AMA ASANTE: DIRECTOR
Film Director, Ama Asante in her own words:
Asante – That indeed is my name. It derives from the West African country of Ghana, and the Kingdom of the Asantes.
Why is this relevant? Well the Asantes had their very own warrior Queen – Much like Boudica. Her name was Yaa Asantewaa. When the men folk of the Asante tribe lost hope and failed to rise up against their colonialist oppressors – It was Yaa Asantewaa who stood up, roused the troops, got on her horse and lead the Asante men into battle, in a bid to protect the Asante legacy and kingdom.
So it is from her stock, that I derive. I like to think that any woman who chooses to enter into a world that is predominantly male and traditionally not seen as the territory of the ‘woman’ is in herself a warrior queen. Not because we are at ‘war’ but because our battle is in facing those challenges that at times may seem insurmountable.
When being interviewed by Melissa Silverstein, some months ago, for Forbes and recounting the trajectory of my career thus far, Melissa gasped and said words to the effect…. ’but it seems like you’ve had such a charmed career!’. My response was, ‘Not at all’. It’s been hard – even horrific at times, and by far more littered with what might be deemed ‘failures’ rather than ‘successes’. Yet….the successes exist – and these, no matter how tiny….are what I hold on to, and use to push myself forward. Yaa Asantewaa did not win her battles against the English, when we think in terms of what the traditional definitions of ‘win’ or ‘lose’ are. But somehow she won a greater battle, that included courage, dignity and the refusal to kowtow to injustice.
I have and still do think of her often on my journey as a female director. I look back on any of those that have struggled to bring about change, through their very presence, and see that courage dignity but also tenacity have been key attributes that have caused them to stand steadfast in the face of adversity.
As I struggled to make sense of the yawning 10 year gap that slowly unfolded, after my first film and as I fought to achieve my second, one nagging feeling kept my determination level at ten. That was the idea that if I gave up, if I did not remain resolute, no matter the setbacks and at times utter lack of hope , even lack of belief in myself – if I did not stay resolute, then I would be contributing to the status quo.
In the year that British film director, Sarah Gavron’s movie about the Suffragettes will be released, we are reminded of those women who fought and literally died so that women could be afforded a basic human right.
And when I am lucky enough to be in a room full of women, who one way or another have managed to carve their own journeys into the world of directing and filmmaking, negotiating and defying the setbacks, what I am always amazed by, is the resolve these women exude. They are in themselves, real warriors facing challenges, not just for the successes of today, but in so many ways, so that WE can have a different tomorrow.
When as a budding writer, I was told, ‘movies with black leads tend to struggle’, my first thought was not actually to be horrified, but to think, OK, l need to know the unspoken rules of this business that I have chosen, so that I can find ways to negotiate them. In that way, the movie, Belle, which successfully platformed actress of color, Gugu Mbatha-raw, was born. With this film, I wanted to negotiate the issues of race and gender, and prove that it could, in fact, be done.
We as women filmmakers, struggle to be visible – as is often said, we have to work twice as hard and, sometimes, possess twice the talent. So when after many many years of researching and writing my screenplay for Belle, my own perceived talent was literally CUT in half, when the American writing union decided to GIFT my writing credit and every word of my screenplay to someone I had never met, who had previously made her own attempts and failed to write a script on this history, I had a choice. I could either divorce myself from the film entirely in order to make a stand about the injustice and the treatment I had suffered or…accept that the valaue of my writing, had caused a movie to be greenlit, and released to box office success and some acclaim.
Though the appropriation of my credit was a huge blow and setback to me as a woman filmmaker who, statistically, I will take considerably longer to get the next film off the ground that I may write, than my male counterpart….and also statistically, I will have to struggle significantly harder than my male counterpart to be recognised as a writer – I chose to take a breath – move forward – and see that in the bigger picture. That is that the very existence of my film, its lead character of color, and its box office impact, would say more for our industry tomorrow, than for my losses today.
I have stood my ground in the face of this injustice in discussing the truth of my writing credit, but also played the ‘game’ of the bigger picture.
The setbacks, knowingly or unknowingly, are designed to make us give up and yet if one by one we did this – one thing is for sure – we will never see change. That and that alone, is the simple reason why we have to be warriors, why we have to keep banging on those doors, putting our creativity down on paper, picking up digital cameras and shooting our films, lobbying for the funding of woman centred stories, for woman driven stories, and for woman helmed stories. It is imperative to our tomorrow.
One last thing; I am a Black Woman – a minority existing within a further minority when it comes to women in film. But as a black female, I know and understand that I belong to a community that is ‘woman’, whether black or white, and whose existence allows my voice to be stronger. Together, we are stronger. In the end we face the same battles, must surmount similar hurdles and as a sisterhood we must…MUST look out for each other. I have your back. So, with all the creativity bubbling in this room, I say this to you…during those times when you feel like giving up – they do and will come…it’s natural!… I offer you my African name, as a reminder of Yaa Asantewaa the Warrior Queen and so that you may remember who you are, and know that you are never alone, in this struggle for change. This Asante is right there with you.
Thanks.
