Mamadou Dia, a Senegalese director, obtained his master’s degree in screenwriting and directing from New York University’s Tisch School of the Arts. His short Samedi cinema (2016) premiered at the Venice International Film Festival and the Toronto IFF. His feature film Nafi’s Father premiered at Locarno where it won the Best First Feature Award and the Golden Leopard in its section. Demba premiered at Berlinale 2024 in the Encounters Competition.