Tehran, one of the pioneers of African cinema, died of Marian film director Thulemame Sises at 84.
He passed away Wednesday in Bamako, Mali, one of the first generation of African filmmakers, considered one of the pillars of African films.
Cissé took part in the 17th edition of the Iranian International Documentary Film Festival in Tehran in December 2023, holding a session on the African film industry, Mehr reported.
The award-winning author and director became the first African filmmaker to win the Jue Prize at the Cannes Film Festival, and the half-century silver marked by African storytelling, a commitment to deep humanism. It left a pioneering legacy on the screen. and deep political engagement.
His film Yeelen (aka “Brightness”) (1987) is probably the biggest African film ever made.
Born in Bamako and raised in a Muslim family, Cise has been a passionate cinema since her childhood. His film career began as an assistant projectionist in a documentary about the arrest of Patrice Lumumba. This sparked his desire to make his own films, and he received scholarships at the Gerasimov Cinematography Institute, Moscow Film School and TV.
In 1970 he returned to Mali and joined the Ministry of Information as a photographer, where he produced documentaries and short films. Two years later, he produced his first medium-length film, “Five Days of Life.”
In 1974, Cisse produced his first full-length film, The Young Girl. His second film, “Work,” was released four years later, and won the Talon Award for Yenenga in 1979 for Fespaco.
In 1982, Cissé created “The Wind.” This tells the story of a dissatisfied young Mali confronting the institution. This led him to win his second Yenenga Talon at the 1983 Fespaco.
Between 1984 and 1987, he produced the juj-jun award-winning adult film “Yeelen” at the Cannes Film Festival in 1987, becoming the first African film to win an award in the history of the festival. Ta. In 1995 he produced “Time” where he competed for Parmedoll at the 1995 Cannes Film Festival.
He served as president of UCECAO, a union of creators and entrepreneurs in West Africa’s cinemas and audiovisual arts. His work exemplifies the development of social realism in African cinema, including the ultimate move towards restoring tradition.
Cisse is also known as “the master of complex storytelling and preserving the common and mysterious things.” His films are known for their uncompromising portrayals of military violence, abuse of money and power, unionism, and the enduring tensions of patriarchy against Bamako women and young people.
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