France and Guadeloupe / 2011 / 81mins / Drama / French

A single mother in Paris, Bernadette tried hard to give her daughters everything. She is thrilled when her eldest, Elza, the first college graduate in the family, completes her master's degree. However, Elza breaks her mother's heart by running away to their native Guadeloupe in search of a distant childhood memory: the father she barely remembers. This feature debut by writer/director Mariette Monpierre offers an unusual insider's view of lush island culture as she captures the passion and contradictions of this family.

Mariette Monpierre

From the beaches of Guadeloupe to the heart of Paris to the bright lights of the Big Apple, Mariette Monpierre always saw her life through lenses. Growing up in the belly of Paris, films fascinated her. She completed her Masters Degree in media and languages at the Sorbonne University and Smith College in Massachusetts and moved to Manhattan to follow her dream of becoming a filmmaker. She began her career as a producer at BBDO NY, one of the world’s leading advertising agencies where she produced commercials for Pepsi Cola, Visa, Campbell’s, Pizza Hut, Gillette and FedEx. Directing opened up a new dimension to her work. She shapes the message, controls the content and masters the look. Knowledge is Power (1997) was commissioned by the New York City Health Department to raise HIV/AIDS awareness. In 2002, Sweet Mickey for President? won best documentary at the Reel Sister Film Festival in NY. Her short film Rendez-Vous (2002) was nominated for the Djibril Diop Mambéty Award in partnership with the Directors Fortnight in Cannes. The film experienced a successful run in several major international film festivals and she travelled the world with it. Mariette Monpierre released her first feature length film in 2011, Elza (Le Bonheur d’Elza), which was a New York Times Critics’ Pick and won several awards, including: the 2012 BAFTA Choice Award and The Jury Award for Best Director First Feature at the Pan African Film Festival in Los Angeles; and the Paul Robeson Award for Best Film of the Diaspora at FESPACO 2013. Mariette’s first TV pilot “Caribbean Girl NYC”, a new comedy series, premiered in Toronto at Caribbean Tales International Film Festival in September 2017 and aired on FLOW network in the British Caribbean. Learn More