Rocky Otoo, 17, center, stands with her father, Nii Adjedu, left, and her mother “Auntie” Yaa Otoo, right, in the Bronx, NY. Credit: Photo by Yoni Brook/Highbridge Pictures
POV aired the last film of our 2009 season last night on PBS. Bronx Princess is the story of Rocky Otoo, the Bronx-bred teenage daughter of Ghanaian parents, and she’s no pushover. She is a sassy high-achiever bound for college. With freedom in sight, Rocky rebels against her mother’s rules. When their relationship reaches a breaking point, Rocky flees to her father, a chief in Ghana. What follows is captured in Bronx Princess, a tumultuous coming-of-age story set in a homeland both familiar and strange.
Rocky, now a 19-year-old junior at Dickinson College, and filmmakers Yoni Brook and Musa Syeed, appeared on NPR’s Here on Earth program yesterday. You can listen to the interview online at the Wisconsin Public Radio website or download the mp3.
Bassam Tariq writes on the BoingBoing blog that “Musa Syeed and Yoni Brook, the co-directors of the film, have crafted a powerful and intimate story of a young girl transitioning from high school to college all with the pressures of an immigrant family. …The generational gap issues raised in this film are ones that many immigrant kids, like myself, can relate to.” Read full review »
The New York Times ArtsBeat blogger Mike Hale recommends the film and points out that Bronx Princess “reverses the usual immigration narrative.” TV and Film Sound Off blogger Alex Roberts adds his own clever subtitle to Bronx Princess, “Pride and Petulance,” adding “Rocky is clearly a force to be reckoned with and this documentary addresses generational and cultural conflicts in a frank and compelling fashion.” Read full review »
You can watch Bronx Princess in its entirety on the PBS Video Player today through October 23, 2009. You can also ask Rocky your own questions, watch additional video and learn more about the film at the Bronx Princess website.