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Tribute to Souleymane Cissé and Mali
The girl ( Mali 1975 )
Color: Fiction, color, 88’
Direction: Souleymane Cissé
Screenplay: Souleymane Cissé
Director of Photography: Abdoulaye Sidibé et Cheick Hamala Keïta
Music: Wandé Kuyaté
Editing: Andrée Davanture
Cast: Dounamba Dany Coulibaly, Fanta Diabate, Omou Diarra, Balla Moussa Keita, Mamoulou Sanogo, Ismaila Sarr
Production: Souleymane Cissé, Les Films Cissé - Sisé Filimu
Synopsis
Sekou is fired from the factory because he asked for a raise. Unemployed, he dates Ténin, a mute girl he didn’t knows she is the daughter of his former boss. Ténin, who will be raped by Sekou during an outing, gets pregnant and suffers the wrath of her parents. First feature of Souleyman Cissé, shot in the Bambara language.
Réalisateur
A documentary about the arrest of Patrice Lumumba made Souleymane Cissé decide to start his cinematographic career. Thanks to a scholarship, he studied at the Institute of Cinematography in Moscow.
When he returned to Mali in 1970, he was a cameraman-reporter for the Cinematographic Service of Ministry of Information, which gave him the chance to travel across the country and make several documentaries.
His first film Five days of life (1972) receives the Bronze Tanit in CFF.
In 1975, he shot Den Muso (The young girl), the story of a mute girl raped by an unemployed person. At its release, the film was banned and Souleymane Cissé was arrested and jailed for accepting a French cooperation. The film remains banned until 1978.
In 1977 he gave up his position to create his own production company, Sisé Filimu. His second feature Baara (work) receives the Silver Tanit in CFF 1978 and the Yennenga Stallion at FESPACO 1979.
In 1982, Finyè (The Wind, 1982) is a film about the revolt of young students face Malian military power. This work is politically engaged awarded the Golden Tanit CFF 1982 and the Yennenga Stallion at FESPACO 1983. The film is also selected at the Cannes Film Festival the same year.
Yeelen (Light), directed in 1987 obtained the Special Jury Prize at Cannes and finally reveals Souleymane Cissé to the public.
In 1995 Souleymane Cissé returned to Cannes with Waati (The Time)
Souleymane Cissé released his sixth feature Min Yé (2009), a film about polygamy. Its world premiere took place in Cannes official selection, out of competition.
Souleymane Cissé, since 1997, is the president of the Union of creators and entrepreneurs of cinema and audiovisual in West Africa (UCECAO).