Listen Now

Riding the high of the success of British cult classic Kidulthood, the highly popular Netflix show Sense 8,  to landing the role of D in Yardie after bumping into Idris Elba in an airport, to playing the fallible character of Simon in HBO's I May Destroy You.  The actor and director Aml Ameen is in the house people!!! He  needs no introduction but we'll give him one anyway,  not only does he speaks to everything we champion at Soleil in his passion and ethos, but also literally speaks a little bit of Priya and Micha's language as someone who is British-Caribbean! Aml walked us through his incredible career path, from his hilarious anecdotes, to now directed and starred in the first all-black British romantic comedy holiday film Boxing Day.  This is not an episode to miss!   Follow Aml on IG @amlameenbabyDon't forget to rate and subscribe!Follow us on IG - @soleil.spaceCheck out our website to follow our work -  www.soleilspace.comCredits -Producer: Soleil SpaceHosts: Micha Cooper-Edwards, Priya ShanmuganathanGuest: Aml AmeenEditor: Cooper Conley-CurrierMusic: Foreigner Outro Song: Ebo Taylor - Heaven 

Bantú Mama is making waves on the festival circuit having just closed this year's Third Horizon Film Festival. All the way from the Dominican Republic we have filmmaker Ivan Herrera. Ivan spoke to us about the moment he realized he wanted to be a filmmaker, his transition from commercial to independent projects, and unpacked why Bantú Mama is an ode to transculturalism. Follow Ivan on IG @ivanherrera and Bantú Mama @bantumama.film Don't forget to rate and subscribe!Follow us on IG - @soleil.spaceCheck out our website to follow our work - www.soleilspace.comCredits -Producer: Soleil SpaceHosts: Micha Cooper-Edwards, Priya ShanmuganathanGuest: Ivan HerreraEditor: Cooper Conley-CurrierMusic: Foreigner Outro Song: Fernando Villalona - Dominicana Soy 

Founder of the Caribbean Film Academy and Director of Third Horizon Film Festival ( one of the best festivals in the world)  we have  Romola Lucas with us. From marine biologist and geologist to now lawyer, and film producer.  Romola's story of perseverance proves to us that you really can do it all! Starting with her childhood in Guyana with its white sand and brown water and moving through.  And she also introduced us to our new favorite drink - swank!  Third Horizon Film Festival is an annual celebration of the Caribbean, its diaspora and other marginalized and underrepresented spaces in the Global South - and is taking place right now, from June 23rd to June 26th. Check it out at www.thirdhorizonfilmfestival.com  Follow Romola on IG @romiiluke  and Third Horizon Film Festival @thrdhrzn Don't forget to rate and subscribe!Follow us on IG - @soleil.spaceCheck out our website to follow our work - www.soleilspace.comCredits -Producer: Soleil SpaceHosts: Micha Cooper-Edwards, Priya ShanmuganathanGuest: Romola LucasEditor: Cooper Conley-CurrierMusic: Foreigner Outro Song: Damian Marley - Speak Life

Emmy-nominated director, cinematographer and founder of Capital K Pictures, Sofian Khan joins us with a truly beautiful and inspiring conversation. Sofian spoke to us about his desire to create multilayered diaspora stories of art imitating life, the incredible story of Afghan and Iraqi translators captured in his lauded documentary The Interpreters, and perhaps the most eclectic mix of Soleil Speaks we've had to date featuring both Lancashire and Pakistani slang!   Follow Sofian on IG @capitalkpictures & Twitter @capitalkpics Don't forget to rate and subscribe!Follow us on IG - @soleil.spaceCheck out our website to follow our work - www.soleilspace.comCredits -Producer: Soleil SpaceHosts: Micha Cooper-Edwards, Priya ShanmuganathanGuest: Sofian Khan Editor: Cooper Conley-CurrierMusic: Foreigner Outro Song: Arooj Aftab - Saans Lo 

