BURNING IN THE SUN Co-Director/Producer/Cinematographer
83 min / SD / 2010 Documentary
Twenty-six year old charmer Daniel Dembélé is equal parts West African and Italian, and looking to make his mark on the world. Seizing the moment at a crossroads in his life, Daniel returns to his homeland in Mali to start a local business building recycled solar panels from scraps – the first of its kind in this sun-drenched nation near the Sahara Desert. Daniel’s goal is to electrify the households of rural communities, 99% of which live without power. BURNING IN THE SUN is the story of Daniel’s journey of growing his idea into a viable company, and to see his dream of improving the lives of his countrymen realized, beginning with the small village of Banko. With controversial stances on sustainable energy, poverty, and African self-sufficiency, the documentary explores what it means to become your own man and the small steps that can change the destiny of a nation.
WINNER
GRAND JURY AWARD @ Santa Cruz Film Festival
AUDIENCE AWARD @ Indie Spirit Film Festival AUDIENCE AWARD @ Southern Utah Documentary Int’l Film Festival GREEN FILM INT’L AWARD @ Cinema for Peace
“Riveting…the ramifications are extraordinary.” James Van Maanen, Trust Movies
Critic’s Pick! V.A. Musetto, New York Post
“Timely and fascinating” James Van Maanen, Trust Movies
OFFICIAL SELECTION IFP Documentary Lab IFP Market Rooftop Films Santa Barbara International Film Festival New York African Film Festival Sedona International Film Festival Indie Spirit Film Festival Santa Cruz International Film Festival DC Environmental Film Festival Barcelona Environmental International Film Festival Woods Hole Film Festival Landlocked Film Festival Real to Reel Film Festival Roxbury Film Festival Atlanta International Documentary Film Festival Southern Utah Documentary Int’l Film Festival EcoFocus Film Festival Scottsdale International Film Festival Kansas International Film Festival Vermont International Film Festival Duke City Doc Fest Bend Film Festival Virginia Film Festival Colorado Environmental Film Festival Urban Mediamakers Film Festival Lone Star Film Festival Southern Circuit Tour of Independent Filmmakers Whitehead International Film Festival Cascasde African Film Festival Princeton Environmental Film Festival Reel Earth Film Festival Take One Action Film Festival Addis International Film Festival Light, Camera, Africa!!! Tasmanian Breath of Fresh Air Film Festival Luxor African Film Festival Montreal International Black Film Festival Society for Visual Anthropology Film and Interactive Media Festival Cinema Elvire Popesco (Bucharest)
Rent/Purchase the film for Educational Screenings with Bullfrog Films
Watch on Vimeo, Amazon, Microsoft, Cinetie
BURNING IN THE SUN has it’s own website: https://burninginthesun.wordpress.com