Safiya Songhai
| Safiya Songhai | |
|---|---|
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| Born | July 25, 1984 Philadelphia, Pennsylvania |
| Occupation | Film Director, Television Host, Television Producer, Beauty Queen |
| Years active | 1999 - present |
| Website | |
| http://www.Mpirefilms.com/ www.Mpirefilms.com | |
Safiya Songhai, (born on July 25, 1984 Philadelphia, Pennsylvania) is a Student Emmy award-winning American film director, on-air talent and beauty queen. Songhai was the 2008 Miss Black Massachusetts USA,[1] and a former Miss Five Boroughs[2] for the Miss New York Pageant.
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[edit] Biography
[edit] Family
Songhai was born in Philadelphia to Dwight Lamont Hendricks and Tamara Pierce.[3] Songhai's parents met at the Philadelphia International Film Festival and Market, a Festival which Songhai would later win her first film award. Her mother came from a prominent Philadelphia family and was the co-creator and host for WPVI's show Visions,[4] and later worked at various stations as a camera woman and a news editor for Frontline.[5]
Songhai is the granddaughter of renowned dermatologist Dr. Harold E. Pierce, great-niece of retired federal judge Lawrence W. Pierce, niece of internationally acclaimed artist Barkley L. Hendricks, and cousin of actress model and sportscaster Jayne Kennedy.
[edit] Education
After the age of 7, she was raised in Roxbury, Massachusetts, and graduated from Boston Latin School.[6] Songhai excelled at Public Declamation, Student Government, and writing, and graduated in the top 10% of her class. She was also the President of the African Cultural Society, and a member of the National Honors Society. Songhai was voted most likely to become Head Master due to her immense involvement in her high school. Songhai also founded two awards, the Latin Spirit Scholarship and the Crystal Apple Teacher's Award[7] while she was President of the Student Council.
[edit] Higher education
Songhai began her studies at Dartmouth College, concentrating in Film, History and Creative Writing. Later, she transferred to Howard University[8] where she graduated summa cum laude and became a third-generation legacy of the school. Songhai later completed her MFA in Film and Television production from the Tisch School of the Arts at New York University.
While an undergraduate, Songhai landed the position of television host at the PBS affiliate WHUT-TV in Washington, D.C., and worked at WJZ-TV in Baltimore as a producer and announcer for the Maryland Lottery. She won a student Emmy[9] in her final year in college.
[edit] Film career
| Safiya Songhai | |
|---|---|
 Safiya Songhai, 2006 |
In 2003, Songhai began her fledgling film production company Mpirefilms.[10] The first projects were short films, public service announcements[11] and even audition tapes for reality show hopefuls. Her first film, LadyLike, received distribution through AltCinema[12] and has been screened internationally. The company has won several awards for its work and is in production for several feature films scheduled for release in 2010.
[edit] Filmography
| Year | Film | Credited as | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dir. | Wri. | Prd. | Act. | Role | ||
| 2006 | LadyLike |  |
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Mother |
| 2007 | In Silent Spaces | |
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| 2008 | The Trial of Charumathi | |
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The Fallen One |
[edit] Awards and nominations
| LadyLike[13] | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Festival | Result | Award | Category |
| 2008 | All-American Film Festival [14] | Competition in March | Finalist | Short Films |
| 2007 | Garden State Film Festival [15] | Won | Best Student Short | Student Shorts |
| 2007 | Duluth Short Shorts Competition | Won | Grand Prize | Short Films |
| 2007 | Reel Sisters Film Festival [16] | Won | Curator's Award | Short Films |
| 2006 | Philadelphia International Film Festival and Market [17] | Won | Best Student Short | Student Shorts |
| In Silent Spaces | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Festival | Result | Award | Category |
| 2008 | Appalachian Film Festival | Official Selection | Festival April 17 | Short Films |
| 2008 | Fusion Film Festival | Won | Best Cinematography Clarissa Delos Reyes | Graduate Short Films |
| 2008 | All-American Film Festival [14] | Competition in March | Finalist | Short Films |
| 2008 | New York University Black History Show | Showcase | Screening on Feb 28th | Student Shorts |
| 2008 | Harvard University Black Arts Festival | Competition in March | Finalist | Short Films |
| 2007 | Bushwick International Film Festival [18] | Nominated | Finalist | Short Films |
| 2007 | Philadelphia International Film Festival and Market | Won | Best Short | Shorts |
[edit] News reporter
Songhai is the East Coast reporter for FDNNTV.com and was formerly a part of the investigative news team on RNN-TV's magazine program The Richard French Live Show, in Westchester County, New York. She covered the justice beat, reporting on issues involving crime, policy, law and the penal system.
[edit] Pageantry
Songhai is the first woman selected to represent the Miss Black United States competition for 2009. She was first runner up in the Miss Black USA 2008 pageant, representing Massachusetts in the pageant. Songhai has had a notable career in the Miss America Pageant system. She won the title of Miss Five Boroughs in 2004 placed in the top ten winning preliminary on-stage questions in the Miss New York Pageant. Prior to this win, Songhai was first runner up to Miss District of Columbia 2003, second runner up to Miss District of Columbia 2001, and was first runner up to Miss Metropolitan Manhattan 2004. Songhai's talent is usually a comedic monologue, and she has won top-interview, and on-stage question at nearly every pageant in which she has competed.
| Preceded by None |
Miss Black United States 2009 |
Succeeded by None |
| Preceded by Nwannedima Uchendu |
Miss Black Massachusetts USA 2008 |
Succeeded by Saundra Quinlan |
| Preceded by Karmen Kluge |
Miss Five Boroughs 2004 |
Succeeded by None |
[edit] Name change
Safiya Songhai. Safiya means clear and pure minded woman in the Swahili language. After searching for several years to find a surname to match, she chose Songhai from the largest and most accomplished 15th and 16th century West African Empire, now present-day Mali, Burkina Fasso and Niger, whose leaders emphasized education and social, economic and gender equality. Her ancestry comes form Mozambique, Angola, Ghana, and South Africa.
[edit] References
- ^ Miss Black USA - Scholarship Pageant
- ^ Winners Cite Broken Promises in Pageants - New York Times
- ^ 10 O'Clock News | [Nthabiseng Mabuza]
- ^ 6abc.com: Visions 3/27/08
- ^ Tamara McClinton - Keywords
- ^ Boston Latin in Quotations since 1635
- ^ Inez Middleton, 64, beloved Boston Latin teacher - The Boston Globe
- ^ filmmaking.net | directory : film schools : Howard University
- ^ Football Pre-Game Show - Sports
- ^ TESS - Error
- ^ Cable Positive
- ^ Shady Bi
- ^ http://www.altcinema.com/images/films/ladylike/Ladylike.pdf
- ^ a b 2008 Film Selections
- ^ GSFF - 2007 Winners
- ^ Film Festival
- ^ Philafilm 2006 Screenings
- ^ MySpace.com - BushwickFilmFestival - 24 - Fille - BROOKLYN, New York - www.myspace.com/bushwickfilmfestival
[edit] External links
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Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Safiya Songhai |
