In sankofa, the ethiopian filmmaker haile gerima gives a new perspective on the history of africans in the americas. Sankofa 1993 smithsonian african american film festival. Sankofa which is an akan word meaning that we must return and retrieve our history so we can go forward. Sankofa a good film directed by haile gerima, mypheduh. Rebellion film movement, gerima is known as a hollywood outsider. A conversation with haile gerima published by tadias magazine september 17th, 2009 in featured. When no company would distribute his film, director haile gerima went on a roadshow tour from city to city, screening the film personally. The film sankofa is an akan word that means, one must return to the past in order to move forward. Afterward, he relocated to washington, dc, to teach at howard universitys department of radio. Written, directed and produced by ethiopianborn filmmaker haile gerima, sankofa is a powerful film about maafathe african holocaust.
Haile gerima is an independent filmmaker and professor of film at howard university. Haile gerima burkina faso 1993 summary credits press documents. He was most widely known for 1993s sankofa about the african slave trade. This empowering film tells a story of slavery and of the african diaspora from the. Haile gerima family, childhood, life achievements, facts, wiki and bio of 2017. Powerful, moving and highly acclaimed, director haile gerimas sankofa is a masterpiece. I practiced a lot even during sankofa, bush mama, i made movies with nonactors and actors too. Haile gerima is an independent filmmaker and professor of film at howard university in washington, d. An artist with a warriors discipline, haile gerima has blazed the trail for an alternative voice to classic hollywood films. Sankofa is a 1993 burkinese drama film directed by haile gerima centered on the atlantic slave trade. Haile gerima s poetic and precisely detailed film takes its audience into its heroines life and.
Powerful, moving and highly acclaimed, director haile gerima s sankofa is a masterpiece of cinema that has had a transformative impact on audiences since its release in 1993. The storyline features oyafunmike ogunlano, kofi ghanaba, mutabaruka, alexandra duah, and afemo omilami. Written and directed by haile gerima, the movie was released in 1993 and. An iconic film for the african diaspora and a key work in the oeuvre of african master haile gerima. This film has a particular interest in exploring how the characters actively pursued the ideals of sankofa.
This empowering film tells a story of slavery and of the african diaspora from the perspective of the enslaved, challenging the romanticizing of slavery prevalent in american culture. Sankofa bird that haile gerima s recent film has brought to the attention of his public. Sankofa depicts the appropriation of violence by its victimsand the movie itself is an act of history, a bearing of witness, and a reminder and reinforcement of dignity. Sankofa 1993, like its ethiopianborn filmmaker haile gerima, is important both in african and african american cinema history. At ucla he, along with awardwinning filmmakers charles burnett killer of sheep, jamaa fanaka penitentiary. Inspired by the haitian revolution which had toussant louverture as its main leader, gerima s narrative utilizes african religion and spirituality to empower and unite people. In the ghanaian language, akan, the term sankofa means to return to your past and reclaim it. Gerima is a professor at howard university in dc and his films confront the issues of race, integration, and violence in africa and america. Haile gerima s cinematic rendering of this is perhaps one of his greatest filmmaking achievements. This empowering film tells a story of slavery and of the african diaspora from the perspective of the enslaved, challenging the romanticizing of slavery prevalent in. Sankofa 1993 traces the metaphysical adventure of mona, a young black american model who has come to elmina castle in ghana for.
Haile gerima s sweeping, powerful sankofa, which in the african language of akan means returning to the past in order to go forward, opens in the cape coast castle in. Born in gondor, ethiopia in 1946, gerima is the fourth child of ten children. He and charles burnett, movie director of 1977s killer of sheep, had been. Haile gerima celebrity profile check out the latest haile gerima photo gallery, biography, pics, pictures, interviews, news, forums and blogs at rotten tomatoes. While in west africa, a young model named mona oyafunmike ogunlano encounters an old mystic and gets transported into the past where she is enslaved on a plantation.
