Thérèse Sita-Bella facts for kids
Thérèse Sita-Bella (1933–2006) was a pioneering filmmaker from Cameroon. She was the first woman from Africa and Cameroon to direct a film. Her birth name was Thérèse Bella Mbida.
Contents
Early Life and Learning
Sita-Bella was born into the Beti tribe in southern Cameroon. She received her early education from Catholic missionaries. In the 1950s, after finishing high school in Yaoundé, the capital of Cameroon, she moved to Paris, France. There, she continued her studies and became very interested in journalism and filmmaking.
Her Amazing Career
Sita-Bella began her career as a journalist in 1955. Just a few years later, in 1963, she made history. She became the very first woman filmmaker in Cameroon and across all of Africa. From 1964 to 1965, she worked in France for a French newspaper called La Vie Africane, which she helped create. When she returned to Cameroon in 1967, she joined the Ministry of Information. She became the Deputy Chief of Information, helping to share important news.
Tam Tam à Paris: A Groundbreaking Film
In 1963, Sita-Bella directed a documentary film called Tam-Tam à Paris. This film followed a group from the Cameroonian National Ensemble as they toured Paris. Tam Tam à Paris is often called the first film ever made by a woman from sub-Saharan Africa. In 1969, her film was shown at the first Week of African Cinema. This festival later became very famous as FESPACO.
Sita-Bella was seen as a true pioneer. She was one of the very few women working in the film industry at a time when men mostly controlled it. She once said about filmmaking in the 1970s: "There were very few women filmmakers then. There were a few from the West Indies, a woman from Senegal named Safi Faye, and me. But you know, cinema wasn't really seen as a woman's job."
Later Life and Legacy
Thérèse Sita-Bella passed away on February 27, 2006. She died at a hospital in Yaoundé from colon cancer. She was buried at the Mvolye cemetery in Yaoundé. To honor her, the Sita Bella film hall at the Cameroon Cultural Centre was named after her. Her work opened doors for many other women in African cinema.
