Ben & Ara
WINTER FILM AWARDS 2016 WINNER - BEST PICTURE
WINNER - BEST ACTRESS (CONSTANCE EJUMA)
2015
United States, Cameroon
86 mins
Feature Film Competition
| Nnegest Likké | |
| Constance Ejuma, Joseph Baird, Samone Norsworthy, Q'orianka Kilcher | |
| Constance Ejuma, Joseph Baird, Q'orianka Kilcher , Michael Chieffo , Akuyoe Graham , William Mark McCullough , Mohamed Dione , Emily Saliers |
Ben Johnson is a struggling PhD candidate in the school of philosophy. It is his seventh year and this is the semester that he must finish his dissertation or all his work will be for nothing. He runs into Ara, a fellow PhD candidate, who is everything he is not: a successful, focused student about to get her doctorate, and a devout Muslim while he’s fervently agnostic. From their first meeting, the winds of fate set in and what follows is an unlikely romance between two people from different worlds. The film explores the possibilities and the limits of inter-religious, inter-racial, and intercultural relationships in our society.
About the Director
Nnegest Likké is a passionate filmmaker with 10 years experience working as a professional writer/director in Hollywood. The internationally distributed feature film, ‘Phat Girlz’ by Fox Studios, starring Academy Award winner Mo’Nique marked Nnegest’s feature film debut. She is currently working on her 3rd feature film, ‘Everything But A Man,’ starring Monica Calhoun (The Best Man franchise), Camille Winbush (The Bernie Mac Show), and Jimmy Jean-Louis (Heroes, Joy).
Awards
2015 All Lights India International Film Festival (India) – Honorary Mention: Best Feature Film
2015 Hollywood International Film Festival (USA) – Best Actor Nominee, Joseph Baird
2015 Hollywood International Film Festival (USA) – Best Actress Nominee, Constance Ejuma
2015 Hollywood International Film Festival (USA) – Best Director
2015 Hollywood International Film Festival (USA) – Best Supporting Actor, Nominee Michael Chieffo
2015 Hollywood International Film Festival (USA) – Special Jury Award: Outstanding Feature Film
2015 Women’s Only Entertainment Film Festival (USA) – Official Winner 3rd Place Feature
