Chinonye Chukwu Is The First Black Woman To Win Sundance Film Festival's Biggest Prize

It was an incredible year for filmmakers of Nigerian descent at this year’s Sundance Film Festival, as the four selected films by Nigerian directors — from Chiwetel Ejiofor’s The Boy Who Harnessed The Wind to Shola Amoo’s The Last Tree — received very positive reviews.

It was an even better year for female filmmakers: Each of the four Grand Jury Prizes, the festival’s highest honours, were directed or co-directed by a female filmmaker, with Chinonye Chuwku becoming the first black woman to win the U.S. Grand Jury Prize: Dramatic.

(Photo: Chinonye Chukwu)

The Nigerian-American won the coveted prize for her powerful death-row drama, Clemency. The film follows a prison warden (Alfre Woodard) who confronts her own psychological demons, as she develops an emotional connection to the death row inmate she is scheduled to execute.

In IndieWire’s review, Eric Kohn wrote of the film:

“At a time when movies can be reverse engineered to generate awards season buzz, Clemency provides a welcome alternative: A mature, star-driven vehicle elevated by a brilliant performance that deserves all the awards it can get.”

Chinonye Chukwu joins big names like Ryan Coogler (Fruitvale Station, Black Panther), Debra Granik (Winter’s Bone, Leave No Trace) and Damien Chazelle (Whiplash, La La Land) as part of the select number of filmmakers who have won the coveted prize.

In another incredible win for a Nigerian, Chiwetel Ejiofor won the Alfred P. Sloan Feature Film Prize for his directorial debut, The Boy Who Harnessed The Wind, in the category of outstanding film focusing on science or technology as a theme.

Chinonye Chukwu’s Clemency is still seeking distribution.