Thérèse Sita-Bella
Thérèse Sita-Bella | |
---|---|
Born | Thérèse Bella Mbida 1933 |
Died | 27 February 2006 Yaoundé |
Nationality | Cameroonian |
Citizenship | Cameroonian |
Occupation | Film director |
Thérèse Sita-Bella (1933–27 February 2006), born Thérèse Bella Mbida, was a Cameroonian film director who became the first woman filmmaker of Africa and Cameroon.
Early life and education
She was born into the
Career
In 1955, Sita-Bella started her career as a journalist.[1] Later on, in 1963, Sita-Bella became the first woman filmmaker in Cameroon and all of Africa.[2] From 1964 to 1965, Sita-Bella worked in France at the French newspaper La Vie Africane, which she co-created. After returning to Cameroon in 1967, she joined the Ministry of Information and became the Deputy Chief of Information.[1]
Tam Tam à Paris
In 1963, Sita-Bella directed the
Sita-Bella was considered to be a trailblazer and one of the rare women working in the film industry that was being dominated by men.[5] She spoke about the film industry in the 1970s by saying:
"Camerawomen in the 1970s? At that time we were very few. There were few West Indians, a woman from Senegal called Safi Faye and I. But you know cinema is not a woman's business".[5]
Death
On 27 February 2006, Sita-Bella died at a hospital in Yaoundé from colon cancer.[6] Sita-Bella was buried at the Mvolye cemetery in Yaoundé.[5]
Honors
The Sita Bella film hall at the Cameroon Cultural Centre was named after her.[7]
References
- ^ a b Pouya, André Marie (September 1989). "Interview with Thérèse Sita-Bella". Amina (in French). 233: 44. Retrieved 10 November 2016.
- ^ .
- ^ "Recovering Lost African Film Classics". africa-in-motion.org.uk. Archived from the original on 17 October 2008. Retrieved 10 November 2016.
- S2CID 157593132. Retrieved 10 November 2016.(subscription required)
- ^ a b c Tande, Dibussi. "Sita Bella: The Final Journey of a Renaissance Woman". dibussi.com. Retrieved 10 November 2016.
- ^ "Cameroon's first woman journalist dies". nation.com.pk. Archived from the original on 17 March 2008. Retrieved 10 November 2016.
- ^ Anchunda, Benly. "Cameroon Cultural Centre gets face lift". crtv.cm. Retrieved 24 November 2016.