As the protagonist, Sade George, a Nigerian immigrant and medical student seeking greener pastures in Boston Massachusetts laments, “In the past they were forcing us into slavery, but today, we’re voluntarily selling ourselves into it,” viewers are quickly drawn into the movie’s plot, which the talented cast brilliantly bring to life.
This award winning movie recently won the 2011 African Movie Academy Award’s (AMAA) Best Film for African Abroad Award, the 2010 Best Emerging Filmmaker Award at the Roxbury International Film Festival and Artist of the Year in Boston last year. It was also officially screened at the Cannes Pan African Film Festival and it has also been screened to critical acclaim at the International Black Film Festival in Montreal, the Mid-Atlantic Black Film Festival in Virginia, and the Pan-African Film Festival in Los Angeles. Other film festivals around the world such as the African, Asian and Latin American Film Festival in Italy, have made requests for the movie to be screened at their festivals.
This movie which is a fictionalized account of real life experiences is a must see for everyone, especially African Americans and Africans in Africa and in the diaspora because it helps in educating us about our perceptions of each other.
Synopsis: In America: The Story of the Soul Sisters is the story of the inspiring friendship between two young women, Sade George and Sonya Muhammad. Sade is an “illegal immigrant,” a medical student from one of Nigerian universities, who abandoned her education in the fourth year and seized the scant opportunity to flee her birth land for the perceived opportunities of America. Sonya is an African-American young woman dealing with the pressure of cultural ambiguity, struggling with the separation of her loving parents, and seeking an identity that is articulate of her soul’s yearning.
In America, Sade hopes to settle down and continue her education, but what life holds in stock for her is different. Through the lives of a lonely and sexually frustrated uncle, and the conflicted life of a young man trapped in the racial forces of the American society, Sade’s journey reveals the various existential elements that, often innocently, combine to determine the experience of the individual anywhere in the world.
When Sonya meets Sade, they feel a connection that grows into a relationship that will lead them to individual and mutual self-discovery, and help define life for both of them. Empowered thus, Sade faces the present bane of her life: the American immigration policy. Disillusioned about the American dream, she has to make a decision what step to take next: remain in America as an “illegal alien” or return to her homeland.
The Cast: The movie parades a sterling cast which includes: Jimmy Jean-Louis of Heroes and Phat Girlz, Mirlyne Dorvilus, Kandace Cummings, Cristian DeJesus, Roger Dillingham and Linda Starks.
The Producers' Motivation: The primary motive behind this movie is the wish to deal with the immigration issue from human perspective. In an attempt to enlighten the ambivalent American perspectives on the issue, I wanted to show the humanity of immigrants, and how they are like every other American, with dreams, hopes, fears, and character complexities. At this time in the history of America, we think the climate is ripe for such a movie, and this is one of the reasons we were very passionate about getting it made. The movie doesn't intend to take sides or argue a point in the on-going immigration debate, however, it is an artistic venture to reveal the life of a typical immigrant, and provides the debaters with additional information about the subjects of their arguments, symbolized in the character of Sade George.
The movie also attempts to bridge the unnecessary and internecine tension between many African immigrants and African-Americans in the US. In meetings with key individuals and groups in Boston and around the country, including Massachusetts’ first black Mayoral candidate Mr. Mel King, and New York House of Rep Mr. Major Owens, I have learned, disturbingly, about the pervasiveness of this misunderstanding. Hence, this movie tries to bring light into the areas of mutual reconciliation. As the first movie dealing with this smoldering crisis, it is the hope of the filmmakers to hold up a mirror and nudge the people to see themselves and find a solution to the problem. -- Producer, Director, Writer, and Co-Executive producer, Rahman Oladigbolu.
Yvon Alteon is the Co-Executive Producer and Co-Producers include Jimmy Jean-Louis and Vatasha Granberry.
Format: The film was shot in 720 HD and has a running time of 100 minutes
Availability: The movie will be available at Silverbird, Genesis, Ozone and other cinemas in Nigeria and Ghana in July 2011
For more information please visit the film’s official website, http://soulsistersthemovie.com/.
Below are stills from the movie set. Enjoy!
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