancer, she has worked on behalf of projects for Peacock, Hulu, Audible, and Universal Music Group.

In 2025, she was selected to be one of three fellows for the Diverso writing fellowship. She is also a former artist resident of Pocoapoco, a cross-disciplinary arts residency in Oaxaca, Mexico. 

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