Clement Virgo facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Clement Virgo
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Virgo in 2017
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| Born | June 1, 1966 Montego Bay, Jamaica
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| Nationality | Canadian |
| Occupation | Film director, television director, film producer, television producer, screenwriter |
| Years active | 1991–present |
Clement Virgo (born June 1, 1966) is a talented Canadian filmmaker. He writes, produces, and directs movies and TV shows. He runs a company called Conquering Lion Pictures with his friend Damon D'Oliveira. Clement Virgo is famous for directing The Book of Negroes, a popular TV miniseries. He also directed the movie Brother, which won many awards.
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Growing Up
Clement Virgo was born in Montego Bay, Jamaica. When he was 11, he moved to Toronto, Canada. In 1991, he joined a special program at the Canadian Film Centre. Here, he learned how to write screenplays. He wrote the script for his first big movie, Rude, during this time.
Clement Virgo's Filmmaking Journey
Starting Out in Film
At the Canadian Film Centre, Clement Virgo met many other Canadian filmmakers. One of them was Damon D'Oliveira. Together, they made a short film called Save My Lost ...' Soul. This film won awards at several film festivals.
In 1992, Virgo and D'Oliveira started their own company, Conquering Lion Pictures. Their first major movie was Rude. It was shown at the famous Cannes Film Festival. Virgo's next film, The Planet of Junior Brown, even earned him an Emmy nomination.
Major Projects and TV Shows
Clement Virgo later directed a boxing movie called Poor Boy's Game. It starred famous actors like Danny Glover. This film was shown at big festivals in Berlin and Toronto.
In 2015, Virgo co-wrote and directed The Book of Negroes. This was a six-part TV miniseries based on a popular book by Lawrence Hill. It was a huge success in Canada and the United States. The series won 11 Canadian Screen Awards. It also received nominations for other major awards.
Virgo has also directed episodes for many well-known TV shows. These include The Wire for HBO, The L Word for Showtime, and American Crime for ABC. He also worked on Baz Luhrmann's Netflix show The Get Down. He was an executive producer for the OWN show Greenleaf with Oprah Winfrey.
From 2010 to 2014, Clement Virgo helped host talks for Black History Month in Toronto. He invited famous filmmakers like Spike Lee and John Singleton to speak.
Recent Work: Brother
In 2021, Virgo began making the movie Brother. This film is based on a book by David Chariandy. Brother premiered at the 2022 Toronto International Film Festival in 2022. It was nominated for an award at the 24th Annual Black Reel Awards.
In 2023, Brother won 12 awards at the 11th Canadian Screen Awards. This included awards for Best Picture, Best Director, and Best Adapted Screenplay for Clement Virgo.
Virgo is also set to direct an upcoming movie called Black Cyclone. It will be about the famous cyclist Major Taylor.
Awards and Recognition
In 2017, Clement Virgo and Damon D'Oliveira received an award for their creative work at the Canadian Film Centre. This recognized their company, Conquering Lion Pictures.
As mentioned, Clement Virgo won two major Canadian Screen Awards in 2023 for his movie Brother. He won for Best Director and Best Adapted Screenplay. The film itself also won Best Picture. Brother won a total of twelve Canadian Screen Awards, which is a huge achievement!
Filmography
Film
- Split-Second Pullout Technique (1992)
- Rude (1995)
- The Planet of Junior Brown (1997)
- Love Come Down (2000)
- Lie with Me (2005)
- Poor Boy's Game (2007)
- Brother (2022)
- Cyclone (TBA)
Television
- Side Effects (1996)
- Soul Food (2000)
- The Wire
- Episode 1.04 "Old Cases" (2002)
- Episode 1.12 "Cleaning Up" (2002)
- The L Word (2003)
- Platinum (2004)
- ReGenesis (2005–2006)
- The Listener (2009, 7 episodes)
- Copper (2013, 1 episode)
- The Book of Negroes (2015, 6 episode miniseries)
- The Get Down (2016, 1 episode)
- American Crime (2016, 1 episode)
- Greenleaf (2016, 2 episodes)
- Billions (2019, 1 episode)
- Empire (2020, 1 episode)
- Grand Army (2020, 1 episode)
- Dahmer – Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story (2022, 2 episodes)
