MacArthur Fellows Program

Louis Massiah

Documentary Filmmaker | Class of 1996

Title
Documentary Filmmaker
Location
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Age
42 at time of award
Area of Focus
Moving Image
Published July 1, 1996

About Louis' Work

Louis Massiah is a documentary filmmaker who addresses important but often-neglected subjects with integrity, insight, and artistry.

Massiah’s producing and directing credits include Trash (1985), The Bombing of Osage Avenue (1986), Cecil B. Moore (1987), W.E.B. Du Bois: A Biography in Four Voices (1995), and Louise Alone Thompson Patterson: In Her Own Words (2002).  He also produced two films for the PBS series, “Eyes on the Prize II” (1990).  In addition to his film work, Massiah founded the Philadelphia-based Scribe Video Center, which provides access to media production facilities for underrepresented segments of society.  This center trains emerging video makers and helps members of community organizations to address issues of social concern through the creative use of video.  At the Scribe Video Center, he served as executive producer for “Precious Places” (2005), a citywide, community, video history project in the form of twenty-one short documentaries.

Biography

Massiah continues to work as an independent, documentary filmmaker and serves as executive director of the Scribe Video Center.

Massiah received a B.A. (1977) from Cornell University and an M.S. (1982) from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

Last updated January 1, 2006

Select News Coverage of Louis Massiah
More Fellows

View All 1996 Fellows

Stay Informed
Sign up for periodic news updates and event invitations.

Connect with us on social media or view all of our social media content in one place.

The privacy of your data is important to us. We've updated our privacy policies in response to General Data Protection Regulation.