Fine Cut 2014: 'Sweet, Sweet Country'

"Sweet, Sweet Country" is a short film written and directed by Dehanza Rogers, starring Danielle Deadwyler and Gbenga Akinnagbe. The film aired as part of the 2014 edition of "Fine Cut," KCET's 17th annual festival of student films.

"Sweet, Sweet Country" Synopsis:

Living in a small Southern town, 20 year-old refugee Ndizeye struggles to support not only herself, but the family she left behind in a Kenyan refugee camp. Her struggles are amplified when her family shows up at her doorstep.

Dehanza Rogers' Bio:

Dehanza Rogers is a Panamanian-American filmmaker, of both narratives and documentaries, born and raised in Georgia. Dehanza completed her B.A. in anthropology with an interest in refugee youth culture, youth media, and folklore. She is currently an MFA directing and MFA cinematography candidate at UCLA's School of Theater, Film, and Television and a receipt of the Graduate Opportunity Fellowship. Her films explore the African diaspora, as well as self-defined and transnational identities, with a keen interest in exploring the liminal state of statehood and nationality.

Her most recent work, "Sweet, Sweet Country," has screened at over 40 international film festivals, including the Pan African Film Festival, Newport Beach Film Festival, Atlanta Film Festival, Mill Valley Film Festival, and the Little Rock Film Festival. The film also received the grand prize student film award from the Directors Guild of America, an honorable mention at the LACMA Young Director's Night and the audience award at the Atlanta Film Festival.

Dehanza was recently awarded the Lynn Weston fellowship in film, Stanley Kramer fellowship in film directing, and the Mickey Dude fellowship in theater, film, and television for the depiction of ethnic diversity in American life. She is also a recipient of the Four Sisters Scholarship in screenwriting, directing, and animation. She is developing the feature length version of "Sweet, Sweet Country." "¨"¨She lives and works in Los Angeles.