The Africa Movie Academy Awards has reached out to embrace more black filmmakers from across the globe with the addition of two distinguished motion picture practitioners of international repute, Charles Burnett and Filippe Savadogo, to its current body of Jurors.
The two new Jury members, according to Teresa Emmanuels, the Acting Chief Operating Officer of the awards organisation, will strengthen the current body of Jurors as the two new members are expected to complement the existing Jury members and enrich the process of choosing AMAA winners with their knowledge.
“We are happy to announce the two great gentlemen as part of the AMAA family and they will work with our existing Jury members who are also professionals of high repute and global acclaim,” said the Acting COO.
The current Jury members include Ayuko Babu, John Akomfrah, Shaibu Hussein, Keith Shiri, Prof. Hyginus Ekwuazi, Steve Ayorinde and Berni Goldblat.
Others are Dorothee Wenner, June Givanni and Dr. Asantewa Olatunji.
Considered one of America’s greatest filmmakers, Burnett was born in Mississippi in 1944.
He grew up in Watts.
He was one of the privileged blacks who had access to college education in the 60s.
He studied at University of California, Los Angeles Film Department.
He was first noticed in 1981 with Killer of Sheep, which won a prize at Berlin Film Festival.
Burnett’s film, The Glass Shield, a tense rapid-fire police drama on the corruption and racism that plagues the Los Angeles Police Department, was shown in competition at Locarno.
Filippe Savadogo is a Permanent Observer of La Francophonie to the United Nations.
Prior to his appointment, Savadogo was the Minister for Culture, Tourism and Communications of Burkina Faso from June 2007 to April 2011, a period in which he also served as government’s spokesman responsible for La Francophonie.
Between September 1996 and August 2007, he was Burkina Faso’s Ambassador to France, with multiple accreditations also to Spain, Portugal, Vatican City and Tunisia, while serving simultaneously as Permanent Delegate to the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization.