Will Niava

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Will Niava is an Ivorian-Ghanaian film director and screenwriter, currently based in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. [1] He is most noted for his short films Zoo (2019) [2] and Jazz Infernal (2025). [3]

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Biography

Born in Ivory Coast and raised in Ghana, Niava moved to Canada to study film at the Mel Hoppenheim School of Cinema. [1] Zoo, his debut short film, premiered at the Clermont-Ferrand International Short Film Festival in 2019, and had its Canadian premiere at the 2019 Regard short film festival. [4] Its subsequent screenings included the 2020 Cinéfest Sudbury International Film Festival, where it was runner-up for the Audience Choice award for short films. [5]

His second short film, Element, won the award for Best Short Film in the Rebels with a Cause competition at the 2023 Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival. [6]

His third short film, Jazz Infernal, premiered in the Short Cuts program at the 2025 Toronto International Film Festival. [7] The film was named to TIFF's annual year-end Canada's Top Ten list for 2025. [8]

He was also cowriter with Jérémy Comte of the forthcoming feature film Paradise. [9]

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