From creating concert visuals for Beyonce and Jay-Z, to being mentored by the legendary Director X, to having Will & Jada Smith as Executive producers, we have Jamaican filmmaker and visual artist, Storm Saulter. Storm takes us on his creative journey way back from picking up his first disposable camera as a kid in Negril, Jamaica, to making his award-winning feature films Better Mus’ Come and Sprinter. Storm is a true creative force who also seeks to embed the complex social and cultural dynamics of the Caribbean into everything he does.  Follow Storm on IG - @stormsaulter Don't forget to rate and subscribe!Follow us on IG - @soleil.spaceCheck out our website to follow our work - www.soleilspace.comCredits -Producer: Soleil SpaceHosts: Micha Cooper-Edwards, Priya ShanmuganathanGuest: Storm SaulterEditor: Cooper Conley-CurrierMusic: Foreigner Outro Song: Elephant Man - Equinoxx 

Academy Award, BAFTA and Independent Spirit Award-winning producer, writer, director and truly gifted storyteller. The first-ever South Asian to win an Oscar in the category of documentary feature! What an incredible year it has been for Joseph Patel, as you'll learn from this episode. From changing his name Moneesh to a more  'white sounding' one at a young age, to hanging out in Questlove's apartment in Philly at 4am, to his most recent project on serving as a producer on the Sundance award-winning documentary Summer of Soul, Joseph's shared with us his ups, downs and everything else in between.  Follow Joseph on IG and Twitter - @jazzbeezy  Don't forget to rate and subscribe!Follow us on IG - @soleil.spaceCheck out our website to follow our work - www.soleilspace.comCredits -Producer: Soleil SpaceHosts: Micha Cooper-Edwards, Priya ShanmuganathanGuest: Joseph Patel Editor: Cooper Conley-CurrierMusic: Foreigner Outro Song: Power Show - Fela Kuti 

The name behind critically acclaimed film titles like Paan Singh Tomar and Neerja ( both produced by two major production companies Foxstar Studios &  UTV Motion Pictures)   This week from the land of Bollywood, we have with us Rucha Pathak, a multi-faceted Indian film and TV producer commemorating an eventful Women's History Month. In this episode, we're in Mumbai, India ( which produces the largest number of movies in the whole world) for a conversation with Rucha who walked us through her upbringing living everywhere from Nigeria to Ooty,  South India to Toronto, Canada. And takes us through her journey of feeling inspired to create more real story-driven films like critically acclaimed Paan Singh Tomar and Neerja, challenging the same stereotypes of Bollywood, and her desire to see more women in front and behind the scenes of films across the seas.  Follow Rucha on IG @roo_cha to learn more about what she's doing. And check out the Indian Memory Project - www.indianmemoryproject.com Don't forget to rate and subscribe!Follow us on IG - @soleil.spaceCheck out our website to follow our work - www.soleilspace.comCredits -Producer: Soleil SpaceHosts: Micha Cooper-Edwards, Priya ShanmuganathanGuest: Rucha PathakEditor: Cooper Conley-CurrierMusic: Foreigner Outro Song: Zingaat - Ajay-Atul, Ajay Gogavale, Atul Gogavale

With 6 Oscar wins and 32 Oscar-nominated films, The true definition of a powerhouse boss lady is Brenda Gilbert.  Behind various notable film titles like  The Joker, Judas & The Black Messiah,&  Queen & Slim. We have her with us straight from Vancouver conversing with us about her early aspirations to become an actress, but (didn't quite like being in the limelight) to pivoting to start an entertainment company; BRON Studios.  Her Fiji roots but being a chameleon wherever she went, her immigration to Canada,  the importance of why women should empower themselves and other women within the film industry, and the 4 P's she uses as a  guide for her life.   Check out www.bronstudios.com to learn more about Brenda's work, and follow Brenda on IG @brendaagilbert.  Don't forget to rate and subscribe!Follow us on IG - @soleil.spaceCheck out our website to follow our work - www.soleilspace.comCredits -Producer: Soleil SpaceHosts: Micha Cooper-Edwards, Priya ShanmuganathanGuest: Brenda GilbertEditor: Cooper Conley-CurrierMusic: Foreigner Outro Song: One Love - Bob Marley

