Louis Massiah

Louis Massiah is an independent documentary film maker whose films often explore historical and political subjects. His works include W.E.B. Du Bois -- A Biography in Four Voices (producer/director) and Louise Alone Thompson Patterson: In Her Own Words (producer/director), an oral history portrait of the political activist and Harlem Renaissance cultural worker. Currently he is executive producer of Haytian Stories, exploring the history of the 200-year relationship between the United States and Haiti. Massiah is the founder and executive director of the Scribe Video Center in Philadelphia, a media arts organization that provides low-cost workshops and equipment access to emerging video/filmmakers and community organizations. At Scribe, he has facilitated over 200 videotapes, including a variety of tapes documenting major issues and concerns facing urban communities, produced collaboratively with community members. A current project, the Precious Places Community History Project, is a citywide oral history portrait designed by Massiah that is composed of 50 short documentaries produced with 50 neighborhood organizations. Massiah is the recipient of a five-year MacArthur Foundation fellowship for his documentary filmmaking and received the Paul Robeson Award for Social Justice from Philadelphia's Bread and Roses Community Foundation.