About

Filmmakers Zach Niles and Banker White started SodaSoap Productions in 2002 in support of their the documentary film ‘Sierra Leone’s Refugee All Stars’ (2006). “SodaSoap” comes from the title of an All Stars song that encourages people to take pride in what they can produce on their own. It has become a guiding artistic theme for the duo, who are recipients of a 2008 Creative Capital Foundation Grant for “We Own TV,” a collaborative media project that promotes self-expression through visual media by bringing filmmaking education and equipment to Sierra Leonean youth. Project participants will collaboratively create and produce their own independent media which will be distributed via “We Own TV’s” broadcast and online partners. Zach and Banker also continue to work closely with their friends “Sierra Leone’s Refugee All Stars” who, since the release of the film have become international stars and strident advocates for refugee rights. The SodaSoap Productions schedule is full as planning is under way to record a new album with the band later this year and documentary projects in Haiti and Cuba are currently in production.

Zach Niles - Co-director/Co-producer Zach Niles comes from a music-industry background and from 1998-2004 was part of the production and promotion of some of the largest rock and roll tours (The Rolling Stones, Paul McCartney, Madonna, Simon and Garfunkel). In 2001 he was the associate producer for the eight-part television series Live at the Fillmore, documenting a day-in-the-life of a rock band as they prepared for a concert at the legendary Fillmore Auditorium in San Francisco. He has lived and worked in South Africa and Cameroon, and has had a long-standing personal and professional interest in the music and cultures of Africa. Though his heart is still in his native Vermont, Niles currently lives in San Francisco. This is his first film.

Banker White - Co-director/Co-producer Banker White is a celebrated multi-disciplinary artist based in the San Francisco Bay Area. He has been a writer/director for many short films, and from 1994-96 he helped start the Kokrobitey institute in Ghana, a learning center established to allow for the discovery of the cultural and intellectual richness of Africa. He is an accomplished musician and dedicated student of African and African diaspora music and dance. White, who received his master of fine arts degree from the California College of Arts and Crafts, is originally from Boston.