1804 First Black Republic Productions
We tell the stories
the world was never
allowed to hear.
Independent Haitian film production house.
Serving the African diaspora. Speaking to the world.
1804 First Black Republic Productions
Independent Haitian film production house.
Serving the African diaspora. Speaking to the world.
1804 First Black Republic Productions was founded on a radical conviction: the stories of Haiti and the African diaspora are among the most powerful, dramatic narratives in human history. They have never been told on their own terms.
We are changing that. Not through the filter of former colonial powers. Not with a Western gaze. With full creative sovereignty, Haitian voices at the center, and the global South as our natural partner.
Our films are built for the world, premiering at Cannes, TIFF, and AFI, while remaining authentically rooted in the land, the language, and the spirit of Haiti.
"The story of Haiti belongs to the world. It has waited two hundred years to be told."
Haiti, January 1804. The world's first Black republic has just been born in blood and glory. Princess Célimène Marie Françoise falls desperately in love with Captain Cadet Bernard Chancy, a young officer whose origins threaten everything her father built.
Around them, conspirators weave their web. Colonial powers maneuver in the shadows to punish Haiti for daring to be free. A forbidden love. An inevitable betrayal. An eternal sacrifice.
The Haitian Revolution of 1804, the only successful slave revolt in history, has never been the subject of a major motion picture. This is not an oversight. It is an opportunity of historic proportions.
We are targeting the same prestige tier as 12 Years a Slave ($187M worldwide on a $20M budget) and Amadeus (8 Academy Awards). a first-of-its-kind positioning, and a global diaspora market of 500 million people, the ceiling is exceptional.
Our complete Executive Summary, detailed budget, Star Power Annex (Lead Actress TBD, and co-production term sheet are available to qualified investors and production partners under NDA. We respond within 48 hours.
François Ernst-Zéphyr is a Haitian author, screenwriter, and film producer based in Port-au-Prince. His work is devoted to restoring to Haiti and the African diaspora the narrative grandeur that is rightfully theirs.
Author of the historical novel Mourir d'Avoir Aimé, La fille de Dessalines (published in French and English), he is adapting his work into an international epic feature film under the banner of 1804 First Black Republic Productions.
Haiti changed the world in 1804. It is time the world finally witnessed that story on screen.