Rama Thiaw (born April 30, 1978) is a Senegalese filmmaker and screenwriter. She is known for her 2009 documentary ''Boul Fallé, la Voie de la lutte'' and her most recent documentary ''The Revolution Won’t be Televised'' (2016).

Personal life and education

Rama Thiaw was born April 30, 1978, in Nouakchott, Mauritania to Mauritanian and Senegalese parents. Thiaw spent her first five years in Nouakchott (Quartier 5), before going to Pikine, in the suburb of Dakar, the capital of

Senegal Senegal, officially the Republic of Senegal, is the westernmost country in West Africa, situated on the Atlantic Ocean coastline. It borders Mauritania to Mauritania–Senegal border, the north, Mali to Mali–Senegal border, the east, Guinea t ...

. After her parents’ divorce, she began splitting her time living in Senegal and France. Thiaw obtained a master's degree in International Economics at the Sorbonne in Paris. She then began to develop an interest in cinema, which led her to receive a diploma in filmmaking from the

University of Paris 8 Paris 8 University (), or usually the University of Vincennes in Saint-Denis or Paris 8, is a public university in the Greater Paris, France. Once part of the historic University of Paris, it is now an autonomous public institution. It is base ...

and later on, another master's degree at the University of Paris 3 at Censier Daubenton.

Career

After completing her post-secondary education, Thiaw met with Algerian filmmaker Mohamed Boumari (assistant on the film La Bataille d’Alger) in 2002 with whom she participated in a production workshop. Thereafter, Thiaw collaborated with Zaléa TV where she made a series of film portraits on the inhabitants of the French commune,

Aubervilliers Aubervilliers () is a communes of France, commune in the Seine-Saint-Denis departments of France, department, Île-de-France regions of France, region, northeastern suburbs of Paris, France. Geography Localisation Aubervilliers is one of th ...

and their poor housing conditions. This series was then followed up by a 15-minute documentary short titled ''Les jeunes de quartier et la religion''. Thiaw was the assistant of communications of

Fabienne Godet Fabienne Godet (born 20 May 1964) is a French film director and screenwriter. Biography Fabienne Godet was born in Angers into a family of six children. She studied psychology and worked in the medical field. Simultaneously, she engaged in three y ...

's producer, on the film '' Burnt Out'' starring

Marion Cotillard Marion Cotillard (; born 30 September 1975) is a French actress who has appeared in both European and Hollywood productions. She is the recipient of List of awards and nominations received by Marion Cotillard, various accolades, including an Ac ...

in 2006. While still in France, Thiaw met French producer

Philippe Lacôte Philippe Lacôte is an Ivorian film director. He is most noted for his 2014 film ''Run'', which was a Lumière Award nominee for Best French-Language Film at the 20th Lumière Awards, and his 2020 film ''Night of the Kings (La Nuit des rois)'', ...

who agreed to work with her on what would be Thiaw's first feature-length documentary film. Her film ''Boul Fallé, la Voie de la lutte'' was released in 2009. The film follows the “revival of traditional wrestling” in the suburbs of Dakar, where Thiaw grew up and “considers the sport’s influence in terms of the recent social and political transformations in Senegal” revolving around the Senegalese Independence. Additional to creating parallels between Senegal's wrestling and politics, Thiaw draws upon the expression found in Senegalese reggae and hip hop. In 2010, Thiaw began production on her second documentary feature entitled ''The Revolution Won’t be Televised'' (2016), the title based on the poem by musician

Gil Scott-Heron Gilbert Scott-Heron (April 1, 1949 – May 27, 2011) was an American Jazz poetry, jazz poet, singer, musician, and author known for his work as a spoken-word performer in the 1970s and 1980s. His collaborative efforts with musician Brian Jackso ...

. This second work maintained the political and social Senegalese discourse as her previous film, however revolving primarily around the rise of the apolitical group “ Y’en a Marre” (We’re Fed Up”), led by rappers Thiat and Kilifeu. The documentary followed Y’en a Marre's protests against President Abdoulaye Wade’s continuous run for presidency. ''The Revolution Won't be Televised'' was screened at the

Berlin International Film Festival The Berlin International Film Festival (), usually called the Berlinale (), is an annual film festival held in Berlin, Germany. Founded in 1951 and originally run in June, the festival has been held every February since 1978 and is one of Europ ...

in February 2016, winning the Fipresci Prize and a special mention in the Caligari Filmpreis.

Filmography

* ''Boul Fallé, la Voie de la lutte'', 2009, director Rama Thiaw. Wassakara Productions. * ''The Revolution Won't be Televised,'' 2016, director Rama Thiaw. Bout Fallé Images.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Thiaw, Rama 1978 births Mauritanian film directors Living people Senegalese women writers Senegalese women film directors Senegalese film directors