On june 1st, gerima is launching an indiegogo campaign to finance the production of this new dramatic feature. Posted on november 21, 2019 november 21, 2019 by jl admin. Sango, gerima s character who initiates the revolution, is named. Interview with ashes and embers filmmaker haile gerima. While mona ogunlano, a black american fashion model, cavorts for a white photographer during a shoot at a fortress town on the ghanaian coast, an old drummer, sankofa ghanaba, warns that her. Haile gerima biography 2017 facts, childhood, wiki. Sankofa is available through mypheduh films gerima s production company in dc. After there was a discussion and the producer was right there in the. He is best known for sankofa 1993, which won numerous international awards. In 1996, gerima founded the sankofa video and bookstore in washington, dc. Sankofa iffr international film festival rotterdam. Haile gerima hit a brick wall when trying to finance his story of a black woman, so he did it himself. Haile gerima is an independent filmmaker and professor of film at howard.
This section contains mature content and you need to be at least 17 years old. What movies about slavery teach us about race relations today unlike 12 years a slave, the 1993 film sankofa doesnt feature a white savior, reminding viewers that the present is still full. To learn more about the filmmaker and support his film campaign, visit and check the. Notably, the film received a nomination for germanys golden bear, the most prestigious award within the german film industry. It is a blast of african pride and antislavery vigor from ethiopianborn director haile gerima. Sankofa is a film that twists the typical perspective of slavery by challenging africanamerican and societal views. Numerous and frequentlyupdated resource results are available from this search. Over forty years of filmmaking, advocacy and education has made gerima a recognized leader in independent cinema across the globe. Haile gerima net worth 2018, biowiki celebrity net worth.
Born and raised in ethiopia, gerima emigrated to the united states in 1967. Sankofa the only authorized dvd film by haile gerima mypheduh films, inc. Haile gerima was born and raised in gondar, ethiopia. Penned, directed and also produced by ethiopian filmmaker haile gerima, sankofa is an influential movie regarding maafathe african holocaust. Born and raised in ethiopia, gerima emigrated to the. Haile gerima born march 4, 1946 is an ethiopian filmmaker who lives and works in the united states. Sankofa 14 tv movies rbg tube panafrican tv v2 0 free revolutionary audio video. Sankofa the only authorized dvd film directed by haile gerima, mypheduh films, inc.
Filmmaker haile gerima born african american registry. Kofi ghanaba, mutabaruka, oyafunmike ogunlano, alexandra duah, reggie carter, haile gerima. Since 1975, haile has been an influential film professor at howard university in washington, d. I know how to demystify acting, that is part of my education my orientation. In haile gerima s film, sankofa, he portrays a story of identity and rediscovery of the past and ancestry through timetravel in which mona, an africanamerican model, possesses the body of a houseslave named shola. As a youth gerima performed in his fathers theater troupe, which presented original and often historical drama, always submersed in the genuine culture of ethiopia. His father was a dramatist and playwright, who traveled across the ethiopian countryside staging local plays. Sankofa is an akan word that means, one must return to the past in order to move forward. His films have received wide international acclaim. Halie gerima arrived in the united states from his native gondar, ethiopia, to study acting and directing at the goodman theater in chicago, illinois. Gerima emigrated to the united states in 1968 to study theatre. What movies about slavery teach us about race relations. Filming for the movie took place in five different countries, including germany and the united states. Read the sankofa movie synopsis, view the movie trailer, get cast and crew information, see movie photos, and more on.
The films director, haile gerima, explores through her journey an ideology called sankofa, which means, to retrieve the past to move forward dorsey par 1. Yetut lij child of the breast is a new film by the international awardwinning filmmaker, behind teza, sankofa, bush mama and harvest 3000 years. Reliable information about the coronavirus covid19 is available from the world health organization current situation, international travel. Haile gerima, menace ii the status quo washington post. Haile gerima born gondar, ethiopia, march 4, 1946 is an ethiopian filmmaker who immigrated to the united statesin 1968. Oyafunmike ogunlano, alexandra duah sankofa haile gerima. Following in the footsteps of his father, a dramatist and playwright. Haile gerima 1 1946 filmmaker embraced america, shunned ethiopia 2 turned to film to reclaim his culture 3 chose howard university over hollywood 4 struggled to make sankofa 5 works continued to reclaim history 6 sources 7 filmmaker haile gerima 8s 1993 film sankofa follows a mod. He later transferred to the theater department at ucla where he completed the masters program in film. A conversation with haile gerima at tadias magazine. Theres a poster up around town promoting demolition man, a new action movie, that in. Oclcs webjunction has pulled together information and resources to assist library staff as they consider how to handle.
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