Ramadan Suleman, director, writer and producer was born in 1955 in Kings Rest Bluff, near Durban, South Africa. He studied at the School for Research in African Theatre in Johannesburg. He was one of the founding member of the Dhlomo Theatre, a first black theatre in Johannesburg, South Africa. After studying in Paris, then at the London International Film School, he worked as assistant director with two of Africa’s legendary filmmakers – Med Hondo on Sarraounia and Lumière Noire, and Souleymane Cisse on Yeelen.
His short film The Devils Children (89) won a certificate of merit at the
Chicago film festival. In 1997, he directed his first feature Fools, which won the Leopard d’Argent at
the Lorcarno International Film festival and the European prize at FESPACO in Ouagadougou. His second feature Zulu Love Letter (2004) won several awards internationally.
In 2009 Suleman released Zwelidumile a feature length documentary at the Durban International
Film Festival and also launched “Zulu Love Letter”, the screenplay, published by Wits Press, which he
co-authored. His recent project as producer is Noire Ici, Blanche La-Bas a documentary by Claude
Haffner and Beyond the Picket Line a first feature by Lentswe Serote. Since 2014 to 2017, Suleman
has produced 32 short films by first time directors. In 2019, he directed and produced ‘’By All Means
Necessary’’ a documentary co-production with the Algerian Ministry of Culture. Since 2019, Suleman
has produced two features, The Road Less Cycled, Valley Of A Thousand Hills and a documentary
Black Mambas, and his current project is Spinners as co-producer a Canal + and MNet series. Board and Founding member of the Independent Black Filmmakers Collective (IBFC).
Awarded Chavellier des arts et Lettres by France in 2013.
