Ngozi Paul

Ngozi Paul is an award-winning Canadian stage and screen actress, writer, director and producer. She is best known as the creator, executive producer, and actress of the Global TV hit comedic drama Da Kink in My Hair.

Ngozi Paul
Ngozi Paul at the 7th Annual Canadian Filmmakers’ Party, in September 2012
Born
Toronto, Ontario, Canada
EducationNational Screen Institute
Stratford Birmingham Conservatory
Canadian Film Centre Film Lab
OccupationActress, Writer, Director, Producer
RelativesAnnamie Paul (sister)
Websitehttp://ngozipaul.com/ http://emancipationarts.com/

Early life

Paul was born and raised in Toronto, Ontario, to a father from Dominica and a mother from St. Kitts and Nevis. She is the younger sister of Green Party of Canada leader, Annamie Paul. Her upbringing created the foundation for her work as a social and cultural innovator. With academic roots in Birmingham Conservatory for Classical Theatre,[1] Ngozi began her acting career on stage at the Stratford Festival of Canada.

Career

During the course of her professional career, Paul has worked in theatre and film projects and with performers such as Tonya Lee Williams, star of the popular daytime drama The Young and the Restless. In addition, Ngozi has been cast, most notably, with fellow actors Don Cheadle, Chiwetel Ejiofor (Talk to Me) and Rachel Weisz (The Whistleblower).

In 2003, Paul was listed as one of Toronto's top ten actors by Now Magazine.[2] She is the recipient of the prestigious Tyrone Guthrie Award for her work with the Stratford Festival, and was Best Actress nominee at the International Black Film Festival for her performance in the film Banyan. She played a leading role in Charles Officer’s Genie-nominated film Short Hymn, Silent War, featured at the 2004 Sundance Film Festival. More recently, Paul played a young Nelson Mandela in the Toronto production of the screenplay In the Freedom of Dreams: The Story of Nelson Mandela.

Paul’s production credits include founding Ngozika Productions, which showcases film and TV projects from an Afro-Canadian perspective. In addition to being co-producer of the Tonya Williams Gospel Jubilee, Paul served as the creative director, associate producer, story editor and as a writer on the Gemini-nominated series Lord Have Mercy! (2003). Paul was a participant of Talent Lab, a four-day intensive program for emerging filmmakers interested in mobile movie filmmaking.

Following the groundbreaking and successful run of the theatre production Da Kink in My Hair, Ngozi co-created, executive produced, and starred in the television series of the same name (2007-2009). This top-rated sitcom has been broadcast and celebrated around the world.

In 2015, Paul's The Emancipation of Ms. Lovely—which she penned and in which she starred—was nominated for six Dora awards and won Outstanding New Play. This hilarious and evocative tale weaves Paul’s personal stories with the story of Sarah Baartman (aka The Venus Hottentot) in a transcontinental allegory on the black woman’s multitudinous identity. Lovely prompted Toronto’s Now Magazine to write, “The magnetic Paul holds every moment onstage in a fierce, funny and moving performance.” Paul remains steadfast in her mission to produce innovative, evocative, and compelling content that showcases the diversity of human experience. She currently has a docu-series on-air entitled Care for Color and is in advanced development of The 1st Time Project, a multi-platform documentary exploring female sexuality from inter-generational and inter-cultural  perspectives.

Paul donates her time and talents towards raising awareness for social issues such as domestic violence and homophobia within the West Indian community. In 2005, she was a celebrity cast member for the Toronto performance of The Vagina Monologues with proceeds helping local organizations assist women in abusive relationships. Paul has traveled the world extensively in both personal and professional capacities, most notably as a global ambassador for Because I’m A Girl and the Stephen Lewis Foundation.

Works

Stage

Year Title Role Produced By
2010 Fernando Krapp Wrote Me This Letter Performer – Julia Canadian Stage
2015 The Watershed Performer Crow's Theatre and Porte Parole
2015 The Emancipation of Ms. Lovely Performer, Playwright Ngozika Productions and Pandemic Theatre
2016 The Watershed Performer Crow's Theatre and Porte Parole
2017 The Emancipation of Ms. Lovely Performer, Playwright Crow's Theatre and Emancipation Arts
2017 A&R Angels Performer Crow's Theatre
2018 Love and Information Performer Canadian Stage

Television

Year Title Writer Producer Performer Role Notes
2001 Leap Year Yes Female Assistant Episode 1.20
2004 Kink In My Hair Yes Starr TV Movie
2007-2009 Da Kink In My Hair Yes Yes Yes Starr
2008 Embracing Da Kink Yes Herself TV Documentary
2011 The Hour Yes Herself Episode 8.31
2013 Katie Chats Yes Herself
2015 Care For Color Yes Yes Herself

Film

Year Title Director Writer Producer Performer Role Notes
2002 Short Hymn, Silent War Yes Ruth
2004 Lord Have Mercy Yes 4 Episodes: "The Flesh is Weak" "Tangled Web" "Deranged Marriage" and "Backsliding"
2007 Talk To Me Yes Susan
2011 The First Time Yes Yes
2012 Night Light Yes Yes Friend
2018 The Mission Yes Justice

References

  1. "Ngozi Paul | Tarragon Theatre". Retrieved 4 October 2020.
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