Tiny Talks is an interview series with Tiny Spoon’s talented contributors. This week we spoke with Jaina Cipriano from our thirteenth issue.
Tiny Spoon: What kindles your creativity?
Jaina Cipriano: Reconnecting with my inner child through play, cartoons and stories I loved as a child. Being in nature when the air is warm and the sky is dark. Traveling, seeing new places. And facing my fears.
Tiny Spoon: Are there any artists/ heroines/ idols/ friends that you look up to?
Jaina Cipriano: David Lynch – his work never explains itself to me and that is so brave.
Madeleine L’Engle – her children’s books made me feel seen when it felt like adults all looked right through me.
Nan Goldin’s fearless work runs through my veins, inspiring everything I do.
Buddy Neilsen of Senses Fail – growing up alongside this band makes me feel like my dreams are possible as I’ve watched Buddy be endlessly vulnerable in his healing.
Tiny Spoon: Do you have specific superstitions or divinatory practices that you adhere to?
Jaina Cipriano: I have OCD and do my best to not adhere to any superstitions!
Tiny Spoon: We love insight into the creative process. Could you share what it is like for you, either with your work that appears in Tiny Spoon or in general?
Jaina Cipriano: My creative process is an act of excavation. The spaces I build mirror an inner state I haven’t yet fully understood. So much of my work is about reintegration: reclaiming memory, reframing trauma, and using imagery to rewrite inherited narratives. I follow my instinct, often ending up messy and exhausted but always transformed. Photography, filmmaking, and immersive installation each offer me different ways to confront what’s unresolved. I don’t want to document what is—I want to make visible what’s buried.
Tiny Spoon: Do you have any current or future projects that you are working on that you would like to share?
Jaina Cipriano: This year is an exciting year! I’m releasing The Lucky Ones, an archival photo series documenting my teenage years, which will debut at the Griffin Museum of Photography in a small installation and serve as the foundation for a forthcoming photo book. In film, I’m releasing The Impostor Syndrome, a five-part limited series produced with Martian Radio Theatre, while preparing to crowdfund and direct Actualization, a short exploring the fear of vomiting and inherited fear. My feature project, Heaven Can’t Be Better Than This, continues to evolve—five years in the making, it explores religious gaslighting and self-possession. This October, the Arlington International Film Festival (AIFF) returns with plans for a large-scale opening night immersive event, laying the groundwork for our 2026 rebrand. I’m also presenting new public installations this year, including an interactive sculpture at the Essex Art Fair in July and a light activation in Winchester running from late 2025 to early 2026. My immersive work continues to grow with What Are You Afraid Of?, supported by a NEFA Public Art Learning Fund grant and Odyssey Works consultation, which may be reimagined as an outdoor nighttime experience this summer.
Tiny Spoon: What book, artwork, music, etc., would you recommend to others?
Jaina Cipriano: Books: A Wrinkle in Time by Madeleine L’Engle, House of Leaves by Mark Z. Danielewski and Lisey’s Story by Stephen King.
Movies: Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, Coraline, Black Swan and Spirited Away.
Albums: Good News for People Who Love Bad News by Modest Mouse, Hell is in Your Head by Senses Fail and The Division Bell by Pink Floyd.
Tiny Spoon: Is there anything else you would like others to know about you, your creations, or beyond?
Jaina Cipriano: What I want people to know is that my work isn’t about escape—it’s about confrontation. The dreamlike, immersive spaces I build aren’t fantasy; they’re emotional landscapes made visible. I’m always asking: Who gave this story to me? And do I want to keep it? I also want to challenge the idea that healing has to be soft or quiet. Sometimes it’s a collapsing house, a teddy bear that talks back, a woman who refuses to be touched. Whatever shape it takes, I hope my work helps people feel braver in facing themselves. Like it does for me.
Tiny Spoon: Where can people learn more about what you do?
Jaina Cipriano: You can learn more about my personal work on my website – jainaphoto.com or my Instagram @jainastudio. You can follow my immersive design studio at findingbrightproductions.com or @letlightfindyou. And the Arlington International Film Festival is at aiffest.org and @arlingtonfilmfest.
