Marie-Hélène Roux

Marie-Hélène Roux is a writer-director born in Gabon and raised across different African countries, Marie-Hélène Roux trained at the French Conservatoire and then at the Stella Adler Academy of Acting in Los Angeles. She began her career in American independent cinema before returning to France to make her directorial debut. She has since written and directed several award-winning films with socially engaged themes that emphasize human resilience, including A Deported Life, Shortage Of Children and Links of Life. Marie-Hélène is developing several projects, including The Chevaliers, an original series and Parenthesis Of A Smile, selected for the Plume & Pellicule workshop, where she worked alongside Academy Award–winning screenwriter Christopher Hampton. Her latest feature, MUGANGA, inspired by Nobel Peace Prize laureate Dr. Denis Mukwege, starring Isaach de Bankolé, Vincent Macaigne and Manon Bresch was produced by Cynthia Pinet and co-produced by Academy Award winner Angelina Jolie. The film won multiple awards and became the highest-rated film in France, ranking number one among the 50 highest-rated films by UGC audiences in 2025. In 2026, she was a finalist for the Prix Alice Guy, which honors the best film directed by a woman in France, selected from 105 eligible films.