Caleb Femi

Last updated

Caleb Femi
Born1990 (age 34–35)
Kano, Nigeria
Occupations
  • Author
  • Filmmaker
  • Photographer
Notable workPoor (2020)
Awards Felix Dennis Prize for Best First Collection
Website www.calebfemi.com

Caleb Femi (born 1990) is a Nigerian-British author, film director, photographer, and former young people's laureate for London. His debut poetry collection, Poor, was awarded a Forward Prize for Poetry.

Contents

Early life

Caleb Femi was born in 1990 in Kano, Nigeria, [1] where he was brought up by his grandmother. [2] When he was seven years old, he moved to join his parents on the North Peckham Estate in London. [3] After leaving school, he studied English at Queen Mary, University of London. [2]

Career

From 2014 to 2016, Femi taught English at a secondary school in Tottenham. [2] In 2016, he was chosen as the first young people's laureate for London. [4] On 30 July 2020, he published his debut poetry collection, entitled Poor, [5] which won the Forward Prize's Felix Dennis Prize for Best First Collection in October 2021. [6]

Filmography

Femi has so far made and released four short films, serving as writer/director on each: [7]

Accolades

Femi was named in Dazed magazine's 2021 Dazed100, a list of the next generation shaping youth culture. [9]

References

  1. ↑ McConnell, Justine (21 July 2017). "Caleb Femi". writers make worlds. Retrieved 16 November 2020.
  2. 1 2 3 Peirson-Hagger, Ellen (28 October 2020). "Caleb Femi: 'Poetry is the art of the people'". New Statesman . Retrieved 14 December 2020.
  3. ↑ Armitstead, Claire (30 October 2020). "Caleb Femi: 'Henceforth I'm solely preoccupied with being a merchant of joy'". The Guardian . ISSN   0261-3077 . Retrieved 16 November 2020.
  4. ↑ Flood, Alison (3 October 2016). "Poet Caleb Femi named first young people's laureate for London". The Guardian. Retrieved 14 December 2020.
  5. ↑ "Poor by Caleb Femi". The Poetry Book Society. Retrieved 16 November 2020.
  6. ↑ Bayley, Sian (25 October 2021). "Kennard, Femi and Sealey win Forward Prizes for Poetry". The Bookseller . Retrieved 25 October 2021.
  7. ↑ "Caleb Femi". IMDb. Retrieved 20 October 2021.
  8. ↑ "UK Films Database: Giraffe". British Council . Archived from the original on 12 November 2025. Retrieved 12 November 2025.
  9. ↑ Dazed (6 April 2017). "Vote for Caleb Femi on the #Dazed100". Dazed. Retrieved 20 October 2021.
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