Dieudo Hamadi
{{Short description|Congolese film director (born 1984)}}
{{Infobox person
| image = Dieudo Hamadi at the 2025 Cannes Film Festival.jpg
| caption = Hamadi at the 2025 Cannes Film Festival
| name = Dieudo Hamadi
| birth_date = February 22, 1984
| birth_place = Kisangani
| citizenship = Democratic Republic of the Congo
| occupation = Film director and screenwriter
| notable_works = Kinshasa Makambo
}}
Dieudo Hamadi (born February 22, 1984) is a filmmaker from the Democratic Republic of the Congo. He is known for documentaries that portray the struggles of ordinary people facing conflict, corruption, and social challenges in the DRC.{{Cite web |first=François |last=Ekchajzer |url=https://www.telerama.fr/cinema/le-cineaste-dieudo-hamadi-porte-parole-des-victimes-de-lautre-guerre-des-six-jours-6981016.php |title=Le cinéaste Dieudo Hamadi, porte-parole des victimes de l’autre guerre des Six-Jours |language=fr |website=telerama.fr |publisher=Télérama |date=October 7, 2021}}{{cite web |url=http://www.africine.org/personne/dieudo-hamadi/21809 |title=Dieudo Hamadi, Film director, Producer, Screenwriter, Editor, Assistant director |date=2020 |website=africine.org |publisher=Fédération africaine de la critique cinématographique (FACC) |access-date=2 November 2023 |quote=Dieudonné Hamadi was born in Kisangani (Democratic Republic of Congo) on February 22, 1984 and studied biomedicine from 2005 to 2008, before moving into filmmaking.}}
Early life and education
Hamadi was born in Kisangani. After starting medical studies in 2005, he eventually turned to filmmaking after participating in two workshops held in Kinshasa in 2007, one led by fellow Congolese Djo Munga. {{Cite web |last=mraultpauillac |date=2025-05-19 |title=Interview with Dieudo Hamadi, member of the Feature Films Jury |url=https://www.festival-cannes.com/en/2025/interview-with-dieudo-hamadi-member-of-the-feature-films-jury/ |access-date=2025-05-24 |website=Festival de Cannes |language=en-US}}{{Cite web |title=Icarus Films |url=https://icarusfilms.com/filmmakers?id=25 |access-date=2025-05-24 |website=icarusfilms.com}} He went on to graduate from the INSAS film school in Brussels.
Career
After initially directing music videos and commercials and working on various projects for director Djo Munga’s production company, Hamadi turned to making documentaries.{{Cite web |title=As Seen By Dieudo Hamadi |url=https://metrograph.com/category/as-seen-by-dieudo-hamadi/ |access-date=2025-05-24 |website=Metrograph |language=en-US}}
His first short documentary film, Ladies in Waiting (Dames en attente), won the Pierre et Yolande Perrault Grant for an emerging filmmaker at the Cinéma du Réel film festival in 2010.Siegfried Forster, [https://www.rfi.fr/fr/contenu/20100330-traversee-reel "La traversée du réel"]. Radio France Internationale, March 30, 2010. The film was part of Congo in Four Acts, an anthology of four short films by emerging Congolese filmmakers.{{cite news|last=Young|first=Neil|title=Congo in Four Acts -- Film Review|url=http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/review/congo-four-acts-film-review-29306|newspaper=The Hollywood Reporter|date=October 14, 2010}}
In 2013, his film {{ill|Atalaku (film)|lt=Atalaku|italic=yes|fr|Atalaku}} (Town Criers) won the Cinéma du Réel festival's Joris Ivens Prize for Best First Film.Antoinette Delafin, [https://www.rfi.fr/fr/afrique/20130410-rdc-atalaku-urgence-temoignage-Dieudo-Hamadi-cinema-du-reel "RDC: «Atalaku» ou l’urgence du témoignage"]. Radio France Internationale, April 10, 2013. In 2014, he won the same festival's Potemkine and Société civile des auteurs multimédia awards for {{ill|Examen d'État|italic=yes|fr|Examen d'État}} (National Diploma),Patrick Kiamini, [https://www.adiac-congo.com/content/cinema-du-reel-le-film-examen-detat-remporte-deux-prix-10801 "Cinéma du réel : le film « Examen d’État » a remporté deux prix"]. Agence d'Information d'Afrique Centrale, April 10, 2014. and in 2017 he won the festival's Grand Prize for Mama Colonel.Fabien Lemercier, [https://cineuropa.org/en/newsdetail/326596/ "Mama Colonel emerges triumphant at Cinéma du Réel"]. Cineuropa, April 3, 2017.
