JOEL KAREKEZI

A Rwandan script writer, film director and Producer. The Founder of Karekezi film residency.

He graduated in 2008 with a diploma in film directing from Cinecours.
In 2009 he directed his short film The Pardon by the support of Maisha Film Lab, which won the Golden Impala Award at the Amakula Film Festival in Uganda and the 2010 award for Best Short Film at the Silicon Valley African Film Festival.
He received a development award from the Göteborg International Film Festival Fund for his first feature film Imbabazi : The Pardon, which is being screened at different festivals around the world, it won the NILE GRAND PRIZE 2014 at Luxor African Film Festival & BEST DIRECTOR at International Images Film Festival For Woman 2014.
In 2012 his script The Mercy of the Jungle won the CFI Award for the Most Promising Audiovisual Project at Durban FilmMart and STEP development award at Luxor African Film Festival 2015, it was selected at Cannes for La Fabrique de cinema du monde 2013, Locarno Open doors 2014, Atelier Grand Nord in Quebec 2015, Forum de production de Namur 2015 et Rencontre de Coproduction Francophone in Paris 2015.

He Won Grand Prize GOLDEN STALLION at FESPACO 2019, Silver Hugo Prize in New Director’s Competition at Chicago International Film Festival 2018 ; and as BEST NARATIVE FEATURE at PAFF 2020.

Our Partners

IMBABAZI/THE PARDON

Joel Karekezi

RWANDA PORTRAITS DU PARDON

Joel Karekezi

The Mercy of Jungle

Joel Karekezi

He Won Grand Prize GOLDEN STALLION at FESPACO 2019