Peabody, IDA, & PGA-nominated producer Toni Kamau is setting the records as the youngest female documentary producer to be invited to the Academy.  Toni taught us about Sheng ( a slang language originating from the mix of Swahili and English),. In her latest film Softie, Toni humanizes and captures Boniface Mwangi the infamous political activist from Kenya in a point of view no one has ever seen before, her process of unlearning and unpacking the effects of the western gaze in storytelling, being a part of the first tv show to tackle human rights topics like; the LGBT, land, socioeconomic issues in Africa, and the impact of putting African stories on the much more global screen.   Check out www.wearenothemachine.com to learn more about Toni's work.  Don't forget to rate and subscribe!Follow us on IG - @soleil.spaceCheck out our website to follow our work - www.soleilspace.comCredits -Producer: Soleil SpaceHosts: Micha Cooper-Edwards, Priya ShanmuganathanGuest: Toni Kamau Editor: Cooper Conley-CurrierMusic: Foreigner Outro Song: Marathon Runner - Nyashinski

We are back! And what better way to give you a taste of what is to come in Season 2, than to give you an insight into the mind behind Soleil - your Soleil Spotlight co-host, Micha Cooper-Edwards. In this episode, we turn the spotlight on ourselves as Micha takes us through her journey from Trinidad to the US, her wide-spanning career at Nike, her career switch into the media industry exploring Nigerian film in London, and finally the reason she brought Soleil into the world. Follow Micha @michacooperedwards to learn more about the woman behind it all. Don't forget to rate and subscribe!Follow us on IG - @soleil.spaceCheck out our website to follow our work - www.soleilspace.comCredits -Producer: Soleil SpaceHosts: Priya Shanmuganathan, Cora AtkinsonGuest: Micha Cooper-EdwardsEditor: Cooper Conley-CurrierMusic: Foreigner Outro Song: Trini 2 De Bone - David Rudder

Creator of award-winning films like Vaya and Tell Me Sweet Something. His most recent venture was brought on to direct Greek Freak, a live-action film for Disney+ inspired by the true-life story of NBA star Giannis Antetokounmpo…Akin Omotoso, one of the most sought-after film directors, writers, and actors in African Cinema is with us.   Akin walked us through his experience emigrating to South Africa at a turning point in the country's history, and the importance of depicting a variety of stories as a filmmaker.  Closing Season 1 of Soleil SpotlightVaya is available to stream on Netflix. And follow Akin @akinomotoso to learn more about his work. Season 2 of Soleil Spotlight will be back in 2021! Don't forget to rate and subscribe!Follow us on IG - @soleil.spaceCheck out our website to follow our work - www.soleilspace.comCredits -Producer: Soleil SpaceHosts: Micha Cooper-Edwards, Priya ShanmuganathanGuest: Akin Omotoso Editor: Cooper Conley-CurrierMusic: Foreigner Outro Song: Joromi (Remix) - Simi 

Venice Film Festival-winning Columbian writer-director, Mariana Saffon. Mariana spoke to us about her non-conventional ways of scripting the highs and lows of being a woman in the film industry, which makes us the inspiration behind creating her Venice award-winning short, Entre Tú y Milagros, and meeting her idol Pedro Almodóvar whilst holding a handful of sandwiches.  Follow the IG page @entretuymilagros to learn more about Mariana's Venice FF award-winning short. Don't forget to rate and subscribe!Follow us on IG - @soleil.spaceCheck out our website to follow our work - www.soleilspace.comCredits -Producer: Soleil SpaceHosts: Micha Cooper-Edwards, Priya ShanmuganathanGuest: Mariana SaffonEditor: Cooper Conley-CurrierMusic: Foreigner Outro Song: Quisiera- Juan Luis Guerra 

