Nnegest Likké

Nnegest Likké is an American film director, screenwriter and producer. She's a proud Bay Area native with a bi-cultural background and has a passion for telling funny, feel-good, thought-provoking stories that are socially and culturally impactful.[1] Her film awards include Best Diaspora Film at the 2016 African Movie Academy Awards (AMAA) for " Ben and Ara " which she directed. Her 2019 international romantic drama, Everything But A Man won the Audience Choice Award at the Pan African Film Festival. Nnegest is one of the first women of color to write and direct a movie distributed by a major Hollywood studio.[2] Her directing credits include Fox Searchlight's romantic-comedy Phat Girlz, the multi-award-winning indie love drama Ben & Ara, and Everything But A Man.

Nnegest Likké
Born
Oakland, California, United States
NationalityAmerican
OccupationFilmmaker
Notable work
Phat Girlz

Early life and education

Nnegest Likké was born in Oakland, California.[3] She is half African-American and half Ethiopian and grew up in the San Francisco - Oakland Bay Area.

During her childhood, Likké had the opportunity of traveling around the world, including throughout Europe and Africa[4] with her mother who Likké referred to as an active globetrotter and Civil Rights Activist. This traveling exposed her to various ways of life besides those known in America.[4]

Likké attended Skyline High School in Oakland. After graduating, she attended Clark Atlanta University (CAU), where she studied film and graduated with a BA in Mass Communications.[5]

Career

After college, Likké moved to Los Angeles to pursue screenwriting.[6] While honing her craft, Likké taught Drama, History and English at a high school in Los Angeles.[4] Today, she still mentors at-risk youth.

Films

Phat Girlz (2006) was Likké's first feature film, starring Academy Award Winner Mo’Nique.[7] This film is a romantic-comedy about two plus-size women who meet the men of their dreams in an unexpected way.[8] Her second film was Ben & Ara, followed by her most recent film Everything But a Man starring Monica Calhoun and Jimmy Jean-Louis (2019 ). Likké wrote, directed and produced Everything But a Man, about the challenges successful, career-driven women have finding love.[6] Likké is currently working on multiple projects for film and TV.[1]

Filmography
Year Title Credited as
Director Writer Producer
2006 Phat Girlz Yes Yes No
2015 Ben & Ara Yes No No
2019 Everything But a Man Yes Yes Yes

Awards, Nominations and Honours

References
  1. "Film Fatales | Nnegest Likké". www.filmfatales.org. Retrieved 2019-10-31.
  2. "How Nnegest Likké Is Helping To Make Film And TV More Representative Of The US Population - Thrive Global". thriveglobal.com. Retrieved 2019-11-06.
  3. "BEN & ARA - Feature Film". Indiegogo. Retrieved 2019-10-31.
  4. "BEN AND ARA". San Francisco Black Film Festival. 2016-05-04. Retrieved 2019-10-11.
  5. "Alumni Profile: Nnegest Likké ('91) | UMC Giving". www.umcgiving.org. Retrieved 2019-11-06.
  6. Mills, K. Nicole (2016-06-16). "Filmmaker Nngest Likké Discusses her Latest Film 'Everything But a Man'". Hollywood's Black Renaissance. Retrieved 2019-10-30.
  7. "Alumni Profile: Nnegest Likké ('91) | UMC Giving". www.umcgiving.org. Retrieved 2019-10-11.
  8. "Phat Girlz". Fox Searchlight. Retrieved 2019-10-31.
  9. "Award Winners 2016". Nevada Women's Film Festival. 2016-08-05. Retrieved 2019-10-30.
  10. "Ben & Ara Independent Feature Film". benandara. Retrieved 2019-10-31.


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