Balla Moussa Keïta (1934 – March 6, 2001) was a

Mali Mali, officially the Republic of Mali, is a landlocked country in West Africa. It is the List of African countries by area, eighth-largest country in Africa, with an area of over . The country is bordered to the north by Algeria, to the east b ...

an actor and comedian, and a West African cinema pioneer who was well known in the West (especially

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

). Born in the

Ségou Region Ségou Region (Bambara language, Bambara: ߛߋߓߎ ߘߌߣߋߖߊ tr. Segu Dineja) is an administrative region in Mali, situated in the centre of the country with an area of , around 5% of Mali. The region is bordered by Sikasso Region on the sout ...

of Mali as a traditional prince of the

Keita dynasty The Keita dynasty ruled pre-imperial and imperial Mali from the 11th century into the early 17th century. It was a Muslim dynasty, and its rulers claimed descent from Bilal ibn Rabah. The early history is entirely unknown, outside of legends and ...

, he was originally a radio producer. He later turned to acting and acted in a number of movies by notable Mali directors like

Cheick Oumar Sissoko Cheick Oumar Sissoko (born 1945 in San, Mali) is a Malian film director and politician. Biography As a student in Paris, Cheick Oumar Sissoko obtained a DEA in African History and Sociology and a diploma in History and Cinema from the Ecole des ...

, Souleymane Cissé and Abdoulaye Ascofaré. Among his critically acclaimed roles are those of the tribal king ''Rouma Boll'' in ''

Yeelen ''Yeelen'' ( Bambara for "brightness"/"light") is a 1987 Malian film written, directed and produced by Souleymane Cissé. It is filmed in the Bambara and Fula languages, and is based on a legend told by the Bambara people. Though the era is undef ...

'' and as Mambi in '' Guimba, un tyrant, une époque''. He received the Best Male Interpretation award at the

FESPACO The Panafrican Film and Television Festival of Ouagadougou (, or FESPACO) is a film festival in Burkina Faso, held biennially in Ouagadougou, where the organization is based. It accepts for competition only films by African filmmakers and chief ...

for his role in the

Guinea Guinea, officially the Republic of Guinea, is a coastal country in West Africa. It borders the Atlantic Ocean to the west, Guinea-Bissau to the northwest, Senegal to the north, Mali to the northeast, Côte d'Ivoire to the southeast, and Sier ...

n film ''Séré, le témoin''.

Biography

Early life

Balla Moussa Keïta was born in Nango, Mali, a small village about 40 km from

Ségou Ségou (; , ) is a town and an Communes of Mali, urban commune in south-central Mali that lies northeast of Bamako on the right bank of the River Niger. The town is the capital of the Ségou Cercle and the Ségou Region. With 130,690 inhabitant ...

in 1934. Sent to school in

at eight, Keïta's formal education came to an end after primary school when he returned home to help his parents in farming. On the death of his father, Keïta moved to

Bamako Bamako is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Mali, with a 2022 population of 4,227,569. It is located on the Niger River, near the rapids that divide the upper and middle Niger valleys in the southwestern part of the country. Bamak ...

to find work. Keïta initially worked as a middleman trader, buying fish and rice from

Mopti Mopti (Fulfulde: Mobti) is a town and an urban commune in the Inner Niger Delta region of Mali. The town is the capital of the Mopti Cercle and the Mopti Region. Situated 630 km northeast of Bamako, the town lies at the confluence of the ...

and Dioro and reselling them in ''Bamako''.

Career

In 1960, he managed to obtain a job with the ''National Theater'' (then under the ''Haut Commissariat à la jeunesse'' - the High Commission for Youth). Under the auspices of the ''Commissariat'', Keïta recorded his first radio broadcast for Malian radio in 1967. Initially, Keïta recorded short advisories on

bush fire A wildfire, forest fire, or a bushfire is an unplanned and uncontrolled fire in an area of combustible vegetation. Depending on the type of vegetation present, a wildfire may be more specifically identified as a bushfire ( in Australia), desert ...

s and conduct of drivers. This ultimately led to the weekly program ''"Prévention et Circulation routière'' (Prevention and Road Traffic). Keïta thus became a well-known voice on the radio, and was popularly known as "Balla Moussa". He lent voice to numerous radio shows and newscasts during this period. His voice talents were utilized by government organizations like the AMP (''Agence malienne de publicité'') and the ANIM (''Agence nationale d'information du Mali''). In 1965, Keïta travelled to the

People's Republic of China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. With population of China, a population exceeding 1.4 billion, it is the list of countries by population (United Nations), second-most populous country after ...

with a Malian team to duplicate three films of socialist ideology in Bambara. The exercise lasted 5 months, but gave Keïta a valuable insight into film-making. He worked in his first film ''Den Muso'', directed by Souleymane Cissé, starting in 1970. He went on to star in numerous critically acclaimed films, and worked with most Malian directors of repute, and numerous other African filmmakers. Keïta has also taught at the ''Institut national des arts'' (National Institute of the Arts) of Mali. He was awarded the Best Male Interpretation Award at the

for his role in the

n film ''Séré, le témoin'' in 1991.

Death

He died in Bamako in 2001 of pulmonary

emphysema Emphysema is any air-filled enlargement in the body's tissues. Most commonly emphysema refers to the permanent enlargement of air spaces (alveoli) in the lungs, and is also known as pulmonary emphysema. Emphysema is a lower respiratory tract di ...

partially due to heavy lifelong smoking habits, and is survived by ten children.

Filmography

* 1975 : '' Den Muso'', by Souleymane Cissé * 1978 : ''Baara'', by Souleymane Cissé * 1982 : '' Finyè'', by Souleymane Cissé * 1987 : ''

'', by Souleymane Cissé * 1987 : ''Desebagato'', by Emmanuel Sanon * 1989 : '' Finzan'', by

* 1990 : ''Séré, le témoin'', by Mohamed Dansogo Camara * 1991 : '' Ta Dona'', by

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* 1991 : ''Céline au Mali'', by Monique Crouillère * 1993 : ''Tiefing'', by

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* 1994 : ''L'Enfant Noir'', by Laurent Chevallier * 1995 : '' Guimba, un tyrant, une époque'', by

* 1995 : '' Waati'', by Souleymane Cissé * 1996 : '' Macadam Tribu'', by

José Zeka Laplaine Zeka Laplaine (born 1960), sometimes credited as José Laplaine, is a director and actor from Ilebo in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. The child of a Portuguese father and Congolese mother, he moved to Europe when he was 18. His 1996 short ...

* 1997 : ''Faraw, une Mère des Sables'', by Abdoulaye Ascofaré * 1999 : '' La Genèse'', by

* 2000 : ''

George Washington George Washington (, 1799) was a Founding Fathers of the United States, Founding Father and the first president of the United States, serving from 1789 to 1797. As commander of the Continental Army, Washington led Patriot (American Revoluti ...

'', by

David Gordon Green David Gordon Green (born April 9, 1975) is an American filmmaker. Green began his career in 1997 and gained fame with the independent film ''George Washington'' (2000). He directed two additional independent dramas, '' All the Real Girls'' (2003 ...

References

A tribute page
dedicated to Balla Moussa Keïta (in French)

External links

*

at ''allafrica.com'' {{DEFAULTSORT:Keita, Balla Moussa 1934 births 2001 deaths 20th-century Malian male actors Malian male film actors People from Ségou Region Malian male actors