Wave Staff Report
HOLLYWOOD — Award-winning author Marlene Daut, a professor of French, Caribbean and Black studies at Yale University, captured the prestigious Haitian Diaspora Award during the recent 11th annual Haiti International Film Festival at the Barnsdall Gallery Theatre.
Daut, a scholar of Haitian history and culture, also recently earned top honors for her book, “The First and Last King of Haiti: The Rise and Fall of Henry Christophe,” which won the coveted James Tait Black Prize in Biography and the Phillis Wheatley Literary Award.
A Loyola Marymount graduate, Daut also is well-renowned as co-editor of global Black history and theory at Public Books and series editor of New World Studies at the University of Virginia Press.
The film festival, attended by scores of artists from throughout the U.S., convened filmmakers, cultural leaders and audiences to celebrate Haitian and African diasporic storytelling, organizers said.
“There was a real sense of collective experience,” said festival founder Jacquil Constant. “Artists, audiences and community members sharing stories that reflected our history, our challenges, our creativity, and our capacity to imagine what is possible.”
Actress Tessa Munro, largely known for her role as Desiree in the 2025 film “Captain Tsunami,” captured the organization’s Haitian Community Award, and actor and filmmaker Rodney Charles, known for his roles in “The Disciple” (2008), “Tears of the Sun” (2003), and “African Cowboy” (2013) earned the Haitian Ally Award.
Other awards included: Best feature film — “Montmartre;” Best documentary film — “The Creole Pig: Haiti’s Great Loss;” Best Innovative Film — “The Heroes of the Massacre River;” Best African diaspora short film — “Noni Olabisi: Troubled Island;” Best Haitian women’s short film — “Makeup & Medicine;” Best Haitian diaspora short film — “Ti Blan;” and Best Ayiti short film — “Run from Rain.”
