Cinematographer Kanamé Onoyama, new AFC Member

Kanamé Onoyama’s precious energy and talent, by Matias Boucard, AFC
I am very pleased and honored to introduce Kanamé Onoyama. He is a cinematographer whose values and work I admire, but there is also more to admire about him.
Kanamé arrived in France aged 22 to study cinema. He was passionate about French cinema and especially the films of Gaspard Noé. He had a sole idea in mind : to become a cinematographer. This might be the story of many students, but Kanamé came from Japan, didn’t speak French, knew nobody, and had to begin from zero in order to learn this profession, the French language, and our culture.
19 years later, here he is, applying to join our magnificent association because he is an experienced, internationally-recognized cinematographer whose heart and life are in Paris. He is an activist cinematographer who dedicates his free time to the association he created to promote diversity in the cinema, Divé +, and I strongly encourage you to listen to the talks they organize in an original format and whose contents are highly interesting.
I think Kanamé will be able to contribute his talent to our association, given his energy and his skills, and his desire for openness and diversity. But above all, it is because he is a passionate and exciting artist that he must join us. I often discuss with him when he sometimes visits me on set, and our discussions are always free and intense, because his energy is precious and salutary.

Kanamé Onoyama, beneficial bridges, by Pascale Marin, AFC
A debate recently occurred at the AFC : should our association reflect the reality of our profession, or should it model a path towards greater gender equality and diversity in our profession ?
I unreservedly opted for the latter. That is why it is not a coincidence that I decided to simultaneously sponsor Kanamé Onoyama and Élodie Tahtane as AFC active members. A man from Japan, a woman from Algeria, but above all, two talented cinematographers.
Kanamé left Japan at 22 because he was in love with French author films. But, his visual talent immediately launched him into a career making commercials and music videos, which only satisfied him halfway. He was audacious enough to question his choices, he traveled to the United Kingdom to enhance his network so that he could finally shoot fiction films, as he had always desired.
He recently served as director of photography for seasons 2 and 3 of Netflix’s "Top Boy".
He also shot Inshallah A Boy, by Amjad Al Rasheed, winner of the "Final Cut" award at the Mostra de Venise 2022, and Abou Leila, by Amin Sidi-Boumédiène, in the Official Selection at Cannes Critics’ Week in 2019.
He is also the founder of the not-for-profit association Divé +, which encourages diversity and inclusion both behind and in front of the camera and within French cinema. I am persuaded that the possible bridges between the AFC and Divé + will be beneficial for all of us.
Divé + on Instagram : https://www.instagram.com/dive.plus.fr/

The thumbnail above shows Kanamé Onoyama in 2019 shooting a commercial for Diesel in London - Photo by Vikesh Govind