We’re in Turkey this week,  with former Turkish surgeon and now film director, producer and screenwriter  Ahmet Boyacioglu is best known for his first feature, Black and White, Ahmet now serves as the  Art Director for the Festival On Wheels and the director for the Antalya Golden Orange Film Festival, one of the few festivals to hold a physical edition this year.   Antalya Golden Orange Film Festival just wrapped its 57th edition, learn more about the festival here. And learn more about the Close Up Initiative - an International Co-Production Training Program for Documentary Filmmakers from the Middle East and North Africa. Don't forget to rate and subscribe!Follow us on IG - @soleil.spaceCheck out our website to follow our work - www.soleilspace.comCredits -Producer: Soleil SpaceHosts: Micha Cooper-Edwards, Priya ShanmuganathanGuest: Ahmet BoyaciogluEditor: Cooper Conley-CurrierMusic: Foreigner Outro Song: Here's To You - Enio Morricone feat. Joan Baez

After a short hiatus, we're back!! From being a member of the prestigious Royal Shakespeare Company in the UK, to now you may know him as Lee Truitt from BET's Being Mary Jane or PC Clark in BBC One's New Tricks. British-Nigerian actor, producer and activist Chiké Okonkwo is with us. Chiké spoke to us about growing up in a Nigerian household in South London, how his move to the US allowed him to tell the stories he truly wanted to tell and why he and Priya share a love of Beyoncé.  Don't forget to rate and subscribe!Follow us on IG - @soleil.spaceCheck out our website to follow our work - www.soleilspace.comCredits -Producer: Soleil SpaceHosts: Micha Cooper-Edwards, Priya ShanmuganathanGuest: Chiké OkonkwoEditor: Cooper Conley-CurrierMusic: Foreigner Outro Song: Bigger - Beyoncé

 CEO and Artistic Director of the festival, dubbed by members of its community as 'the Black Sundance'. LA-born & Philly-resident, Maori Karmael Holmes is a curator, filmmaker, writer and founder of BlackStar Film Festival: an annual celebration of the visual and storytelling traditions of the African diaspora and of global communities of color, Maori spoke to us about how her creative journey through various touchpoints of visual artistry led her to where she is today, now serving as, among many other things.  BlackStar Film Festival just wrapped its 9th edition, learn more on the website here! And follow Maori on IG - @maorikarmaelDon't forget to rate and subscribe!Follow us on IG - @soleil.spaceCheck out our website to follow our work - www.soleilspace.comCredits -Producer: Soleil SpaceHosts: Micha Cooper-Edwards, Priya ShanmuganathanGuest: Maori Karmael Holmes Editor: Cooper Conley-CurrierMusic: Foreigner Outro Song: Come Back as a Flower - Stevie Wonder

Award-winning Korean American independent producer, director & writer Grace Lee is best known for directing documentaries such as The Grace Lee Project and the Peabody award-winning American Revolutionary: The Evolution of Grace Lee Boggs, Grace told us about the moment when she realised her name was the ‘Jane Smith’ of East Asia, her desire to correct the narratives about minorities that are out there, and why meeting Grace Lee Boggs changed her life.   Check out Grace's website to learn more about her work! American Revolutionary: The Evolution of Grace Lee Boggs is free to stream here (US only), and K-Town92 is available to all here. And learn more about A-Doc here. Don't forget to rate and subscribe!Follow us on IG - @soleil.spaceCheck out our website to follow our work - www.soleilspace.comCredits -Producer: Soleil SpaceHosts: Micha Cooper-Edwards, Priya ShanmuganathanGuest: Grace LeeEditor: Cooper Conley-CurrierMusic: Foreigner Outro Song: Mic Drop (Steve Aoki Remix) - BTS

