Gessica Généus

Généus was born on 23 December 1985 in Port au Prince, the capital of Haiti, in a precarious neighbourhood. Although she knew who her father was, he was not involved with her upbringing. She grew up with her mother and cousins. Her mother, an activist, was diagnosed as bi-polar and schizophrenic when Généus was fourteen. Généus is listed among the famous alumni of the College Saint-Louis de Bourdon.In 2002, at the age of 17, Généus financially supported her final years at school by acting in Barikad (Barricade) a popular film directed by Richard Sénécal. For her role, she received the Ticket d'Or (Golden Ticket) for best actress at the Haitian Entertainment Awards. In 2006, she won the best female actress award at the Brooklyn International Film Festival in New York for her role in Cousine. (Cousin). In 2007, she won the Grand Prix de la Diaspora at FESPACO (Pan-African Cinema Festival of Ouagadougou).

After the earthquake in 2010, Généus worked for the United Nations before moving to Paris in 2011, on a scholarship to study acting from Acting International in Paris. In 2012, she played Vertueuse in a historical, French TV mini-series broadcast in two parts and titled Toussaint Louverture 6. It was produced by France 2.

After moving back to Haiti from Paris, Généus set up her own production company called Azizian Productions. From 2014-2016, she directed Vizaj Nou (Our faces), a series of fifteen-minute films, made in collaboration with Caribbean Television. They focused on leading figures in Haiti such as Viviane Gauthier, Frankétienne, Konpè Filo, and Odette Roy Fombrun.

In 2019, Généus made Douvan Jou Ka Leve (The Sun will Rise) in collaboration with France TV. The film, about religion and mental health issues, won several awards.

In 2021, Freda, directed by Généus, was released. The film is about a single mother and her three offspring. It is set and was made in Port au Prince, Haiti, in extremely difficult conditions after the 2010 earthquake, the pandemic lockdowns, and amidst violent anti-corruption demonstrations, kidnapping and insecurity in the capital. Francis Ford Coppola supported the film project by acting as executive director. It was the first Haitian film to be screened at the Cannes Film Festival since 1993. It won second prize at the Pan-African Film and Television Festival. It is also the second Haitian film in history to be entered for the Academy Awards within the category for Best International Feature Film.