Zeresenay Berhane Mehari (born 1974), is an Ethiopian
filmmaker
Filmmaking (film production) is the process by which a motion picture is produced. Filmmaking involves a number of complex and discrete stages, starting with an initial story, idea, or commission. It then continues through screenwriting, castin ...
. He is notable as the director of critically acclaimed films ''
Difret
''Difret'' is a 2014 Ethiopian drama film written and directed by Zeresenay Berhane Mehari. The film had its premiere in-competition at the 2014 Sundance Film Festival where it won the World Cinematic Dramatic Audience Award. Angelina Jolie se ...
'' and ''
Sweetness in the Belly
''Sweetness in the Belly'' is a 2019 drama film directed by Zeresenay Berhane Mehari, based on the novel of the same name by Camilla Gibb.
It had its world premiere at the 2019 Toronto International Film Festival.
Plot
In the 1960s, Lilly, a Br ...
''.
Apart from cinema, he is the co-founder and Head of Original Content for Kana Television, the number-one rated free-to-air, private satellite entertainment TV channel in Ethiopia.
Personal life
He was born in
Addis Abeba
Addis Ababa (; am, አዲስ አበባ, , new flower ; also known as , lit. "natural spring" in Oromo), is the capital and largest city of Ethiopia. It is also served as major administrative center of the Oromia Region. In the 2007 census, t ...
, Ethiopia in a family with seven siblings. He later moved to USA whereas his brother and sister moved to
The Netherlands
)
, anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau")
, image_map =
, map_caption =
, subdivision_type = Sovereign state
, subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands
, established_title = Before independence
, established_date = Spanish Netherl ...
, and another brother is in Sweden.
Career
After moving to USA, Mehari studied film at the
University of Southern California School of Cinematic Arts
The University of Southern California School of Cinematic Arts (SCA) houses seven academic divisions: Film & Television Production; Cinema & Media Studies; John C. Hench Division of Animation + Digital Arts; John Wells Division of Writing for Sc ...
and graduated with a Bachelor of Arts degree.
While studying, he founded the production company 'Haile–Addis Pictures'.
He started to work as a production assistant for two episodes: ''All About Eve'' and ''The Seven Year Itch'' in 2000 television serial ''Backstory''. Then he was the production assistant for episode ''M*A*S*H: Comedy Under Fire'' in 2001 serial ''History vs. Hollywood''. Later in 2006, he was the producer of short''Leila'' directed by Hanelle M. Culpepper. Later in the year, he made his first short film ''Coda''.
In 2005 he was introduced to the attorney
Meaza Ashenafi
Meaza Ashenafi (born 25 July 1964) is an Ethiopian lawyer. In November 2018, she was appointed by the Federal Parliamentary Assembly as President of the Federal Supreme Court of Ethiopia until her resignation on 17 January 2023.Paul Schemm (Nov ...
by her brother. Then along with him, they discovered the case of Hirut Assefa and the tradition of “telefa” while doing research on Meaza and working in her organization. By using the incident, he directed maiden feature film ''
Difret
''Difret'' is a 2014 Ethiopian drama film written and directed by Zeresenay Berhane Mehari. The film had its premiere in-competition at the 2014 Sundance Film Festival where it won the World Cinematic Dramatic Audience Award. Angelina Jolie se ...
'' in 2014, which gained positive critical reviews.
The executive producer of the film was popular Hollywood actress
Angelina Jolie
Angelina Jolie (; born Angelina Jolie Voight; June 4, 1975) is an American actress, filmmaker, humanitarian and former Special Envoy to the UN High Commissioner for Refugees. The recipient of numerous accolades, including an Academy Award ...
.
Even though he had the opportunity to shoot the film in 2009, he later wait until 2012 for filming due to casting problems. The film had its premier at
Sundance Film Festival
The Sundance Film Festival (formerly Utah/US Film Festival, then US Film and Video Festival) is an annual film festival organized by the Sundance Institute. It is the largest independent film festival in the United States, with more than 46,66 ...
in January 2013. The film won audience awards at Sundance Film Festival,
Berlin Film Festival
The Berlin International Film Festival (german: Internationale Filmfestspiele Berlin), usually called the Berlinale (), is a major international film festival held annually in Berlin, Germany. Founded in 1951 and originally run in June, the festi ...
,
Park City Film Music Festival
The Park City Film Music Festival is a film festival with a special emphasis on film music, which takes place annually in Park City, Utah, United States, and showcases American and International films. It was founded in 2004 and awards films with ...
, Amsterdam Film Festival as well as in
Montreal World Film Festival
The Montreal World Film Festival (WFF; french: le Festival des Films du Monde) was one of Canada's oldest international film festivals and the only competitive film festival in North America accredited by the FIAPF (although the Toronto Internat ...
. However, in September 2014, the official premiere of the film was blocked in Ethiopia by the authorities citing the film allegedly giving 'too much credit' to Meaza. However, it was later released with two lawsuits and had a successful theatrical run in Ethiopia.
In 2019, he made second feature, ''
Sweetness in the Belly
''Sweetness in the Belly'' is a 2019 drama film directed by Zeresenay Berhane Mehari, based on the novel of the same name by Camilla Gibb.
It had its world premiere at the 2019 Toronto International Film Festival.
Plot
In the 1960s, Lilly, a Br ...
'', a sophomore film starring
Dakota Fanning
Hannah Dakota Fanning (born February 23, 1994) is an American actress. She rose to prominence at the age of seven for her performance as Lucy Dawson in the drama film ''I Am Sam'' (2001), for which she received a Screen Actors Guild Award nomina ...
and
Yahya Abdul-Mateen II
Yahya Abdul-Mateen II (; born July 15, 1986) is an American actor. He is known for his roles as Black Manta in the superhero films ''Aquaman'' (2018) and ''Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom'' (2023), Bobby Seale in the Netflix historical legal drama ' ...
.
It had its premier in the Discovery section of the Toronto Film Festival. The film was an adaptation of the book of the same name written by
Camilla Gibb
Camilla Gibb (born February 20, 1968) is an English-born Canadian writer who currently resides in Toronto.
Early life and education
Born in London, England, she grew up in Toronto, Ontario, and studied at North Toronto Collegiate Institute and ...
.
Filmography
References
External links
*
Difret by Director Zeresenay Berhane MehariZeresenay Berhane Mehari
{{DEFAULTSORT:Berhane Mehari, Zeresenay
Living people
Ethiopian film directors
1974 births
Ethiopian film producers
Ethiopia–United States relations