Kenyan Filmmaker and Scholar.

Born in 1958 in Nairobi, Kenya, Kinyanjui attended the German Film and Television School in Berlin to study German Literature. During her time in Berlin, Kiryanjui was exposed to African films. Her desire to retell African stories led her to study filmmaking in Berlin.

Kinyanjui's films are inspired by the world around her - from daily conversations, to folktales, to social issues such as equal rights and poverty. Kinyanjui's films are considered to be part of the Riverwood movement, Kenya's version of Nollywood Film. Through her films, Kinyanjui hopes to confront Kenyan audiences with an accessible depiction of everyday life.

In addition to filmmaking, Kinyanjui also teaches filmmaking at Kenyatta University. Kinyanjui's presence in Kenya as an artist and a mentor is responsible for creating Kenya's up and coming film culture. (3/11)
She is Co-founder of the Mama Afrika Film Festival, along with Naomi Mwaura.

Academic Research, Paper Presentations.
Publications

2008 Paper presentation: Creating a film audience in Kenya, Audio-Visual Conference, Pretoria/South Africa
2007 Paper presentation at the Video Arts Film Fest in Obafemi Awolowo University, "Amateur Video filmmaking in River Road, Nairobi "
Kenyan Videos: "A Director's Experience" in: Africa Through the Eye of the Video Camera. Manzini, Swaziland. Academic Publishers
2005 Research paper on the booming River Road vernacular videos (Ford Foundation Grantee) Newspaper articles/interviews on the same
2000 Essay: "Friede den Doefern" (Peace to all Villages: Change of perspective in African Cinema) in: Du Magazine, Dec/Jan 95/96, Switzerland Sisters of the screen: women of Africa on film, video and television, (interviewed by) Beti Ellerson, Trenton NJ/Asmara,Eritrea

Source:
* www.wmm.com/filmcatalog/makers/fm800.shtml
* www.ku.ac.ke/schools/visual_arts/faculty/faculty-profile?id=166