Christene Browne
Encyclopedia
Christene BrowneChristene Browne (born 1965 in Saint Kitts
) is the first black woman to write, produce and direct a feature film in Canada.
Born in St. Kitts, Browne moved with her family to Canada in 1970. She spent her formative years in Regent Park, Canada’s oldest and largest low income community. It was in this Toronto community where the seeds of Browne’s filmmaker career were planted. She participated and then led the Regent Park Video workshop project and contributed to the production of many documentary videos about the community. It was during this time Browne decided to go to film school. She attended the film program at Ryerson Polytechnic Institute. After leaving Ryerson, Browne worked for a small film company before starting her own production company, Syncopated productions
in 1990. Her first two films Brothers in Music and No Choices debuted at the Toronto International Film Festival in 1991 and launched Browne’s film career. From that time onward Browne has consistently produced heartfelt work that has tackled hard hitting difficult topics such as poverty and abortion. She has worked independently and has also done projects with the National Film Board of Canada and the Canadian Broadcast Corporation . Her films have won numerous awards and have been screened and broadcast all over the world. In 1999 Browne completed her first dramatic feature , Another Planet and became the first Black woman to direct and write a feature film in Canada. Most Recently Browne completed Speaking in Tongues: The History of Language, an extensive documentary series that looks at the history of Language from prehistoric time to the present day. In addition to working as filmmaker Browne has also worked as curator and media arts instructor. She currently resides in Toronto with her three children and is presently developing a number of film projects and completing her first novel.
Saint Kitts
Saint Kitts Saint Kitts Saint Kitts (also known more formally as Saint Christopher Island (Saint-Christophe in French) is an island in the West Indies. The west side of the island borders the Caribbean Sea, and the eastern coast faces the Atlantic Ocean...
) is the first black woman to write, produce and direct a feature film in Canada.
Born in St. Kitts, Browne moved with her family to Canada in 1970. She spent her formative years in Regent Park, Canada’s oldest and largest low income community. It was in this Toronto community where the seeds of Browne’s filmmaker career were planted. She participated and then led the Regent Park Video workshop project and contributed to the production of many documentary videos about the community. It was during this time Browne decided to go to film school. She attended the film program at Ryerson Polytechnic Institute. After leaving Ryerson, Browne worked for a small film company before starting her own production company, Syncopated productions
Syncopated productions
Syncopated Productions is a Toronto based film company founded by filmmaker Christene Browne.For 20 years Syncopated Productions has been creating award winning programs that have always been thought provoking and enlightening...
in 1990. Her first two films Brothers in Music and No Choices debuted at the Toronto International Film Festival in 1991 and launched Browne’s film career. From that time onward Browne has consistently produced heartfelt work that has tackled hard hitting difficult topics such as poverty and abortion. She has worked independently and has also done projects with the National Film Board of Canada and the Canadian Broadcast Corporation . Her films have won numerous awards and have been screened and broadcast all over the world. In 1999 Browne completed her first dramatic feature , Another Planet and became the first Black woman to direct and write a feature film in Canada. Most Recently Browne completed Speaking in Tongues: The History of Language, an extensive documentary series that looks at the history of Language from prehistoric time to the present day. In addition to working as filmmaker Browne has also worked as curator and media arts instructor. She currently resides in Toronto with her three children and is presently developing a number of film projects and completing her first novel.