It was a very personal experience for me as if someone was telling my story on screen.
She made it clear she has stopped contemplating how she fits in.
Cant blame her for thinking that way.
Alice DiopCourtesy of Cyrille Choupas
Questions that their white counterparts frequently and unfairly avoid.
I dont want to put my energy into what my place in the industry is anymore, she said.
I want to put my energy into what I have to say.
What do you think the future looks like for you?
ALICE DIOP:10 years ago, I probably wouldnt have given you the same answer.
Im 43 years old today.
I dont want to put my energy into what my place in the industry is anymore.
I want to put my energy into what I have to say, and that is political.
I feel Ive always been the same person.
So I choose to have my political work and thoughts are answered in my films.
DEADLINE: Saint Omeris an impactful film that examines Black womanhood and what it means to be a parent.
Where were you at mentally when you brought all the elements togetherto create this story?
I didnt make this film particularly to deal with the subject of infanticide.
That narrative is carried by two Black French actresses inSaint Omer.
And sometimes all of that is hard for even me to grasp.
I showed my friend the film for the first time.
DEADLINE:Within the Black diaspora, there is a universality in our experiences.
DIOP :If depictions of Black women are bad in the U.S., its much worse In France.
Rama is a university professor, which reflects aspects of my life and my friends lives.
DEADLINE:Your stars Kayije Kagame and Guslagie Malanda are in tune with those complexities you mentioned before.
DIOP:The main characters are singular, complex women.
Theres no one else like them.
In her way of dealing with maternity and family issues, theres tremendous fragility there.
Then I realized thats not the point.
Its about the moments between Rama and her mother and Rama becoming a mother.
Can you talk a little bit about why you crafted the ending to be that specific way?
Its a film about character.
DEADLINE:How would you describe Ramas Journey?
By the end of the film, the question what is a mother?
Black women inherit these histories of violence and of silence.
Its a particular flavor that I think is political.
DEADLINE:The characterization forces the audience to dig deep into the mind of these women.
The story asks the audience to lend some understanding to these women, especially Rama.
At the end of the film, she sits next to her mother on the couch and observes her.
Thats the journey that the film follows.
Its a banal one, I think, but its also highly existential, historical and political.
All of these dimensions are carried by the journey the story takes the audience on.
