motherland CREW

Betelihem Zelealem is an Ethiopian camera person and digital Non-linear editor who works for Halaqah Films, a multi-award winning company based in UK and the USA. As a young lady Betelihem Zelealem is a shining example of African youth future. Coming from a middle class family in Addis Ababa Ms. Zelealem worked in the print industry for most of her working career.

By chance she joined a visiting Halaqah Media film crew as translator for a film being made in Ethiopia's Harar region. From this point on she learned camera and later editing skills. She was trained by international and multi-award winning director Owen Alik Shahadah. She has edited the critically acclaimed film Our Story Our Voice, which was nominated at the Pan-African film festival in 2007.

A stern Pan-Africanist, Omer Redi is currently a correspondent for a couple of international media - including Inter Press Service (IPS) Africa and Pan-African News Agency (PANAPRESS) – and a part-time communications consultant based in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. An acclaimed journalist with profound knowledge of the media industry, and an emerging star in Pan-African film making, Omer has played a critical role in the Motherland film project. As a Casting Director of the film he made sure that the film got key inputs by arranging and conducting interviews such as one with the country’s Prime Minster, Meles Zenawi. As a representative of the film in Ethiopia he is aggressively working now, through his company, i4Africa Media and Communications, for a successful official launch and public screening of Motherland and 500 Years Later in Ethiopia.

Sona Jobarteh is a member of one of the five principal Kora-playing (Griot) families from West Africa and is one of the first female kora player to come from this prestigious musical family. She is the granddaughter of the Master Griot of his generation, Amadu Bansang Jobarteh, and cousin of the well-known, celebrated Kora player Toumani Diabaté. Her brother is Tunde Jegede composer of 500 Years Later. Sona completed her debut album entitled Afro Acoustic Soul in 2008, which expresses and explores the many facets of her unique musical heritage. Sona's second album, due out in April 2010, is set to be a real gem, taking her traditional West African musical training to a completely new level.

Sona is a master of the Diaspora Kora which is a unique style of kora playing adapted for the cinematic landscape.

Bethlehem is a dedicated associate producer. And the youngest person on the Motherland team at just 23 years old. She is from Addis Ababa in Ethiopia and was responsible for handling all the day-to-day production requirements on the ground. She has a degree background in management and this skill transferred over to the film landscape. She speaks fluent English, Amharic, Oromo, and German. She also is responsible for the translation of the film into German and Amharic.

M.K. Asante is an award-winning filmmaker, author, and professor who the Philadelphia Inquirer calls "a rare, remarkable talent that brings to mind the great artists of the Harlem Renaissance." He wrote and produced the film 500 Years Later, winner of five international awards including the Breaking the Chains Award from the United Nations. He co-wrote, with Maya Angelou, the prize-winning documentary The Black Candle. He is the author of three books: It's Bigger Than Hip Hop, Beautiful. And Ugly Too, and Like Water Running Off My Back. He is a tenured professor of creative writing and film at Morgan State University.

Cosby is a highly analytical & technical individual, whose driving force in the perfection of his craft is fuelled by his fresh and nontraditional approach to Film and Television Directing and Editing. After studying Film directing at the National Film and Television Institute (NAFTI), where he received a BFA Degree in Film and Television Production, Directing Major. In his various capacities within the Media Group he has had the opportunity to work on projects that have allowed his highly creative flair to come to the fore.

As a Director/Editor Cosby has worked on myriad of contrasting projects, often simultaneously, having to adapt and juggle creatively between them, one of which “Not My Daughter” won the Best Short Film at the African Movie Academy Awards (AMAA) in 2008.