Magaajyia Silberfeld
{{Short description|French actress (born 1996)}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=April 2023}}
{{Infobox person
| name = Magaajyia Silberfeld
| image = Magaajyia Silberfeld at the 2024 Toronto International Film Festival 2 (cropped).jpg
| alt =
| caption = Silberfeld in 2024
| birth_name =
| birth_date = {{Birth date and age|1996|8|30|df=y}}
| birth_place = Paris, France
| death_date =
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| years_active =
| occupation = Film director, actress
| notable_works =
}}
Sarah Magaajyia Silberfeld (born 30 August 1996) is a French actress and film director.
Biography
Silberfeld is the daughter of film director Rahmatou Keïta and French journalist Antoine Silber.{{cite news|language=fr|first=Megan |last=Arnaud|title=Le fardeau de la couleur de peau|newspaper=Le Temps|date=18 March 2019|url=https://www.letemps.ch/culture/fardeau-couleur-peau-0|access-date=4 October 2020}} She began acting at the local theater at the age of 11. Silberfeld grew up in France but travelled frequently to Greece, Niger, and Mali, and lived in Los Angeles for three years.{{cite web|language=fr|first=Léa |last=Movia|title=Interview de Magaajyia Silberfeld, réalisatrice et actrice|url=https://fr.petitsfrenchies.com/interview-de-magaajyia-silberfeld-realisatrice-et-actrice/|website=Les Petits Frenchies|date=26 January 2017|access-date=4 October 2020}} She made her film debut in 2011, in La Lisière.{{cite web |title=Magaajyia Silberfeld |url=http://africultures.com/personnes/?no=50886 |website=Africultures |access-date=4 October 2020 |language=fr}} Silberfeld studied acting at the Lee Strasberg Institute in 2013, at Playhouse West Repertory Theater in 2014 and at Susan Batson Studio in 2015.{{cite web|language=fr|title=Comédiennes - Magaajyia Silberfeld|url=http://www.filmtalents.com/fiche.cfm/115_1-628549-magaajyia_silberfeld.html|website=FilmTalents.com|access-date=4 October 2020}}{{cite web|language=fr|first=Marie-Claude |last=Martin|title=Le FIFF offre une carte blanche à 16 actrices noires et métisses|url=https://www.rts.ch/info/culture/cinema/10298663-le-fiff-offre-une-carte-blanche-a-16-actrices-noires-et-metisses.html|website=RTS|date=18 March 2019|access-date=4 October 2020}} At the age of 18, she wrote and directed her first short film, Me There and co-directed Ride or Die featuring Piper De Palma and Roxane Depardieu.{{cite web |title=Magaajyia Silberfeld |url=https://africanfilmny.org/directors/magaajyia-silberfeld/ |website=African Film Festival |access-date=4 October 2020}}
In 2016, Silberfeld had her first leading role in The Wedding Ring, directed by her mother and financed entirely through African funds. She played Tiyaa, a young woman who goes to study in France and falls in love with a man from a prestigious background. The film became the first Nigerien film to be played at the Academy Awards.{{cite news|language=fr|first=Agnès |last=Faivre|title=Cinéma - Oscars 2019 : « Zin'naariyâ ! » de Rahmatou Keïta dans la course|newspaper=Le Point|date=12 April 2018|url=https://www.lepoint.fr/culture/cinema-oscars-2019-zin-naariya-de-rahmatou-keita-dans-la-course-03-12-2018-2276300_3.php|access-date=4 October 2020}} In 2017, she directed her short film Vagabonds, starring Danny Glover. The same year, Silberfeld obtained a philosophy degree from the Sorbonne.{{cite news |last1=Karolle |first1=Vane |title=Radar - Magaajyia Silberfeld |url=https://www.globetrottermag.com/news-features/2017/4/3/magaajyia-silberfeld |access-date=4 October 2020 |work=Globetrotter Magazine |date=3 April 2017}} During college, she learned English through watching American films.
She served as a curator during the 2019 Fribourg International Film Festival and sponsored the Charter for Equality and Diversity.{{cite web|title=LE FIFF s'engage pour la parité|website=Fribourg International Film Festival|url=https://www.fiff.ch/fr/le-fiff-sengage-pour-la-parite|language=fr|access-date=4 October 2020}} Silberfeld presented her mother's documentary Al’lèèssi... Une actrice africaine (2004), a portrait of the Nigerien actress Zalika Souley.
In 2021, she says she takes her cue from Doris Payne, a comfortable and elegant 90-year-old African-American diamond thief with Native American blood.{{cite web|title=" J'aimerais qu'on en arrive un jour à ne plus regarder les couleurs de peau "|url=https://dieses.fr/jaimerais-quon-en-arrive-un-jour-a-ne-plus-regarder-les-couleurs-de-peau|author=Paul Tommasi|website=Dièses|date=7 April 2021|access-date=2 November 2021|publication-date=}}
Filmography
- 2011: La Lisière (actress)
- 2014: Me There (short film, co-writer/director)
- 2015: Ride or Die (short film, co-director)
- 2016: The Wedding Ring (actress)
- 2017: Vagabonds (short film, writer/director)
- 2023: Greek Salad (TV series)
- 2024: The Return (2024 film)
References
{{Reflist}}
External links
- [https://www.imdb.com/name/nm6179266/ Magaajyia Silberfeld] at the Internet Movie Database
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Category:Nigerien women film directors
Category:Nigerien film directors