From most recently consulting on Spike Lee's Da 5 Bloods,  Producer and poet  Jenni Trang Le! Born and raised in Houston, Texas, Jenni has always been a storyteller, and after discovering film during university, went on to work on a number of US-based independent projects. In 2009 she made the move to Saigon official. 11 years later and a number of productions later, Jenni is a seasoned veteran of the Vietnamese film industry who spoke to us about why the decision to move was so easy, the challenges of censorship and her role serving as a bridge between Vietnamese and US cinema.  Follow Jenni on IG -  @jennitrangle and on FacebookTo learn even more about the Vietnamese film industry, check out ACCENTED: Dialogues in Diaspora | Vietnamese Representation On Screen and Behind the Scenes - a panel Jenni participated in along with her colleagues, hosted by Pulitzer Prize winner Viet Thanh Nguyen. Watch the music video for N'Sao? by Suboi, producer by Jenni herself! Don't forget to rate and subscribe!Follow us on IG - @soleil.spaceCheck out our website to follow our work - www.soleilspace.comCredits -Producer: Soleil SpaceHosts: Micha Cooper-Edwards, Priya ShanmuganathanGuest: Jenni Trang Le Editor: Cooper Conley-CurrierMusic: Foreigner Outro Song: N'Sao? - Suboi 

Moses Babatope is Group Executive Director of Film One Entertainment Group (Film One Productions, Film One Distribution and Filmhouse Cinemas),  collectively the biggest film studio, aggregation and cinema exhibition conglomerate in Nigeria. As you'll learn, this is just one of the several hats that Moses wears! After moving to London to study, Moses entered the film world moving up the ranks working at Odeon Cinemas, soon becoming a pioneer for Nollywood cinema in the UK; an experience which he leveraged after moving back home to Nigeria to help him get where he is today. We're so excited for you to learn more about Moses journey, and the story of Nollywood. Check out Film One Entertainment's website to learn more about their titles, and follow them on IG - @filmonengFollow Filmhouse Cinemas on IG -  @filmhousecinemasAnd follow Moses on IG - @mosesbabatopeDon't forget to rate and subscribe!Follow us on IG - @soleil.spaceCheck out our website to follow our work - www.soleilspace.comCredits -Producer: Soleil SpaceHosts: Micha Cooper-Edwards, Priya ShanmuganathanGuest: Moses Babatope Editor: Cooper Conley-CurrierMusic: Foreigner Outro Song: Street Credibility - 9ice

This week on Soleil Spotlight, Award-winning writer and director Bhaskar Hazarika shows us his insights this week on Soleil Spotlight.  We're taking you to Assam, India. Bhaskar told us why he moved from working in Bollywood to independent regional films, the rise of Assamese cinema and why he chose to tell the highly unique story of two people who form a connection through their consumption of meat in his latest film Aamis, which premiered at Tribeca Film Festival in 2019. AAMIS is available to watch in certain regions at www.moviesaints.comWatch Joymati, the first Assamese language film by Jyoti Prasad Agarwala for free on YoutubeFollow Bhaskar on IG - @stranger.in.time and his production company, Metanormal - @metanormalizeCheck out Bhaskar's Facebook page -www.facebook.com/bhaskartalkiesDon't forget to rate and subscribe!Follow us on IG - @soleil.spaceCheck out our website to follow our work - www.soleilspace.com Credits -Producer: Soleil SpaceHosts: Micha Cooper-Edwards, Priya ShanmuganathanGuest: Bhaskar HazarikaEditor: Cooper Conley-CurrierMusic: Foreigner Outro Song: Tumar Morome Mur - Jayanta Hazarika 

Asha Lovelace,  Trinidadian filmmaker, founder and festival director of Africa Film TT Festival - an annual film festival that showcases the best of contemporary and classic films from the African continent. Asha's journey takes us from growing up in a house full of Caribbean creative legends to studying filmmaking with peers from across the globe in Cuba. She made her debut with the short George and the Bicycle Pump (2000). Her upcoming film project is The Dragon adapted from the Caribbean classic (written by her father Earl Lovelace) The Dragon Can't Dance.Don't forget to rate and subscribe! Follow us on IG - @soleil.space Check out our website - www.soleilspace.comFollow Asha on IG - @ashalovelaceFind out more about AFTT Festival - www.africafilmtt.com Credits:Producer: Soleil SpaceHosts: Micha Cooper-Edwards, Priya ShanmuganathanGuest: Asha Lovelace Editor: Cooper Conley-CurrierMusic: Foreigner - fromforeign.co Outro Song: Poverty is Hell - Shadow