CelestinaAleobua
Telling stories that preserve African culture and history, for future generations.
Actress/Writer/Director/Producer/Film Curator
Born in Lesotho.
Creating in Lagos & Toronto.
Celestina Aleobua is a multi-talented actress, writer, director, and producer committed to amplifying Black talent, elevating African cinema, and fostering creative community.
Born in Lesotho to Nigerian parents and raised in South Africa, Celestina brings a rich, transnational cultural lens to her work. Her passion lies in storytelling that preserves African culture and history, with a focus on cultural enlightenment and authentic Black narratives.
In 2023, she and co-creator Naira Adedeji pitched their television series Jaded at the Toronto International Film Festival, where it received two awards. As a film curator, she recently led the Resilient Women Series, a collection of short films by independent Nigerian filmmakers highlighting stories of resilience and womanhood, screened in Lagos, Los Angeles, and Nairobi, with a Toronto premiere forthcoming.
ThatAfrikan Productions
Celestina is the Founder of ThatAfrikan Productions, a Toronto-based production company dedicated to authentic Black stories, cultural enlightenment, and elevating African cinema on a global stage.
Headshots
1 / 4
Watch the reel.
Celestina Aleobua, Acting Reel, Vimeo
On screen,
behind the lens.
Acting Credits
Filmmaking & Curation
In the news.
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Pulse Nigeria
Celestina Aleobua Turns Questions of Belonging Into Award-Winning Films
With roots in Lesotho, formative years in South Africa, and a career now based in Toronto, her filmmaking is shaped by a transnational African experience.
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Pulse Kenya
Why Kenya is Becoming a Creative Crossroads for African Filmmakers
Celestina's Nairobi visit, for festival screenings, a documentary shoot, and the Seven Resilient Women showcase, signals a growing creative bridge across Africa.
CBC News
TIFF's The Big Pitch Gives Platform to Racialized Filmmakers
Celestina Aleobua is among a dozen finalists pitching at TIFF, seeking partners for her comedy series Jaded, following two first-generation Nigerian women reinventing their lives.
Fund Black Tax.
A debt-ridden Nigerian-Canadian woman returns home for her estranged father's funeral, only to be treated as her family's personal ATM, until she hijacks the burial to finally choose herself.
Celestina is raising funds for Black Tax, her next short film through ThatAfrikan Productions. Like Tina, When Will You Marry?, this film is grounded in a specific culture but universal in its emotional truth. Every dollar goes directly to production in Nigeria.
Support Black Tax →"What does it cost to choose yourself?"
Following her debut documentary Tina, When Will You Marry?, screened at over 40 festivals worldwide, Black Tax continues Celestina's mission to hold a mirror to culture, ask uncomfortable questions, and let audiences recognise themselves on screen.
Let's create together.
Casting, Collaborations, Press, Speaking