about
I’m drawn to intriguing characters and compromising situations, to stories that don’t reinforce our assumptions but that challenge us to see the world anew.

All of my films have followed strong characters navigating challenging personal journeys. In “The Jazz Ambassadors” (2018), America’s greatest Jazz musicians struggle with representing their country while it still practices racial segregation. Italian prosecutor Letizia Ruggeri confronts the limits of her role as both criminal investigator and mother in her hunt to identify the killer of a 13-year old girl in “Unknown Male Number 1” (2017). Ethiopian economist Eleni Ghabi-Madhin must accommodate the pressures of authoritarian leaders in her effort to end famine in "The Market Maker” (2009). And in “Land Rush” (2012), an American agro-developer cannot avoid the contradictions inherent in his desire to “do well by doing good” when struggling to build a massive sugar-cane business in Mali, West Africa.

My intention as a filmmaker is never to judge the people I film. I want to see the world through their eyes and, by building enough viewpoints into a film, let audiences decide whose vision to embrace.
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Get in touch, I’d love to hear from you.

Email:
hugo at hugoberkeley.co.uk

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