Biography
Souleymane Cissé (21 April 1940 – 19 February 2025) was a Malian film director, screenwriter and producer. Born in Bamako, he attended secondary school in Dakar before returning to Mali after independence. He began his career as a projectionist and cameraman, then studied at the Gerasimov Institute of Cinematography (VGIK) in Moscow, graduating in 1969.
Cissé directed documentaries and short films for the Malian Ministry of Information before his feature debut Den Muso (1975). His subsequent films include Baara (1978) and Finye (1982), both of which won prizes at Fespaco. He is best known for Yeelen (1987), which he wrote, directed and produced; it received the Jury Prize at the Cannes Film Festival, the first award won there by a director from sub-Saharan Africa. Later work includes Waati (1995). In 2023 he received the Carrosse d'Or at Cannes.
