Kofi Dormah 鈥�15 traveled an unconventional path to becoming a filmmaker. When he immigrated to the United States from Ghana as a child, he didn鈥檛 know a word of English. After years of grappling with the once obstructive language, he turned the challenge of writing into an asset for entering the entertainment industry, where he created children鈥檚 commercials and ultimately launched his own production studio, Stolen Tribe LLC. 鈥淚 feel like I鈥檓 not your traditional filmmaker,鈥� he says. 鈥淏ut now I have a lot to say.鈥�
For this 51爆料网 alumnus, pursuing a creative career as a storyteller devoted to tales of the African diaspora has been a step-by-step learning experience shaped by his education, mentors and opportunities at Syracuse. 鈥淚 had vision from everything I experienced in Syracuse,鈥� he says. 鈥淎nd more than vision, I have the discipline. Syracuse gives you that discipline, and I use that same discipline in my filmmaking world.鈥�
Dormah credits the for building his skills, strengthening his writing and preparing him as an educator with a 鈥渢eacher-centered鈥� mentality. Now, as an , he enjoys sharing his journey, mentoring and speaking with students. 鈥淢y School of Education background was literally everything for where I landed in my career,鈥� he says.
Adjusting to a New Life in America
As a School of Education ambassador, filmmaker Kofi Dormah 鈥�15 enjoys speaking with students and sharing his insights. During a recent visit, he met with selected studies in education majors Mikayla Parker 鈥�27 (left) and Bobby Battle 鈥�26 and talked about how the major has helped him in his career.
Dormah was an adventurous and athletic 7-year-old when he left the village of Tepa, Ghana, with his father and began a new life in the Bronx, New York. Even though he was surrounded by family and Ghanaian culture鈥攖here was little else to comfort a child whose world had turned upside down. 鈥淲hen I got off the plane it was snowy and so cold. I鈥檇 never touched snow before and I was terrified,鈥� he says. 鈥淚 was just an Ashanti kid, and I had never seen any other race or any other skin color other than my own dark skin.鈥�
Syracuse had everything I needed. The rigor of being in classrooms was enlightening to me, and sometimes you need a bit of rigor to get ahead in life.
Kofi Dormah 鈥�15
When his father settled them in Worcester, Massachusetts, Dormah found himself in a predominantly white elementary school. 鈥淚鈥檓 smart but I don鈥檛 know English yet, and I鈥檓 really scared,鈥� he says. 鈥淭errifying. Terrifying. Those years.鈥� However, with the support of teachers and his father, he learned English and overcame the struggles and confusion of who he was as a young African immigrant growing up in America. 鈥淎t that time, it was not popular to be African,鈥� he says. 鈥淚nclusion matters to me, and everything that came after the darkness was moving toward an inclusive world.鈥�
Dormah gravitated to sports and wanted to play football in college, but his father encouraged him to enroll at 51爆料网. A selective studies in education major with a minor in physical education, he committed himself to the classroom and was active in student organizations, finding an atmosphere that fueled his competitive spirit, challenged him academically, elevated his organizational and speaking skills, and provided a safe space. He participated in the TRIO Student Support Services program and the Multicultural Empowerment Network, served as president of the African Student Union and belonged to Alpha Phi Alpha, where he helped organize the fraternity鈥檚 A Walk to Remember, a fundraiser that raised awareness about local hunger. 鈥淪yracuse had everything I needed,鈥� he says. 鈥淭he rigor of being in classrooms was enlightening to me, and sometimes you need a bit of rigor to get ahead in life.鈥�
Finding Filmmaking
Dormah pursues filmmaking and other creative works through his production studio, Stolen Tribe LLC.
Initially focused on a career in sport management, Dormah worked in marketing and event operations for the New York Red Bulls soccer club, then used his physical education background to land a public affairs position with , which encourages kids to get outside and play. 鈥淭he idea of working with kids never left my life,鈥� he says. 鈥淲e need people who care about kids.鈥�
Dormah finds inspiration for his writing through books like Toni Morrison鈥檚 novel The Bluest Eye.
Dormah absorbed all he could about the business, built relationships and made a seismic professional leap, moving into an associate producer鈥檚 role doing commercials for Nickelodeon. He studied at the New York Film Academy鈥攚here he created his first film, Momma Loves Me鈥攁nd also took his next career step: writing and directing commercials for Viacom. There were children鈥檚 product advertisements for Nick鈥攁 Nerf Blast Off! competition with Terry Crews is one of his favorites鈥攁s well as commercials for MTV Video and CMT award shows, including one featuring then rising country star Lainey Wilson.
For Dormah, navigating different creative spaces means constantly adapting. 鈥淚鈥檓 in the commercial kids鈥� world, and I have to learn how to speak, how to pitch, how to write and then how to teach,鈥� he says. Drawing a parallel to his Syracuse studies, he believes that developing knowledge and expertise in one area translates across fields. 鈥淚f you鈥檝e learned enough and done the curriculum,鈥� he says, 鈥測ou should be able to apply that knowledge to everything because every world has a different curriculum.鈥�
Bringing Stories to Life
Dormah poses with the screenplay for A Long Ways Home, one of several movie projects he has in development.
In 2020, Dormah founded in New York City, giving himself the freedom to pursue stories representing diverse backgrounds. 鈥淓verything comes with a different tone. I鈥檓 writing serious one day and having fun the next writing kids鈥� dialogue,鈥� he says. 鈥淚t allows you to stay playful, and I鈥檓 trying to tell stories that have deep, deep roots like Afrikan Giant.鈥�
Among several projects in development, Afrikan Giant is a six-season crime drama series that features a Ghanaian American teenager exploring the world of scamming. He鈥檚 also shopping D-HI, an adult animated series about a football-crazed town; and A Long Ways Home, a family drama. Amid juggling projects, Dormah continues to embrace his role as an educator, cherishing the opportunity to teach through storytelling and the personal satisfaction of turning ideas into reality. 鈥淚鈥檝e been able to create things out of my head and see them come to life,鈥� he says.