In 2018, his film Kinshasa Makambo won the Tim Hetherington Award at the 2018 Sheffield DocFest,Ben Dalton, [https://www.screendaily.com/news/the-silence-of-others-takes-top-sheffield-doc/fest-prize/5130113.article "'The Silence Of Others' takes top Sheffield Doc/Fest prize"]. Screen Daily, June 13, 2018. and the True Vision Award at the 2018 True/False Film Festival.[https://www.columbiamissourian.com/news/local/congolese-filmmaker-to-receive-true-vision-award/article_79339c1e-0b7b-11e8-9dc8-737d92256898.html "Congolese filmmaker to receive True Vision Award"]. Columbia Missourian, February 6, 2018.
His 2020 film Downstream to Kinshasa (En route pour le milliard) was named an Official Selection of the 2020 Cannes Film Festival, the first film from the Democratic Republic of the Congo ever nominated.Christopher Vourlias, [https://variety.com/2020/film/global/congo-dieudo-hamadi-downstream-to-kinshasa-1234690966/ "‘Downstream to Kinshasa,’ First Congolese Film in Cannes Official Selection, Honors Resilience of War Victims"]. Variety, June 26, 2020. Due to the cancellation of the festival in light of the COVID-19 pandemic in France, it was not screened at that time; however, it was given an online screening for distributors as part of the Marché du Film.Elsa Keslassy, [https://variety.com/2020/digital/global/cannes-virtual-marche-du-film-unveils-expanded-cannes-docs-lineup-1234630479/ "Cannes’ Virtual Marché du Film Unveils Expanded Cannes Docs Lineup"]. Variety, June 10, 2020. It had its public premiere in September 2020 as part of the Planet Africa program at the 2020 Toronto International Film Festival,Jeremy Kay, [https://www.screendaily.com/news/tiff-adds-special-events-including-new-edition-of-planet-africa-live-talks-series/5152540.article "TIFF adds special events including new edition of Planet Africa, live talks series"]. Screen Daily, August 25, 2020. where it received an honorable mention from the jury for the Amplify Voices Award.Daniele Alcinii, [https://realscreen.com/2020/09/21/tiff-20-inconvenient-indian-takes-peoples-choice-documentary-award/ "TIFF ’20: “Inconvenient Indian” takes People’s Choice Documentary Award"]. RealScreen, September 21, 2020.
In 2024 he wrote and produced Life is a Railroad (La Vie est un chemin de fer) a feature film combining four short films by Maria Donda, Okoko Nyumbaiza, Moimi Wezam et Michael Bauma.{{Cite web |title=La vie est un chemin de fer... sur les rails ! |url=https://www.imagesfrancophones.org/actualites/la-vie-est-un-chemin-de-fer-sur-les-rails-1862 |access-date=2025-04-29 |website=www.imagesfrancophones.org}}{{Cite web |title=La vie est un chemin de fer |url=https://www.swissfilms.ch/fr/movie/la-vie-est-un-chemin-de-fer/fcf2ec8d9c294fc99080e909c280bc65 |access-date=2025-04-29 |website=swissfilms |language=fr}}
As of May 2025, Hamadi is in post-production on a 6-episode Sci-Fi-Fantasy series, Les âmes errantes de Kinshasa, which he is producing and directing for Canal +. {{Cite web |title=OuiCoprod |url=https://ouicoprod.org/talent/?id=85 |access-date=2025-04-29 |website=ouicoprod.org}}
He served as a member of the main Competition jury for the 2025 Cannes Film Festival. {{Cite web |title=MSN |url=https://www.msn.com/en-us/movies/news/halle-berry-payal-kapadia-alba-rohrwacher-le%C3%AFla-slimani-dieudo-hamadi-hong-sangsoo-carlos-reygadas-and-jeremy-strong-set-for-2025-cannes-jury/ar-AA1DM9Ti |access-date=2025-04-29 |website=www.msn.com}}
Filmography
Hamadi's films include:{{IMDb name|3846344}}
Awards
Hamadi's films obtained 16 awards and 23 nominations, including:
| class="wikitable sortable" | ||
| Film | Festival | Award |
|---|---|---|
| Atalaku (Town Criers, 2013) | Cinéma du Réel | 2013 Prix Joris Ivens du Meilleur Premier film |
| {{ill|Examen d'État|italic=yes|fr|Examen d'État}} (National Diploma, 2014) | Cinéma du Réel | 2014 Cinéma du Réel SCAM Award 2014 Cinéma du Réel Potemkine Award, (Prix des éditeurs) |
| Mama Colonel (Maman Colonelle, 2017) | Berlin International Film Festival | 2017 Winner Prize of the Ecumenical Jury |
| Downstream to Kinshasa (En route pour le milliard, 2020) | Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF) | 2020 Winner Amplify Voices Award Special mention |
| idem | Golden Apricot Yerevan International Film Festival | 2021 Winner Silver Apricot Feature Competition |
| idem | International Film Festival and Forum on Human Rights | 2021 Winner Gilda Vieira de Mello Award |
| idem | War on Screen | 2021 Winner International Jury Grand Prize |
References
{{reflist}}
External links
- {{IMDb name|3846344}}
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Hamadi, Dieudo}}
Category:Democratic Republic of the Congo documentary filmmakers