Born the son of a fisherman, Senegalese film director, writer and producer Ousmane Sembène started off writing novels earlier in his career. His novels dealt with issues of racism and classism. Sembène’s third and most famous novel Les Bouts de Bois de Dieu (God’s Bits of Wood, 1960) is considered by most critics a masterpiece. The novel fictionalizes the real-life story of a railroad strike on the Dakar-Niger line and lasted from 1947 to 1948.

In 1966, Sembène produced his first feature, La Noire de…(Black Girl), based on one of his own short stories. At 60 minutes long, it was the first feature film ever released by a sub-Saharan African director. The French-language film gained attention for Sembène and African film. Sembène’s next film, Mandabi (The Money Order) in 1968 was produced in his native Wolof producing a film in his native Wolof. He continued to make films and garner praise from critics.

His final film, the 2004 feature Moolaadé, won awards at the Cannes Film Festival and the FESPACO Film Festival in Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso. The film, set in a small African village in Burkina Faso, explored the controversial subject of female genital mutilation.

Many themes found in Sembène’s films revolved around colonialism, religion, a critique of African bourgeoisie and the resilience of African woman.

Some of Sembène’s films:

* Borom Sarret (1963)
* Niaye (1964)
* La Noire de…(1966)
* Mandabi (1968)
* Xala (1974)
* Ceddo (1977)
* Camp de Thiaroye (1988)
* Guelwaar (1992)
* Faat Kiné (2000)
* Moolaadé (2004)