“You can only be who you are at the time. You cannot be the person you're going to be later.” It’s one of the many truths offered in Tuning René Marie, a short documentary that doesn’t shout, but resonates.
Directed by Rachel Kessler and now streaming on Omeleto, the film is a moving, meditative portrait of jazz vocalist René Marie — a woman who found her voice later in life, after surviving a childhood shaped by abuse, silence, and the weight of growing up in the Jim Crow South.
There’s no sensationalism here. Through soft, measured voiceover, René offers a window into her life — from the brutality and brilliance of her father, to the deep, complex love she holds for her mother, and even for the man who hurt her. That emotional duality is what gives the film its quiet power. You feel it in every pause.
What stands out most is not just René’s story, but her strength — which lives in the tenderness of her delivery, the honesty of her reflections, and the simple, profound act of speaking at all. Kessler paints her life with restraint and respect, using hand-drawn animation over 16mm footage to blur memory and presence, past and possibility.
Tuning René Marie doesn’t seek to define or resolve. It simply listens. And in doing so, it becomes essential viewing. Stream the full short film via Omeleto:
