BIOGRAPHY
Behind the Lens with Corine Dhondee: Filmmaking to Difference-Making By Connor Judson Ga r re t t
I enjoy films that teach me something new or make me laugh out loud, but my current mission as a filmmaker is to tell stories that challenge people and make a change for the better.
Dhondee’s educational background and life experience is evident in her filmmaking. She has made a variety of films including one about the Oscar and Bafta nominated cinematographer Bradford Young whose body of work includes Selma, Arrival and most recently When They See Us, Dhondee’s film explores: his philosophies, beliefs, and the black image makers who have inspired him. The film had its USA premier at the BronzeLens Film Festival in Atlanta and New York premier at
this medium was Pather Panchali by Satyajit Ray. Right after watching it, I went to the Prague Film Summer School and made a short about a secret church under communism. Ray’s film was centered around Indian life and growing up in London as a woman of color. I’d witnessed and experienced damaging stereotypes of black and brown people, so that piece set the bar for me,” says Dhondee. “Most recently, I watched If Beale Street Could Talk and I was very aware of the similarities with Kalief Browders’s story. I love films that are poetically told and contain a powerful message about the human condition. I enjoy films that teach me something new or make me laugh out loud, but my current mission as a filmmaker is to tell stories that challenge people and make a change for the better.” While Dhondee continues to carve out a name for herself as a daring filmmaker, she has also worked on the sets of large-scale productions such Solo: A Star Wars Story , and as an assistant to renowned writer-director Armando Iannucci (known for Veep , and The Death of Stalin ) on The Personal History of David Copperfield starring Dev Patel as Copperfield. “When I left film school, I wanted to know what it was like to work on a big production. The experience was magical on Solo , and the Copperfield project convinced me that every person ought to work with a team of comedy writers at least once in their career,” says Dhondee. “During film school, a fellow black student and I were cautioned against having an all-black cast. We are now seeing stories that challenge these notions and we are learning about the hidden histories. As a woman of color, it’s important to me to be a part of the movement that’s disrupting the system.”
Corine Dhondee
W hile interviewing Hind Khoury, the Minister of State for Ramallah, a man named Hani was watching his home being demolished before his eyes,” says filmmaker Corine Dhondee. “Later that day, I traveled to his home and interviewed him in the middle of the rubble that remained. If the camera was turned a little further either direction, the viewer would have seen a line of his male friends sitting and weeping over Hani’s agony. Upon my return to the UK, I made a short documentary and used it to raise awareness and funds for Hani. That was my first personal experience seeing how the power of film can make a difference.” Dhondee completed her Masters in Gender Studies at the London School of Economics and wrote her dissertation on the creation of the enemy identity by systems of power. Following her dissertation, she was invited to work alongside a director on a European Union-funded documentary about the peace process from the Oslo Accords in Israel and Palestine. This gained her access to dignitaries and ultimately a refugee camp in Nablus.
Urbanworld. Another Dhondee film, The Queen’s Suite, is a jazz documentary about a young black British jazz musician whose dream was to perform the Queen’s Suite, written by Duke Ellington for the Queen herself. “At its heart, my objective for this film was to create a counter-narrative about young, black British men. It’s a story that challenged the negative stereotypes of young, black men that are so prevalent in the British media,” says Dhondee. “In a similar vein of focusing on social issues, I made a documentary called Sticks and Stones in film school, which sprung to life from my research on sex trafficking. The story is about determination in the face of injustice and it was well-received by charities working to end violence against girls and women.” Dhondee is currently working as the assistant to director Will Sharpe in his latest feature film Louis Wain . In this production, Benedict Cumberbatch plays the painter Louis Wain alongside Claire Foy, who plays the part of his wife Emily. Dhondee is also planning a series celebrating some of the great African American and black British women and men in film and television. “I’m still discovering my mission as a storyteller. The first film I saw that changed how I experienced
Photography by Mychal Watts
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