Elza
Directed by Mariette Monpierre
Elza is a riveting, deeply personal story about the emotional journey of a young Parisian woman returning home to her native island of Guadeloupe. Bernadette (Mariette Monpierre) has tried hard to give her daughter everything. She is thrilled when Elza (Stana Roumillac), the first college graduate in the family, completes her master's degree. But Elza breaks her mother's heart by running off to Guadeloupe in search of a distant childhood memory: the father she barely remembers. Based on director Mariette Monpierre's own life experience, this feature debut captures the passion and contradictions of a family in transition while offering a rare insider's view of Caribbean culture. Monpierr's critically acclaimed debut feature is gorgeously shot on the island of Guadeloupe, and is a moving, universal story on the fragile bonds of family.
Reviews
Bathed in the flamingo colors and Caribbean rhythms of its location, this deeply personal debut from the writer and director Mariette Monpierre develops with a lingering attention to sensation and sound." - The New York Times
A NEW YORK TIMES CRITICS PICK
Awards
Winner Best Picture, Greater Cleveland Urban Film Festival
Winner Paul Robeson Award, Best Picture of the Diaspora, FESPACO, Africa
Winner Best Narrative Feature, Roxbury International Film Festival
Winner Best First Feature Special Jury Recognition, Pan African Film Festival, L.A.
Winner BAFTA Festival Choice and Festival Programmers' Awards, PAFF, L.A.
Runner up Best International Feature, San Francisco Black Film Festival
Nominated for Best Picture and Best Screenplay, American Black Film Festival
Nominated for Best Picture, UrbanWorld Film Festival
Nominated for Best Picture, BronzeLense Festival
Nominated for Best Diaspora Feature, 2012 Africa Movie Academy Awards (AMAA)
Nominated for Best Picture, French Afro-Caribbean Arts Awards
Nominated for Best Foreign Picture