‘Ben’imana’: Marie-Clementine Dusabejambo On Directing Rwanda’s First Cannes Title & How Haile Gerima And Lee Isaac Chung Helped To Launch Her Career
Marie-Clementine Dusabejambo has completed her debut feature film, Ben’imana, which explores the connections among Rwandans after the 1994 genocide. This film is notable for being the first Rwandan entry to screen at the Cannes Film Festival. Dusabejambo credits filmmakers Lee Isaac Chung and Haile Gerima for their significant influence on her journey as a director.
- ▪Ben’imana is a film that took over a decade to develop and is Dusabejambo's first feature as a director.
- ▪The film will premiere at the Cannes Film Festival as part of the Un Certain Regard competition.
- ▪Dusabejambo was encouraged by Lee Isaac Chung to pursue directing, emphasizing the need for more women in film.
Opening excerpt (first ~120 words) tap to expand
“I feel relieved,” Marie-Clementine Dusabejambo says with a relaxed smile. After more than a decade in development, she has just wrapped on Ben’imana, a bold and formally inventive film about Rwanda and the complex bonds that connect its citizens following the brutal 1994 Tutsi genocide. Ben’imana is Dusabejambo’s first feature credit as a director. Ben’imana is also the first Rwandan film to screen at the Cannes Film Festival, where it will debut tomorrow as part of the Un Certain Regard competition. “This is a real joy and relief, especially when you’ve worked on a project for as long as I have,” Dusabejambo continues.
…
Excerpt limited to ~120 words for fair-use compliance. The full article is at Deadline.
Discussion
0 commentsMore from Deadline
